Tower of Power, fueled by its critically acclaimed horn section, will fill the Samala Showroom with its famous funky brand of soul when the R&B band returns to the Chumash Casino Resort at 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 17. Tickets for the show are $25, $30 and $35.
Since 1968, Tower of Power has been recording, touring and entertaining audiences worldwide with its unique offering of “urban soul music,” as described by band leader and founding member Emilio Castillo.
The Oakland-based group first captured commercial success with its 1972 album Bump City, which cracked the Top 20 on Billboard’s R&B Albums chart and featured “You’re Still a Young Man” and “Down to the Nightclub.” Tower of Power went on to become a driving force in R&B in the 1970s with hits such as “So Very Hard to Go,” “Soul Vaccination, “What Is Hip?” and “Don’t Change Horses (In the Middle of a Stream.”
Tower of Power’s 44-year odyssey began when Castillo, a tenor saxophone player, joined forces with Stephen “Doc” Krupa, whose baritone sax quickly became an integral part of Tower of Power’s sound. The band is currently touring with 10 members, including bassist Francis Rocco Prestia, drummer David Garibaldi, Larry Braggs on lead vocals, Roger Smith on keyboards, Tom E. Politzer on tenor sax and Adolfo Acosta, a Santa Barbara native, on trumpet.
Over the years, the Tower of Power Horns have recorded with hundreds of artists as diverse as Aerosmith, Elton John, Little Feat, Phish, Santana, Heart and many others.
Tower of Power celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2008 with a special reunion show at the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco. In addition to the 10 current members of the band, another 20 musicians and vocalists that at one time held a position with the band appeared at the show, which was filmed and available on DVD.
Each year, Tower of Power tours the United States, Japan and Europe, playing to sold-out crowds. Recent releases include Great American Songbook, a collection of classic soul tunes, and the 40th Anniversary Concert DVD. The band has never been busier or in more demand. New generations of fans come to see the band perform as their timeless music continues to excite fans of all ages.
Don’t miss an opportunity to see this famous band in the 1,400-seat Samala Showroom — one of the top live music venues in Santa Barbara County.
Located on Highway 246 in Santa Ynez, the Chumash Casino Resort is an age 18-or-older venue. Tickets for all events are available at the Chumash Casino Resort’s Club Chumash. Click here or call StarTicketsPlus at 800.585.3737.
— Mike Traphagen is a public relations specialist for the Chumash Casino Resort.