Tower of Power 這個(gè)活躍了近半個(gè)世紀(jì)的Funk與R&B界的長(zhǎng)青樹(shù)樂(lè)團(tuán)，總是聆聽(tīng)者撫慰人心的一帖良方，把那些生活中的悲涼全盤(pán)托出，再經(jīng)由與聆聽(tīng)者共鳴，直至把聆聽(tīng)者那些消極情緒驅(qū)散殆盡。你很難不被這種含有大量切分的節(jié)奏與未經(jīng)太多修飾的嗓音旋律所感觸，這種隨著心緒而緩緩溢出的音樂(lè)也使得T.O.P的歌迷經(jīng)過(guò)了一代又一代人的悉心品味。 從1968年開(kāi)始，至今已經(jīng)演出逾四十個(gè)年頭，發(fā)行了17張錄音室專(zhuān)輯、5張現(xiàn)場(chǎng)專(zhuān)輯以及8張單曲。 上世紀(jì)七十年代的美國(guó)，正是Funk音樂(lè)大放異彩的一個(gè)特定階段，T.O.P游走于那個(gè)時(shí)代潮流音樂(lè)的浪尖。時(shí)至今日，與他們同臺(tái)合作的世界級(jí)音樂(lè)人數(shù)不勝數(shù)，而在被媒體采訪時(shí)沒(méi)有一個(gè)不是感慨萬(wàn)千的。樂(lè)隊(duì)靈魂Emilio Castillo從探索Soul的極致婉約開(kāi)始，慢慢奠定了T.O.P今后所走的Funk音樂(lè)之路。而數(shù)十年來(lái)跟隨他們的粉絲中不乏世界巨星，這其中有Elton John，Santana，Rod Stewart，Aerosmith，TOTO等等，這些人把T.O.P掛在嘴邊的一個(gè)原因便是——這幫家伙巡演了快五十年了！ 每場(chǎng)演出，樂(lè)隊(duì)都表現(xiàn)了強(qiáng)大的現(xiàn)場(chǎng)爆發(fā)力及戲劇效果。1969年舊金山演奏會(huì)中，萬(wàn)千觀眾瘋狂吶喊，1974年在玫瑰露天劇場(chǎng)的演出，竟有八千萬(wàn)觀眾守在電視機(jī)前，將他們推上媒體焦點(diǎn)。透過(guò)樂(lè)團(tuán)編制里的Horn section和套鼓、Bass、電吉他等等現(xiàn)代樂(lè)器的配合，Tower of Power將黑人的音樂(lè)發(fā)揮得淋漓盡致。放肆的切分音，營(yíng)造出原始的放克精神；毫無(wú)保留的唱腔，徹底表現(xiàn)出黑人靈魂樂(lè)的情緒。 樂(lè)隊(duì)成員Francis Rocco Prestia，是指彈FUNK創(chuàng)造者。 Rocco出生在美國(guó)加里弗尼亞的Sonora，在南奧克蘭的Fremont長(zhǎng)大。從小受母親的影響，Rocco第一次接觸音樂(lè)是學(xué)習(xí)吉它。而真正對(duì)他的音樂(lè)事業(yè)起到?jīng)Q定性影響作用的，是電臺(tái)里播放的早期的搖滾音樂(lè)。在加入Emilio Castillo的樂(lè)隊(duì)進(jìn)行演奏之前，Rocco演奏許多年的吉它。但是加入了樂(lè)隊(duì)以后，他卻改演奏貝司，并且在貝司的世界發(fā)起了一場(chǎng)革命，并且讓許多人 對(duì)貝司發(fā)生了興趣，開(kāi)始學(xué)習(xí)演奏。當(dāng)時(shí)，Rocco所在的樂(lè)隊(duì)會(huì)演奏許多樂(lè)隊(duì)的作品，比如Beatles、Rolling Stones等，沒(méi)過(guò)多久，樂(lè)隊(duì)開(kāi)始演奏R&B的東西，并且加了一些管樂(lè)器進(jìn)來(lái)。隨后，他們就開(kāi)始演奏James Brown一類(lèi)的作品。“TheRock”就是受James Brown的影響，再加上一些Motown還有Memphis的東西而出來(lái)的作品。而影響Rocco的貝司手包括James Jamerson，Chuck Rainey，Jerry Jemmott還有Duck Dunn。通過(guò)這些音樂(lè)領(lǐng)路人，Rocco創(chuàng)造并發(fā)展了自己的風(fēng)格，那就是后來(lái)被人們稱(chēng)為指彈Funk的演奏風(fēng)格。 他的樂(lè)隊(duì)－Tower Of Power也很快的開(kāi)始了創(chuàng)作音樂(lè)，并且開(kāi)始在當(dāng)?shù)氐母鱾€(gè)演出場(chǎng)所進(jìn)行演出。而在鼓手David Garibaldi加入了樂(lè)隊(duì)以后，樂(lè)隊(duì)就算真正的開(kāi)始運(yùn)轉(zhuǎn)起來(lái)了。 1971年，樂(lè)隊(duì)發(fā)行了第一張專(zhuān)輯《East Bay Grease》，這張?jiān)讵?dú)立唱片公司發(fā)行的專(zhuān)輯后來(lái)被人們認(rèn)為是Tower Of Power樂(lè)隊(duì)創(chuàng)造經(jīng)典的開(kāi)始。在那之后不久，樂(lè)隊(duì)于1972年同著名的華納唱片公司簽約，他們的專(zhuān)輯也進(jìn)入了最佳銷(xiāo)量排行榜。 樂(lè)隊(duì)的第二張專(zhuān)輯《Bump City》中，也產(chǎn)生了如You Got to Funkifize和You’re Still A Young Man這樣的經(jīng)典歌曲，你可以聽(tīng)聽(tīng)You Got To Funkifize中的經(jīng)典的貝司演奏，它可以說(shuō)是Rocco演奏風(fēng)格的一個(gè)非常好的代表。 Tower Of Power的第三張專(zhuān)輯的名字非常簡(jiǎn)單，就是使用了樂(lè)隊(duì)的名字Tower Of Power，但是它卻是一張絕對(duì)經(jīng)典的作品。其中也包括了This Time It’s Real，So Very Hard To Go，Soul Vaccination這樣的熱門(mén)歌曲，當(dāng)然還有不得不提的，F(xiàn)unk歷史上的經(jīng)典篇章What Is Hip。每一個(gè)真正想學(xué)習(xí)指彈Funk演奏風(fēng)格的音樂(lè)人，是一定會(huì)收藏這張專(zhuān)輯的。雖然在前兩張專(zhuān)輯中，Rocco已經(jīng)把自己的指彈Funk技術(shù)融到了音樂(lè)中，可人們對(duì)他這種技術(shù)真正的承認(rèn)，正是在這第三張專(zhuān)輯中。 Rocco與眾不同的貝司旋律線的編排成為了這支樂(lè)隊(duì)的一個(gè)標(biāo)志，隨后樂(lè)隊(duì)的專(zhuān)輯一張接一張，經(jīng)典歌曲也一首接一首，比如《Back To Oak－land》專(zhuān)輯中的Squib Cakes，《Urban Renewal》專(zhuān)輯中的Only So Much Oil In The Ground，《In The Slot》專(zhuān)輯中的On The Serious Side。 