WAR & Tower of Power

Tower of Power 

For 58 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.

50 years later, in 2018, they returned to Oakland to celebrate their landmark 50th anniversary. Tower’s window-rattling grooves and raucous party spirit has been a balm for the soul throughout their half-century existence, but the release of 50 Years of Funk & Soul: Live at the Fox Theater couldn’t have arrived at a better time. 

The band has long since surpassed Castillo’s modest aspirations, traveling the world, enjoying hit singles on their own and backing legendary artists including Otis Redding, Elton John, Santana, the Grateful Dead, John Lee Hooker, Aerosmith, Bonnie Raitt, and countless others. In the process they’ve defined an “Oakland soul” sound as instantly recognizable as those from Castillo’s hometown, Detroit, as well as inspirations like Memphis and Philadelphia.

The future of Tower of Power is set out to be vigorous and dynamic, and will prove to be just that for fans around the world starved for the band’s groove just the way Tower of Power likes it!

WAR

WAR’s signature fusion of funk, soul, jazz, Latin, rock and street music is what first propelled them to prominence 55 years ago, but it was their ability to craft songs of social consciousness that further cemented their place in the modern American songbook. The immediate global impact of “Why Can’t We Be Friends?” was so profound that NASA transmitted the title track into space during the historic Apollo-Soyuz mission in 1975. Since then, WAR have continued to sing out against racism, hunger, crime and conflict, while their music has been sampled by Janet Jackson, Tupac, Beastie Boys, Method Man, Sublime, Redman, Cypress Hill, Shaggy, A$AP Mob, Scarface, The Geto Boys, De La Soul, Flo Rida, Liam Payne, Thomas Rhett and more, and covered by everyone from Willie Nelson to The Muppets, George Clinton, Phish, ZZ Top and The Isley Brothers. With more than 50 million albums sold, 20 gold, platinum and multi-platinum records, three Rock & Roll Hall of Fame noms, a GRAMMY Hall of Fame entry, four #1 LPs, nine Top 10s and twenty Top 40 songs, WAR didn’t just define the sound of the 1970s—they became a lasting voice for creative collaboration and social change, with a mission of love and harmony that resonates now more than ever. From the prophetic message of “Why Can’t We Be Friends?” to the timeless groove of “Low Rider,” this collection captures WAR at their most innovative and socially impactful. More than just a musical milestone, Why Can’t We Be Friends? (50th Anniversary Collector’s Edition) reaffirms the album’s relevance—both as a reflection of the polarizing era that inspired it, and as a beacon of hope for our present and future.

As WAR enters its sixth decade, their influence remains undeniable. Recent honors—including their inductions/presentation of a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame—further cement WAR’s status as musical and cultural giants. Meanwhile, WAR will hit the road for dozens of tour dates across the US and abroad, including a hometown, headline performance at the LA County Fair, and many more you can find at https://war.com/tour.