Apr 8, 2019
When musicians speak one-on-one to George Porter, Jr., they often share that he's a role model of theirs, he's their inspiration for playing the bass or the drums, or even for choosing to play funky music in the first place. George is polite. He smiles and says "thank you very much." But inside he's wondering what they're talking about and wishing they'd sit back down at their instrument and get to work. There's music left to be discovered and to play. His success, he says, comes from giving 100% each time he's performing. And having performed with Flea, John "Papa" Gros, Allen Toussaint, Keith Richards, Mick Jagger, David Byrne, and Tori Amos to name a few, he's, perhaps surprisingly, a nice and humble guy. I catch up with him after a long night in his home studio preparing some recordings for a New Orleans Jazz Fest release.