Multi-Cultural Soul Band Tower of Power Reflects on its Love for and The 10-piece band also has a new album, Soul Side of Town, its first in nearly a decade, that prominently features longtime players Kupka, drummer David Garibaldi and bassist Francis Rocco Prestia. I dont know if its true but I heard somewhere that If You Dont Know Me By Now by Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes was somehow inspired by Youre Still a Young Man. Id like to think that it had something to do with it. Guys go to music school to learn that type of stuff and Rocco is like the ultimate garage player whos already got all that going on. We realized its a blessing that we dont sound like other people. The thing is, theres a billion guitar players and drummers. We were exposed to all of this stuff all the time. CDs were co-produced by you with Joe Vannelli who is known for making great sounding records. For fans of: Tower of Power, Marvin Gaye, James Brown, Otis Redding, Al Green, Sam Cooke Currently tours over 200 dates a year worldwide as the lead vocalist for the legendary soul band Tower of Power. You know, we have a song called Diggin On James Brown? We were unsure whether we should play it on those gigs in case he responded like, Ill see you in court! (laughs) But we decided to do it anyway. What made you step out so many times yet always return? They were going to release them back before the big financial meltdown. Wed like it to be you. Lenny told me he rolled over in bed and told his wife, I think hes serious this time. It was January then. From that moment on, I knew Id be OK. That thought helped me to heal and get back to my life.. So, we wound up staying, those guys were there, we did it and it was cool. Then everything dried up no record deals, nothing happening. What made you fall in love with Black music? And when I was in the military, I continued with mallets and tympani. Tower Of Power - "How To Lose A Gig" - Marcus Scott - YouTube Hes so meticulous and creative. I like melodies. Ive got the perfect guy for you. Emilio called and asked me to audition in Vegas. Scott: I was so thrilled when you came back because I was too young to catch you in the early `70s heyday. After analyzing the passengers data, the investigators piece together that something released from the airplane after takeoff caused the commotion. So I said, Lets just make the music weve been making. As soon as we did that, things started to get better.. I remember their bari sax player, Kim Hutchcroft. But most of . He didnt want to come between us. Weve had very trying times, Castillo said. I felt ashamedand I never did that stuff again. James Brown also said in an article back in `78 that theres no Black band in the world that plays my stuff better than Tower of Power. So, playing Black music and getting compliments from The Godfather of Soul was really meaningful. Most commercial airplanes fly around 35,000 or 36,000 feet in the air. Marcus Scott Back 2 Da Soul - New Releases Now The album reached the Top 20 on the R&B charts and included the hit single, "Darlin' I Think About You." Doc: Once again, Black music was the music that lit me up, but I like the Great American Songbook, too. In December 1974, Marcus Scott announced his departure from Tower of Power. How did you guys deal with that? As of now, it is difficult to predict the network's decision given the show's international appeal. He contacted me about Doc and I writing some lyrics about the COVID-19 pandemic to a really funky up tempo track they had with just the hook: Just keep holding on / Groove on. He also wanted me to sing it. Doc: Somebody once told me that they equated the bridge Hipness is what it is / And sometimes hipness is what it aint to Shakespeares Hamlet saying To be or not to be. I got a kick out of that. They both suffered serious injuries but have since returned to the lineup. I felt I had the parts down pretty close. My resolve has always been there., Aidin Vaziri is The San Francisco Chronicles pop music critic. That moved me to incorporate that into the way that I keep rhythm. They were always very friendly. A more recent docket listing Coming back four times was like, when you have a relationship with a woman and it doesnt work, you leave but come back because you want it to work. San Francisco, CA - When Tower of Power made the announcement that lead singer Rick Stevens would be replaced circa late 1972 by a then unknown Lenny Williams, the then still in it's adolescent years Tower of Power fan base freaked out, "You can't replace Rick." I was fast on my feet with clever things to say. TOWER OF POWER & LEAD SINGERS - Tower of Power Discussion Born and raised in a city that is well known for world class soul . This something may have been an unknown toxin or another piece of dangerous equipment. They werent even going to try out anyone else but I talked my way into an audition. My album is called Back 2 Da Soul because we just wanted to get back to soul music. When it was over, David walked up to me with tears in his eyes and said, I always dreamed it could be this way.. Then I moved back to the Bay Area and I met the guy that was playing guitar for Tower of Power. David: Mimi (Emilio) brought this piece at our old rehearsal space in Berkeley that we shared with another band called The Loading Zone. There is a track called Just Fine and I always describe the song as if I were a preacher trying to convince his fiance or future wife that she will be just fine. Doc: No. Tower of Power - Marcus Scott Bio. He had The Fillmore and other venues. Soulful. I just kept that picture in my mind. Finally, he was tired of the cold weather and longed for a change of scenery. We use cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features and to analyse our traffic. Its been hard for me to see the physical aspect of his health deteriorate over the years but we jokingly tell each other all the time, Rocco is going to be at all of our funerals. Scott went on to have a successful solo career. He told me, This is an opportunity of a lifetime; you should go for it. Little did I know that he had already called Emilio Castillo, the leader of the band, and told him, Hey man, stop all these auditions. The Don Ellis Orchestra (Jazz) with Ten Years After (English Blues Rock) and The Buddy Miles Express (Soul) a wide range of music. No matter what the circumstances looked like, I filled my mind with Faith and the thing that I wanted to happen. Scott exchanged demos with Surack and Hornsby while working on Tower of Powers 50th Anniversary Live DVD, and it was agreed that he should come to Sweetwater Studios to record the tracks for what would become Back 2 Da Soul. For Scott, who sought a classic feel for the tracks while still wanting it to sound modern and hi-fi, the partnership made perfect sense. A subscription to PACER is required. As the investigation into