Tower Of Power — Back To Oakland [Vinyl LP · 180g · Music On Vinyl]

Tower Of Power — Back To Oakland [Vinyl LP · 180g · Music On Vinyl]

Details

• Format: Vinyl LP, Album Reissue, 180g
• Catalogue Number: MOVLP1274
• Barcode: 8718469537679
• Genre: Soul / Funk / R&B
• Label: Warner / Music On Vinyl
• Originally Released: February 1974
• This Edition Released: Music On Vinyl reissue
• Pressing: 180g audiophile LP reissue on Music On Vinyl, pressed at Record Industry in the Netherlands
• Condition: New & Sealed

Description

Back To Oakland is Tower Of Power's fourth album, released in February 1974 on Warner Bros. and widely considered one of the high-water marks of 1970s horn-driven funk and soul. It features the same classic line-up that made the band's reputation as the tightest rhythm section and horn section on the West Coast — Lenny Williams fronting on vocals, the Rocco Prestia bass and David Garibaldi drums axis locked tight underneath, and a horn section (Emilio Castillo, Stephen "Doc" Kupka, Lenny Pickett, Mic Gillette, Greg Adams) that generations of funk bands have tried to copy.

The record opens on the instrumental Oakland Stroke, drops into the uptempo Don't Change Horses (In The Middle Of A Stream), and delivers two standout vocal performances on Time Will Tell and Just When We Start Makin' It. Squib Cakes — an eight-minute instrumental ride on Chester Thompson's Hammond B-3 — closes the first side and remains one of the tracks most quoted by samplers and arrangers. The Williams-led ballad Love's Been Gone So Long gives the record its emotional centre.

This 180g LP reissue on Music On Vinyl is pressed at Record Industry in the Netherlands to audiophile standard.

Tracklist

Side A

1. Oakland Stroke
2. Don't Change Horses (In The Middle Of A Stream)
3. Just When We Start Makin' It
4. Can't You See (You Doin' Me Wrong)
5. Squib Cakes

Side B

1. Time Will Tell
2. Man From The Past
3. Love's Been Gone So Long
4. I Got The Chop
5. Below Us, All The City Lights
6. Oakland Stroke (Reprise)

Credits

• Lenny Williams — Lead Vocals
• Emilio Castillo — Tenor Saxophone, Backing Vocals
• Stephen "Doc" Kupka — Baritone Saxophone
• Lenny Pickett — Tenor & Soprano Saxophone, Clarinet, Flute
• Mic Gillette — Trumpet, Trombone
• Greg Adams — Trumpet, Arrangements
• Bruce Conte — Guitar
• Chester Thompson — Keyboards, Hammond B-3
• Francis "Rocco" Prestia — Bass
• David Garibaldi — Drums
• Brent Byars — Congas
• Alan Chinowsky — Producer [Sound Production]
• Emilio Castillo — Production Supervisor
• Greg Adams — String Arrangements & Conductor on "Time Will Tell"
• Harry Betts — String Conductor on "Below Us, All The City Lights"
• Tom Flye — Recording Engineer (Record Plant)
• Jim Gaines — Recording & Remix Engineer
• 180g LP reissue on Warner / Music On Vinyl, pressed at Record Industry in the Netherlands