Tower of Power Edit

Formed:
1968, over 41 years ago.
Names:
Also releases as: The Motowns.
Snapshot:
A group with 35 releases, and credited once on others' music. 24 members.

Profile Edit

Tower of Power are the funk/soul ensemble from California. In addition to their success in the early Seventies they have been a support band popular with rock and pops biggest names.

Ex-Motowns sax player Emilio Castillo got together with Stephen ‘The Funky Doctor’ Kupka and Mic Gillette in Oakland in the late 60s and started writing soul/funk tunes. Gathering other musicians around them, they took the name Tower of Power and started playing the Bay Area clubs, eventually securing a contract with San Francisco Records.

After a somewhat uneven debut, where the band were still trying to find their sound, their second album Bump City began to get them noticed, and the track “You’re Still a Young Man” made the Top 30 of the Billboard 100. This began a purple patch of critically acclaimed albums, with one of their signature tunes “What is Hip?” coming from their self-titled third album, which has between their most commercially successful.

After Urban Renewal vocalist Lenny Williams moved on and the band were having increasing difficulty producing chart-bound singles. Even the move towards disco on the Back on the Streets album failed to reverse the trend. Subsequent releases failed to set the charts alight, though the critics got behind the hard funk of 1993’s T.O.P. album. Despite a decline in popularity for their self-penned material, the band were in-demand for backing duties from artists including Santana, Elton John and Rod Stewart. Tower of Power still tour, in their own right, today.

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Funk, Soul, Easy Listening, Jazz, Traditional R&B. Vote on Genres

36 Releases (35 under their own name and 1 credit on others' music) Edit

Members Edit

15236774 CONTRIBUTOR

Adolfo Acosta

current & founder member
15236782 CONTRIBUTOR

Brent Carter

current & founder member
13711302 CONTRIBUTOR

Carmen Grillo

current & founder member
180123 CONTRIBUTOR Chester Thompson

Chester Thompson

current & founder member
13718072 CONTRIBUTOR

Jeff Tamelier

current & founder member
15236775 CONTRIBUTOR

Larry Braggs

current & founder member
139481 CONTRIBUTOR

Lee Thornburg

current & founder member
15236777 CONTRIBUTOR

Mark Harper

current & founder member
15236773 CONTRIBUTOR

Michael 'Iron Mike' Bogart

current & founder member
15236780 CONTRIBUTOR

Michael Jeffries

current & founder member
96043 CONTRIBUTOR

Roger Smith

current & founder member
15236783 CONTRIBUTOR

Ron E. Beck

current & founder member
15236779 CONTRIBUTOR

Skip Mesquite

current & founder member
15236781 CONTRIBUTOR

Tom Bowes

current & founder member
15236776 CONTRIBUTOR

Tom Politzer

current & founder member
249801 CONTRIBUTOR

Emilio Castillo

current & founder member
    • 1968-
18512 CONTRIBUTOR

Francis Rocco Prestia

current & founder member
    • 1968-
249802 CONTRIBUTOR

Mic Gillette

current & founder member
    • 1968-
244782 CONTRIBUTOR Stephen Kupka

Stephen Kupka

current & founder member
    • 1968-
15236772 CONTRIBUTOR

David Garibaldi

current member
    • 1970-
71308 CONTRIBUTOR Greg Adams

Greg Adams

current member
    • 1970-
15236778 CONTRIBUTOR

Brent Byars

current member
    • 1972-
239029 CONTRIBUTOR

Lenny Pickett

    • 1972-1981
27861 CONTRIBUTOR

Lenny Williams

    • 1972-1975

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YouTube videos Edit

Tower of Power & Joss Stone - (Heaven Must Have Sent) Your Precious Love (Snippet) - New Song 2009!
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Trivia Edit

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Top editors for Tower of Power

Editor Edits
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