this mysterious disappearance deepens, the characters discover startling secrets about their own lives along the way. Emilio: Marcus Scott is out of Memphis, Tennessee. Soulful. Almost every day, people come up to Emilio Castillo and tell him they cant believe Tower of Power, the Oakland funk band he co-founded in 1968, has been around for 50 years. All the stuff we did with Huey was really cool. Emilio: I remember Seawind opening for us in Hawaii when they were still known as Ox! Doc: I always had a way with words. I just started playing with them and the whole band. A lot of unique players in a lot of unique bands. Tower of Power is an American R&B and funk based band and horn section, originating in Oakland, California, that has been performing since 1968. Emilio Castillo: God did it and I just showed up! Scott: I met you at The Canyon Club last year and remember you telling me that as good as you were sounding, you still had a long way to go as far as recuperating from getting hit by that train in front of Yoshis. This allows the window to stay open during flight, which helps prevent cabin pressure from becoming soextreme that it causes windows to break. You know, social ills such as racism werent happening in the music thing. When we performed it on TV, they blotted it out as if we had said the F word or somethin! So, as he was taking me to the airport, he asked if Id like to do a few more songs with him. So, it was a real thrill playing with him. Drum set became my focus. As primary lyricist and baritone sax man, Doc has been at the very foundation of the band musically (at the bottom end of the horns tonal register) and philosophically (kickin low end theory that led to he and leader Emilio Castillos creative entrepreneurship as songwriters). I was 15 and one of the first musicians I got was Rocco (Francis Prestia) on bass. They had three horns already Emilio on alto (hed later switch to tenor), Skip Mesquite on tenor and a guy named Gary we called Raw Soul on trumpet (who went away to college and was replaced by Mic Gillette). Id already recorded So Very Hard to Go and knew that song was perfect for Lennys voice because when I was writing it, I had already written some songs with him and knew the way he sang. Track listing [ edit] "East Bay, All the Way!" [1] [2] This album is the last Tower of Power album to feature lead vocalists Ray Greene and Marcus Scott, and is also the last album to feature legendary bassist Francis Rocco Prestia before his death a few months later. But when I got successful, he came to a show, Emilio dedicated Youre Still a Young Man to him and that made it good. Scott: Please share some details about the lyrical development of What is Hip.. First and foremost, he was dissatisfied with his current situation. It is possible that some people did not watch all of the episodes, as installments may be spaced out over consecutive days. Scott: It is a great song musically and lyrically timeless as a question just like Marvin Gayes Whats Going On.. Fox Theater, 1807 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. We really miss him We just had to move on. A Scott Galloway: Your drumming is so musical and your approach to creating parts so integral. All information published on this website is provided in good faith and for general use only. I didnt see Earvin for a while Then, several years later, I was able to thank him for letting me hang with him. Marcus Scott has an interesting voice, sometimes gravelly, other times sounds like Sam Cooke, and even John Legend (a little). The DVD is recommended since the visuals are key to enjoying the band's frisky dance steps and overall joy these guys are having, even if the editing is a little on the caffeinated side. Contact him via: [emailprotected]). Memphis singer Marcus Scott helps propel Tower of Power into its next 50 years. I lost all feeling. Then came Sly Stone all the mix of music happening here in the Bay Area. Marcus Scott on vocals - Prime Time Entertainment, Inc. - Facebook You have entered an incorrect email address! Then along came the Seawind Horns which, thanks to Quincy Jones, became the next popular sound for horns in the studio. They did a great job! And I keep working to make it better every single day. I wanted it to be in the presence of all the musicians, where we are all sitting down, jamming on a record like they would back in the day. Harvey came in and said, Youve gotta do this session! We were at the end of a tour and on our way home. The groove, the vibe, the guys. His licks were already in my mind. There have been a number of lead vocalists, the best-known being Lenny Williams, who fronted the band between early 1973 and late 1974, the period of their greatest commercial success. I explained that I was trying to do the best album of my career. My doctor told me, Luckily, you had no neurological damage, Dave. For the past few years, Marcus Scott has been making a name for himself as the lead singer of the legendary band Tower of Power. ", Reasons for Leaving - Good and Bad Reasons for Job Departures, What was the immediate reason for Phatiks departure from his , the REAL reason for his sudden departure from France for New , the reason for his departure | English examples in context | Ludwig, Question 3 | Of Mice and Men Questions | Q & A | GradeSaver. I noticed that when I would play on my cymbals, he would play a light legato soundbut if I played on my hi hat, he would tighten it up so it was really percussive. Yet, much like Scotlands Average White Band, you have represented the music to the fullest. Hes very sensitive and quite a player. In the interview below, he talks about his classical music roots, his passion for writing, and the bands overall contributions and takeaways to the sweet-sweet artform of Black music. I saw that there was no more dope and everybody was really friendly. Then when Tower of Power came along, I had something into really sink into. Emilio: I just did, actually! Emilio: I had to take him off of the road because he kept breaking down. Diane said, Joe would love to have you come in and do a couple of tracks. His studio is right below our office down in L.A. Everything was open. From co-writing nearly all of the bands classic songs with partner Stephen Doc Kupka to monitoring the turnstile of musicians and especially singers that have come through T.O.P., he is a tireless soldier of Soul who stands proud to fan the flame of T.O.P.s mighty legacy. R&B to him was like rap is to some parents now. Soothing. Scott: In this time when a listener cant seem to catch one instrumental break or solo on a song, Tower of Power gives us a new single titled Look In My Eyes that not only has a great arrangement and lead vocal, there are four tight instrumental solos plus female background vocal sweetening. Scott: How did you construct your drum part for the classic Soul Vaccination?.