Leo Nocentelli (born June 15, 1946)[1] is an American musician and songwriter best known as a founding member and lead guitarist of the funk band the Meters. He wrote the original versions of several funk classics such as "Cissy Strut" and "Hey Pocky A-Way". As a session musician he has recorded with a variety of notable artists such as Dr. John, Robert Palmer and Etta James. He is the recipient of a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award as a member of the Meters.
In 1964 he was drafted and served in the army for two years. During leaves he did session work in New Orleans. After the service he joined Art Neville and the Neville Sounds, at the time a recently founded seven-piece band. By 1968 the band consisted of four members: Nocentelli, Art Neville, George Porter, and Ziggy Modeliste.[1] The band had a fluid style and each instrument was free to go anywhere musically.[2] The band performed dance-style rhythm and blues at the Ivanhoe nightclub six nights a week. On Sundays, Nocentelli, Porter, and Modeliste performed jazz gigs.[1][5] Nocentelli said his bandmates were his biggest influence and called his experience up to this point in time the learning phase of his career.[6][7]
The band released two singles as the Meters, "Sophisticated Cissy" and "Cissy Strut", both originally written by Nocentelli.[8][9] The commercial success of "Cissy Strut" became an impetus for the band's subsequent recording career as the Meters.[9] From 1969 to 1977 the band released eight studio albums, with Nocentelli as one of the primary songwriters.[10] He wrote the original versions of funk songs such as "People Say" and "Hey Pocky A-Way".[6][11] Early on, improvisation was a major part of song development.[12]: 2 Though the band gained notoriety in the music community, the lack of commercial success along with managerial and artistic factors gave way to their disbandment in late 1970s.[13][5]
In 1971, Nocentelli recorded a solo debut album titled Another Side. He wrote the album during a brief span when the Meters were split up. Nocentelli sidelined the project because the Meters signed a record deal with Warner Records in 1972. The album was released years later in 2021.[17]
In the early 1980s Nocentelli toured with Jimmy Buffett. He moved to Los Angeles in 1982.[16] He continued to do session work and performed regularly with former bandmate George Porter as GEO/LEO.[9][11] He also remained close with Modeliste, who had moved to the San Francisco Bay Area. They performed in various quartet formations and released a live album titled Nocentelli: Live in San Francisco.[18][19] At one of their shows in 1989, Nocentelli and Porter invited Modeliste and Neville on stage. The impromptu performance was the first reunion of the original Meters.[9] The same year Nocentelli, Neville, and Porter formed The Funky Meters with Russell Batiste on drums. Nocentelli performed with the reincarnated lineup until 1993.[20]
He briefly moved back to New Orleans in the early 1990s and returned to Los Angeles in 1992.[18] He continued to perform with two Meters-inspired lineups: The Meter Men and the Meters Experience. The Meter Men are Nocentelli, Porter, and Modeliste with Page McConnell on keyboards; variations included keyboardists Rich Vogel, John Gros, and drummer Russell Batiste.[12][21] The Meters Experience is Nocentelli in various quartets with Bernie Worrell, Bill Dickens, Oteil Burbridge, Al Di Meola, Jason Crosby, George Laks, Albert Margolis, Jamal Batiste, Ricky Cortez, Felix Pollard, and others.[4][11][22]
Early on, Nocentelli used a Gibson ES-175 hollow body guitar. He switched to a semi-hollow Fender Starcaster in mid-1970s. Around 2001 he switched to the semi-hollow Gibson ES-335.[9][14] Nocentelli has performed in several reunions with the original Meters lineup.[23][22] He moved to New Orleans in 2015 and continues to perform.[16] He received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018 as a member of the Meters.[24]
Style
Nocentelli was self-taught. In his early teens he emulated jazz guitarists while listening to phonograph records.[3][6] He was drawn to jazz, but to survive professionally he had to become proficient in multiple genres.[3][4] In 1960s and 1970s he was part of an era in which New Orleans jazz gave way to rhythm and blues, and funk.[1][25] Nocentelli's band, The Meters, were innovative and set the stylistic tone of New Orleans funk.[1][13] The band's early works were rooted in improvisation.[12][26] According to Nocentelli, genres are relative and he alludes to incorporating different genres in his style.[7][4] He said in funk as well as in rhythm guitar you have to complement and react to what you hear, and said that is not a teachable skill.[11] In addition to live performance and session work, songwriting was a significant part of Nocentelli's contribution.[10][9]
