George Porter, Jr. Confirms 78th Birthday Celebration with Runnin’ Pardners on Christmas

George Porter, Jr., photo by Steve Rapport

George Porter, Jr. has confirmed the return of his beloved annual birthday show. Staging as always in his New Orleans hometown, the legendary funk forerunner will return to the hallowed Maple Leaf Bar to celebrate his 78th birthday on December 25 at 9 pm. Porter, whose birthday falls on Dec. 26, will be accompanied by his tried and true backing trio of the Runnin’ Pardners, featuring Mike Lemmler on keys, Terrence Houston on drums and Chris Adkins on guitar. Find tickets and more information at mapleleafbar.com.

After toasting to another lap around the sun, Porter’s long year on the road will come to an end on Dec. 31, when he travels with the Runnin’ Pardners to a special New Year’s Eve engagement at Venice, Calif.’s The Venice West. There, he’ll celebrate another year of the tireless musical pursuits that earned him a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and in the last 12 months brought such memorable moments as his return to the Maple Leaf after back surgery, the Art Neville and Eddie Bo tribute at Tipitina’s and a set in Tulane’s annual Tipping Point all-star benefit concert. In February, the ace bassist and his band released the groundbreaking instrumental album Porter’s Pocket.

“Pretty much every Monday that we play, the first 20 minutes of the gig is something that comes off the top of my head,” Porter said of the process behind his latest release in a Relix interview. “I might think about something at home earlier that day and then fool around with it, but usually, I just make something up. Sometimes I tell Terrence to give me a pocket, then he’ll start playing and I’ll come up with a bassline. Songs come out of that and also during the gig. We’ll jam out of another song, and I might start a bassline that I’ll want to go back and revisit.” Read more in “George Porter: Pocket Ace.”