Fire on the Bayou in Bloomington, MN

The Meters
' third album for
Reprise
,
Fire on the Bayou
, is their best record for the label for a variety of reasons, not least of which is the high quality of material throughout the record and a focus from the band that keeps the music simmering, even if it never quite reaches a boil. That's not a bad thing, because the music IS simmering, always hot and enticing, never lukewarm or too cool. There's not anything that comes out and grabs your throat, the way that
"Hey Pocky Way"
does, but there never seems to be a concession to mainstream
funk
, the way
Cabbage Alley
or
Rejuvenation
seemed to be. This just keeps things rolling, nice and smooth. There's not anything that separates itself from its partners -- something that's unfortunately true of all of the
albums -- but the overall feel is better than
the Meters
' other
albums, since it has more grit and presence than its compatriots. [
Sundazed
's 2000 reissue contains one bonus track, a "long version" of
"Running Fast."
] ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine