Tower of Power

For 55 years, Tower of Power has delivered the best in funk and soul music.”We were a Soul band called The Motowns.” recalls Emilio Castillo. “Rocco was the bass player, I was there, and my brother was the drummer. I met “Doc” Kupka back in 1968, and gave him an audition. He came in the band, and we eventually changed our name to the Tower of Power.” The reason for the band name change was that they had a specific goal in mind.

East Bay Grease defined their sound and landed them with Warner Brothers. Bump City, their 1972 debut for the label, was a hit on both the Billboard 200 and the R&B Albums chart, and netted them the hits “You’re Still A Young Man” and “Down to The Nightclub.” The 70s were a boom period with radio classics like “So Very Hard to Go” and “What Is Hip?,” and the band continued to tour and record over the years. Castillo says their love of the stage is the same today as it was back in 1968.

WAR

In 1969, while America called for peace, a bold new band emerged with a name that raised eyebrows – WAR. Their mission? To spread messages of unity, hope, and social change through an unforgettable fusion of funk, jazz, Latin, R&B, and rock. Founding members included Lonnie Jordan, Howard Scott, Lee Oskar, B.B. Dickerson, Harold Brown, Thomas “Papa Dee” Allen, and Charles Miller.

Tracks like “Low Rider,” “Slippin’ Into Darkness,” and “The Cisco Kid” became cultural staples, blending streetwise storytelling with infectious grooves. Even NASA played “Why Can’t We Be Friends?” during the first U.S.-Soviet space mission – a testament to the band’s global reach.

Today, WAR continues to light up stages across the world, performing over 150 shows a year. Their influence spans generations – sampled by top artists, featured in film and TV, and cherished by loyal fans. More than a band, WAR is a movement – and their music is as relevant now as it was when it all began.