![]() Our sincere condolences go out to his wife Julia, his daughter Megan and their entire family.”įormed in the late-Sixties as the Haight-Ashbury scene flourished across the San Francisco Bay, Tower of Power cultivated a brass-heavy sound that would make them one of the most important funk groups of the Seventies - and their horn section one of the most coveted. “Mic was without a doubt the greatest brass player I’ve ever known. “The Tower of Power family was stunned today by the news that Mic Gillette, our dear friend and bandmate going back to 1966, passed away,” Emilio Castillo, Tower of Power bandleader, said in a statement. Also the view even at the back of the venue was great.Mic Gillette, first trumpet and founding member of Oakland funk outfit Tower of Power, died over the weekend after suffering a heart attack, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Also, Marcus’s and Emilio’s voices were crystal clear. I could hear each of the trumpets and saxes include the baritone sax. I was positioned at stage right, stage left and at the back of the theatre and the sound was spectacular everywhere I stood. The band had only stage monitors and it looked like everything was routed through the MIM’s outstanding sound system. The MIM is perfectly designed for bands like Tower Of Power. Also, after the last show, they came out and signed CD/Albums and even had photos taken with fans.Īs for the MIM, you really need to see a show there. Just the ability to perform 2 1.5 hour shows on the same night is amazing for any group, but to change the setlists just shows how truly great this band is. From what I heard from the ushers, the setlist was different for each show on the same day. This was their last performance at the MIM. They ended the set with 2 of their hit songs, “So Very Hard To GO” and the fan favorite, “What Is Hip”. This is when Marcus showed his dynamic front man abilities performing a lot of the same shuffles and movements that James Brown would perform. It started out and ended with “Diggin’ on James Brown”, with some of James Brown songs intermixed. ![]() One of the highlights of the show for me was when they played a tribute to the Godfather of Soul, James Brown. On the third song, Marcus came out into the crowd and sang “You Ought To Be Having Fun”. Marcus Scott, lead singer for Tower Of Powerįrom the very start they came out jamming with “We Came to Play”. ![]() But tonight, we got to hear “Stop” and “On The Soul Side Of Town” from their new album, Soul Side Of Town. It would not be a Tower Of Power concert without hearing their greatest hits, “You’re Still A Young Man”, “We Can To Play”, “So Very Hard To Go” and of course “What Is Hip”. When they played their new song, “Stop”, he had the audience sing along shouting out “Stop It” during the song. He seems to interact very well with the audience. He has been a great addition to the band as lead singer and dynamic front man. They provide the rhythm, beat and general continuity of the songs that the trumpets and saxes accent. This is not to say that the non-brass section members of the band don’t play an important role. However, Tom “Big Love” Politzer really takes the spotlight when he moves to the front of the stage to perform his mini sax solos on a number of different songs. First is Emilio who plays sax, sings and generally leads the band. There are to members of the brass section that stand out. You have to remember that Tower Of Power is primarily a brass section (trumpets and saxes) band, so those members take front and center stage. Horn and Brass sections for Tower Of Power Taking over the role of lead singer and front person is Marcus Scott. They are backed up by keyboardist Roger Smith, guitarist Jerry Cortez, longtime drummer David Garibaldi and new comer on bass, Marc van Wageningen (Marc VW). That rounds out the brass section of the band. Politzer, affectionally known as “Big Love” joins Emilio on sax. They are joined by trumpet players Adolfo Acosta and Sal Cracchiolo. Stephen “Doc” Kupka still plays baritone sax. So, who are the current members of Tower Of Power? Emilio Castillo still plays sax, sings and is the leader of the band. Over the past 50 years the band has had a number of members, but Emilio and Stephen have always been there.
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