Artist · chart history · #574 in indie & aaa artist polls
The Meters
Band New Orleans United States Formed 1965
The Meters formed in 1965 in New Orleans, United States. The Meters has 8 chart appearances on 7 radio countdowns from 3 stations on RockLists, spanning 2001–2026. The most successful song on radio countdowns is “Cissy Strut”, which appears on 3 lists with a best position of #209. The station that charted The Meters most often is WFPK (Louisville, KY), with 3 appearances.
The Meters formed in New Orleans in 1965, and they may be the tightest groove machine the city ever produced. Zigaboo Modeliste on drums, George Porter Jr. on bass, Leo Nocentelli on guitar and Art Neville on keyboards built their sound out of the second-line shuffle, all syncopated snap and elastic pocket, with guitar and keyboard riffs flaring over the top. Cyril Neville joined on vocals and percussion in 1970.
"Cissy Strut" and "Look-Ka Py Py" are pure funk scripture, and when they weren't making their own records they were the backing band behind Lee Dorsey, Dr. John, Allen Toussaint and Robert Palmer. On Rejuvenation, from 1974, "It Ain't No Use" is a smoldering, slow-burning groove, the band locking in and refusing to let go.
The big hits never came, but the influence did. They stand alongside James Brown as founders of funk, and generations of players have raided their grooves. The original run ended in 1977, and the band later carried on as the Funky Meters. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominated them four times, and the Grammys handed them a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs by The Meters on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Peak year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cissy Strut | 3 | #209 | – | – | |
| 2 | Ride Your Pony | 1 | #488 | – | – | |
| 3 | It Ain't No Use | 1 | #1063 | – | – | |
| 4 | Stretch Your Rubberband | 1 | #59 | – | – | |
| 5 | Down By the River | 1 | #1173 | – | – |
Albums with charting songs
Where each song was first released, from MusicBrainz.
Every countdown appearance
| Year | # | Song | Countdown |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 507 | Cissy Strut | The Colorado Sound Top 1055 Songs You Discovered on The Colorado Sound |
| 2025 | 209 | Cissy Strut | The Colorado Sound Top 800 Mood Booster Songs |
| 2022 | 371 | Cissy Strut | The Colorado Sound Top 1055 Colorado Sound Songs of All Time |
| 2020 | 1063 | It Ain't No Use | WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time |
| 2006 | 577 | Artist ranking | WXPN 885 All-Time Greatest Artists (2006) |
| 2005 | 59 | Stretch Your Rubberband | WFPK Top 100 Party Songs |
| 2001 | 488 | Ride Your Pony | WFPK 2001 Greatest Songs of All Time |
| 2001 | 1173 | Down By the River | WFPK 2001 Greatest Songs of All Time |
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