BAY BRIDGE BIG BAND

In 1968 tenor saxophonist Emilio Castillo teamed with baritone saxophonist Steve Kupka to put together Tower of Power. Based in Oakland, the multi-racial band developed one of the tightest and funkiest horn sections of all time and attracted a diverse audience.

Their first album, East Bay Grease, was recorded in 1970 and they have gone on to record 20 more. Some of their biggest national hits, included You’re Still a Young Man and So Very Hard to Go, which were ballads that featured the soulful vocals of Lenny Williams. The band had a particular appeal for young Chicanos, both in California and also in Texas, where they influenced San Antonio’s brass-heavy “Westside Sound.”


Tower Of Power
"Closing Week Concerts"
Fillmore Auditorium, San Francisco, CA
July 4, 1971

Disc One
01. Bill Graham Intro (1:30)
02. Let A Man Be A Man (10:50)
03. Social Lubrication (9:42)
04. Back On The Streets Again (7:38)
05. Band Intros (0:46)
06. You're Still A Young Man (5:17)

Disc Two
01. Skating On Thin Ice (5:43)
02. You Got To Funkify (6:13)
03. You're Gonna Need Me (5:38)
04. The Skunk, The Goose And The Fly (5:32)
05. Sparkling In The Sand (11:04)
06. Knock Yourself Out (9:41)
07. Feel It (6:08)