For over 50 years, TOWER OF POWER has been creating their own kind of soul and funk music. And in 2022, the legendary Oakland, California R&B trailblazers will be coming to The London Palladium for a night of feelgood celebrations and all-time classics.
Returning to the UK on 16th November 2022, Tower of Power will be fronted as ever by iconic bandleader and saxophonist Emilio Castillo for a show that promises ‘A Celebration of 50 Years of Funk And Soul’.
Castillo will be joined by the reputable modern line-up of the band, which features co-founder Stephen “Doc” Kupka on baritone sax, longtime drummer David Garibaldi, and lead vocalist Marcus Scott. Other special guests are also confirmed to be appearing across the evening.
The show directly follows the release of their high-spirited live album ‘50 Years of Funk & Soul’ last year (a momentous hometown performance as-recorded in Oakland in 2018); a record that offered a worthy reminder to the world of the Tower of Power’s timeless tunes and unbeatable musicianship.
Speaking about the upcoming Tower of Power show celebrating ‘50 Years of Funk & Soul’, Emilio Castillo says:
“People come up to me all the time and say, ‘Wow man, 50 years! We can’t believe it,’” he laughs. “You can’t believe it? I’m the one that can’t believe it. We’ve been through a lot of ups and downs and learned a lot along the way. We’ve affected a lot of people’s lives and done a lot of work that we’re very proud of. The band has a real family atmosphere. It’s been very rewarding.”
Castillo was only 17 years old when he met Kupka and started to assemble the band that would become Tower of Power. “I had no vision at all,” he recalls now. “I just loved playing soul music. My idols were a local band called The Spyders and they had gigged in Sacramento. I thought, ‘Man, if I could just get to Sacramento that would be it.’ That’s literally how small my vision was.”
The band has long since surpassed Castillo’s admittedly modest aspirations, travelling the world, enjoying hit singles on their own and backing some of the most legendary artists of the last 50 years – a list that includes Otis Redding, Elton John, Santana, the Grateful Dead, John Lee Hooker, Aerosmith, Bonnie Raitt, and countless others. In the process they’ve defined an “Oakland soul” sound as instantly recognizable as those from Castillo’s hometown, Detroit, as well as inspirations like Memphis and Philadelphia.
With classic hits including “You’re Still a Young Man,” “So Very Hard to Go,” “What is Hip?” and “Don’t Change Horses”; to newly-minted favourites like “Stop” and “Do You Like That?” (from recent albums Soul Side of Town (2018) and Step Up (2020) – out now on Artistry Music/Mack Avenue Music Group); Tower of Power have accumulated a rich repertoire to rival the greatest.
Since 1968, Tower of Power have consistently won-over audiences across the globe; appearing before sold-out crowds year-in/year-out and inspiring new generations with their unique, boundary pushing sound. While Tower’s horn driven sound often defies categorisation, the band’s leader and founding member, Emilio Castillo, has best described it as “Urban Soul Music”.
With a sound that has definitively lasted the ages, Tower of Power will be bringing a little of that “Urban Soul Music” to the British capital on 16th November 2022; celebrating fifty years and counting of classic hits and goodtime vibes at The Palladium, London.
TICKETS ON SALE FRIDAY 4 MARCH HERE:
www.myticket.co.uk/artists/tower-of-power
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Or please contact: thom@sonicpr.co.uk