Tower of Power
Soul & R&B band from Oakland, CA · formed 1967
- Shows on record
- 60+
- Rooms played
- 54
- Cities
- 53
- Releases
- 31
- Last show
- Aug 12, 2026Middle C Jazz Club
About
Tower of Power is a band from Oakland, CA, formed in 1967, tagged funk, funky, Fusion by its sources. Shows on record run from 2014 to 2026, across 54 rooms in 53 cities.
- Tower of Power formed in 1967 — MusicBrainz
- Tower of Power is based in Oakland — MusicBrainz
- Tom Politzer: member — MusicBrainz
- Jerry Cortez: lead vocals — MusicBrainz
- Larry Braggs: member — MusicBrainz
- Emilio Castillo: tenor saxophone — MusicBrainz
- Willie James Fulton: member — MusicBrainz
- David Garibaldi: drums (drum set) — MusicBrainz
- Stephen Kupka: member — MusicBrainz
- Skip Mesquite: member — MusicBrainz
- Rocco Prestia: bass guitar (former member) — MusicBrainz
- Hubert Tubbs: lead vocals (former member) — MusicBrainz
- Ron E. Beck: member (former member) — MusicBrainz
- Michael Bogart: member (former member) — MusicBrainz
- Tower of Power has 25 release group(s) on MusicBrainz spanning 1970–2023 — MusicBrainz
- Tower of Power formed in 1968 — Wikipedia
- Tower of Power is from Oakland , California , U.S. — Wikipedia
- Tower of Power has 10 members: Emilio Castillo, Stephen 'Doc' Kupka, Adolfo Acosta, Tom E. Politzer, Jerry Cortez, Marc van Wageningen, Dave Richards, Pete Antunes, Jordan John, Mike Jerel — Wikipedia
- Tower of Power plays Soul — Wikipedia
- Tower of Power plays funk — Wikipedia
- Tower of Power plays R&B — Wikipedia
- Tower of Power plays jazz — Wikipedia
- Tower of Power plays jazz-funk — Wikipedia
- Tower of Power has 419141 listeners on Last.fm — Tower of Power on Last.fm
- Tower Of Power has released 10 recordings between 2015 and 2024 — Tower Of Power on Discogs
- Tower of Power has 4 followers on Genius — Tower of Power on Genius
- Twitter/X handle (per Genius): @OfficialTOPBand — Tower of Power on Genius
- Country (per TheAudioDB): Oakland, USA — Tower of Power on TheAudioDB
The summary is assembled from the record fields and shows on this page; each fact listed names its source. See Sources & corrections for what each source supplied.
Shows
60+ on record · SongkickShows per year
- 201439 shows
- 20156 shows
- 20171 show
- 20192 shows
- 20203 shows
- 20212 shows
- 20224 shows
- 20231 show
- 20251 show
- 20261 show
Showing the latest 60 shows; the record holds more.
Where they play
54 rooms in 53 citiesRooms played most
- Red Rocks Amphitheatre · Morrison4 shows
- Germania Insurance Amphitheater · Austin2 shows
- Hollywood Bowl · Hollywood2 shows
- Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre · Tinley Park2 shows
- Ak-Chin Pavilion · Phoenix1 show
Cities played
- Morrison4 shows
- Austin2 shows
- Cincinnati2 shows
- Hollywood2 shows
- Tinley Park2 shows
and 48 other cities
Releases
31 releases, 1970–2024Way Back To Oakland
2024
In Concert in Baden-Baden Germany 1998 (Live)
2023
It's Christmas
2023 · Album
Hip Bag (Live 1974)
2022
50 Years Of Funk & Soul: Live At The Fox Theater-Oakland Ca-June 2018
2021
Step Up
2020 · Album
Soul Side of Town
2018 · Album
You Ought To Be Havin' Fun (The Columbia/Epic Anthology)
2018
Bump City / Tower Of Power
2016
East Bay Grease / Bump City
2015
Great American Soulbook
2009 · Album
Oakland Zone
2003 · Album
The Very Best of Tower of Power: The Warner Years
2001 · Compilation
Dinosaur Tracks
1999 · Compilation
What Is Hip?: The Tower of Power Anthology
1999 · Compilation
Ain't Nothin' Stoppin' Us Now / Back on the Streets
1998 · Compilation
Rhythm & Business
1997 · Album
Souled Out
1995 · Album
T.O.P.
1993 · Album
Monster on a Leash
1991 · Album
Power
1987 · Album
Direct
1981 · Album
Back on the Streets
1979 · Album
We Came to Play
1978 · Album
Ain’t Nothin’ Stoppin’ Us Now
1976 · Album
In the Slot
1975 · Album
Urban Renewal
1975 · Album
Back to Oakland
1974 · Album
Tower of Power
1973 · Album
Bump City
1972 · Album
East Bay Grease
1970 · Album
Lineup
- Tom Politzer
- Jerry Cortez · lead vocals
- Larry Braggs
- Emilio Castillo · tenor saxophone
- Willie James Fulton
- David Garibaldi · drums (drum set)
- Stephen Kupka
- Skip Mesquite
Former
- Rocco Prestia · bass guitar
- Hubert Tubbs · lead vocals
- Ron E. Beck
- Michael Bogart
- Ken Balzell · trumpet
- Rufus Miller · lead vocals
- David Padron · trumpet
- Jeff Tamelier · guitar
- Greg Adams · trumpet
- Richard Elliot · saxophone
- Mic Gillette · brass
- Carmen Grillo · guitar
- Ellis Hall · keyboard, lead vocals
- Rick Stevens
- Chester Thompson · keyboard
- Lee Thornburg
- Lenny Williams · lead vocals
Airplay
- KEXP airplay: 50+ plays, 2020-08-11–2026-09-22 — KEXP
- Played on KEXP show 'Drive Time' (Evie Stokes) — KEXP
- Played on KEXP show 'Early' (Kevin Sur) — KEXP
- Played on KEXP show 'Variety Mix' (Reeves) — KEXP
- Played on KEXP show 'The Afternoon Show' (Larry Mizell, Jr.) — KEXP
- Played on KEXP show 'The Morning Show' (Lace Cadence) — KEXP
Photos, art and posters
Sources & corrections
| Source | Used for |
|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | Artist facts |
| Wikipedia | Artist facts |
| Tower of Power on Last.fm | Artist facts |
| Tower Of Power on Discogs | Artist facts |
| Tower of Power on Genius | Artist facts |
| Tower of Power on TheAudioDB | Artist facts |
| KEXP | Airplay |
| Songkick | Show history, Show posters |
| TheAudioDB | Photos, Logo |
| Discogs | Credited on the record; no item on this page cites it |
| Genius | Credited on the record; no item on this page cites it |
| Last.fm | Credited on the record; no item on this page cites it |
| Wikidata | Credited on the record; no item on this page cites it |
This is a partial record of publicly documented activity. Missing shows, releases or members do not mean there are none. It does not confirm availability for booking.