Tower of Power Tower's 40 year odyssey actually began in 1968 when Emilio Castillo met Stephen "Doc" Kupka in July of that year. When Doc auditioned during a band rehearsal at Emilio's house, Emilio's father called him into the kitchen and offered the following advice: "Hire that guy, he's got something." Doc and his signature baritone sax sound were now in the band, and on August 13, 1968, Tower of Power, as we know them today, began playing gigs, and soon became very well known in the area. Many other bands came out of the San Francisco Bay area in the late 60's. Bands like The Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Santana, Big Brother, Journey, Cold Blood and others all helped to define the "San Francisco Sound." Tower of Power has always claimed Oakland, California as their hometown. Playing area venues and making a name for themselves, Tower of Power's big break was just around the corner. After playing at a Tuesday night audition at the Fillmore in 1970, Tower was signed to Bill Graham’s San Francisco records and their first album, “East Bay Grease,” was recorded. All of the compositions were original tunes written by Castillo and Kupka. Their next album, “Bump City,” was recorded on the Warner Brothers label, and this led to a string of hits and memorable albums that include many of the songs that TOP fans come out in force to hear, even to this day. 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, forever infusing the radio airwaves with Tower’s musical DNA. Since the beginning, Tower of Power has never stopped touring and recording. Always in demand, the band never fails to entertain and amaze their fans. Tower is truly blessed to have a dedicated following that often travels to see the band, and in many cases fans will plan their vacation or work schedule around an appearance of TOP. Tower celebrated their 40th anniversary in 2008 at a very special reunion show at the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco. In addition to the ten current members of the band, another 20 musicians and vocalists that at one time held a position with the band appeared with them. The show was filmed and is available on DVD. Of the ten current members, Emilio Castillo, Rocco Prestia, Stephen Kupka, and David Garibaldi are four of the band’s founding members. Their dedication to the music, their creative writing, and their original vision still guides Tower of Power. Each year Tower of Power tours the United States, Japan and Europe, playing to sold out crowds all over the world. Recent releases include “Great American Soulbook”, a collection of classic soul tunes, and the 40th Anniversary Concert DVD. Tower has never been busier or more in demand. New generations of fans come to see the band perform as their timeless music continues to excite fans of all ages. We hope you enjoy this website, which will be growing and evolving continually to include more band history, information on alumni members, and regular updates on Tower of Power.