11/15/2023
Performances and Artists
When Tower of Power started out 55 years ago as just a band of “kids in the neighborhood,” the group saw a concert that changed everything, founder Emilio Castillo explains.
“We saw this band called The Spiders, and they had three horn players and they were all (powerfully) arranged,” Castillo recalls. “I wanted to be like that.”
He wasted no time, hiring a trumpet player the very next day. From there, the band accumulated a robust, five-piece horn section that transformed the group’s sizzling soul, funk and jazz melodies.
That came to define Tower of Power’s signature, horn-drenched sound, which amplified the group’s masterful songwriting, propelling its evolution into a globally acclaimed band with 21 studio albums and a status as a revered musical pioneer.
“You don’t see a lot of bands with five horns, and you don’t see a lot of bands playing the soul, funk and jazz style like we do,” Castillo says. “Different artists look to us as a great group of gifted musicians.”
Now Southern Nevadans can see this legendary band perform fresh tunes from its new holiday album — along with megahits like “So Very Hard to Go” and “What Is Hip” —November 26 at The Smith Center.
As ever, the group will deliver its rollicking, high-energy performance style that fans live for worldwide.
“Tower of Power is a unique concert experience in the world today,” Castillo says. “It’s exciting on the level of Prince and James Brown.”
A Leg Up from Huey Lewis
Tower of Power’s initial stardom was sparked largely by Huey Lewis and the News, Castillo says.
Impressed by Tower of Power’s musicality, the pop star asked the group’s virtuoso horn section to tour with him for several years. “Huey Lewis was a big fan of the band,” Castillo recalls.
Castillo only agreed to it on specific terms: that the entire Tower of Power band could still perform throughout Lewis’ touring — and with Lewis constantly promoting its shows.
“(Lewis) would announce it, ‘We’re going down to see Tower of Power at midnight, and we hope you all come,’ and (our show) would be besieged,” Castillo remembers. “That helped kick-start our career.”
That marked the first of many epic collaborations. Tower of Power’s fiery horn section has since recorded and performed with icons like Aerosmith, Santana, Eric Clapton and Stevie Nicks.
The band attracts those artists’ attention by constantly honing their musical prowess, Castillo says. “We have this gift that’s been given to us, to make this music that has a voice and a certain signature, and we stay with that and keep trying to refine it,” he says.
Sharing a Very Merry New Album
The Smith Center concert will feature all-new songs from Tower of Power’s latest album, the band’s very first holiday album.
“We threatened to do one for years, and we just never got around to it,” Castillo says. “We finally did it, and it came out great.”
He assures that the band will also play all the hits people “need to hear,” and will deliver the quintessential Tower of Power sound that audiences still love after half a century.
“We’ve never chased trends, and by virtue of that, we stick to what we know,” Castillo says. “We continue to chip away at the sculpture, polishing the diamond, and we do that on a daily basis.”
SEE THE SHOW
Tower of Power performs November 26 at The Smith Center – for tickets, CLICK HERE.