In 1970, TOP signed a recording contract with Bill Graham's San Francisco Records and quickly released its first album, East Bay Grease. 1972's Bump City and 1973's self-titled release were breakout albums for the band; the latter included possibly their most enduring song, What is Hip?.
Tower of Power has remained active throughout the 1970s, '80s, '90s, and into the 21st century, and is still touring in 2010. Personnel changes have been part of the history and evolution of the band; at least 60 musicians have performed, toured, and/or recorded with the band through the years, including Saturday Night Live musical director Lenny Pickett, drummer David Garibaldi, bassist Rocco Prestia, and bassist and BALCO founder Victor Conte. (His brother Bruce Conte played guitar in the band as well.) Lenny Williams served as lead singer for several years after one of the original singers, Rick Stevens was imprisoned. Rufus Miller performed most of the lead vocals on "East Bay Grease." Former lead vocalist Rick Stevens (real name Donald Stevenson) was sentenced to life in prison on three counts of first-degree murder relating to a botched drug deal, crimes committed after leaving the band. Stevens was paroled on July 20, 2012 after 36 years in prison. Rick Stevens died on September 5th, 2017.
TOP has released 15 albums over the years, the latest being 2003's The Oakland Zone. In addition, the horn section has become well-known as a backing horn section for other artists. The TOP horn section has appeared on many recordings, including some made by the Monkees, Santana, Elton John, John Lee Hooker, Rod Stewart, Jefferson Starship, Heart, Huey Lewis and the News, Lyle Lovett, Poison, Phish, Pharoahe Monch, and Aerosmith.
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(2) The renowned horn-driven funk outfit Tower of Power have been issuing albums and touring the world steadily since the early '70s, in addition to backing up countless other musicians. The group's leader since the beginning has always been tenor saxophonist Emilio Castillo, who was born in Detroit but opted to pursue his musical dreams in Oakland, California. It was in Oakland that Castillo put together a group called the Motowns, which, as their name suggested, specialized in '60s-era soul. In 1967, Castillo teamed up with baritone sax player Stephen "Doc" Kupka, and soon the Motowns were transformed into Tower of Power. (One of the first tunes the duo penned together was "You're Still a Young Man," which would eventually go on to be one of Tower of Power's signature compositions.)
Tower of Power played regularly in the Bay Area throughout the late '60s, as their lineup often swelled up to ten members, including such other mainstays as Greg Adams on trumpet and vocals, Lenny Pickett on sax, and Rocco Prestia on bass. By 1970, the funk outfit had inked a recording contract with Bill Graham's San Francisco Records, resulting in the group's debut the same year, East Bay Grease, which failed to make an impression on the charts as Tower of Power were still trying to find their own sound.
But it soon came together for the group, as 1972's Bump City would touch off a string of classic hit albums, including 1973's self-titled release (which introduced vocalist Lenny Williams and included another of the group's most enduring tunes, "What Is Hip?"), 1974's Back to Oakland, and 1975's Urban Renewal and In the Slot. While Tower of Power remained a must-see live act, as disco became the new trend in R&B the group's original funk-laden style fell out of favor, and disco-oriented albums like 1978's We Came to Play and 1979's Back on the Streets didn't please critics or fans, and the band would go nine years without releasing an album.
Despite it all, Tower of Power -- in particular their horn section -- remained a much in-demand backing group for some of pop/rock's biggest names, including Elton John, Santana, Bonnie Raitt, Huey Lewis, Little Feat, David Sanborn, Michelle Shocked, Paula Abdul, Aaron Neville, Aerosmith, Public Image Ltd., and many others. In 1988, Tower of Power returned to the studio for the album Power, and in 1991 they signed with Epic Records, where they released five albums by the end of the decade.
Into the new millennium, Tower of Power kept up their reputation as a strong live band, maintaining a steady touring schedule, and in 2009 they launched their own TOP Records label with The Great American Soulbook, in which they covered a dozen soul and R&B classics in the trademark Tower of Power style. In 2007, Tower of Power celebrated their fourth decade together with a special concert at San Francisco's Fillmore Auditorium, and a year later the show was issued in a special CD/DVD package, simply titled 40th Anniversary. In 2013, Tower of Power took a look back with the release of Hipper Than Hip: Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow, which documented a live radio broadcast from 1974. The bandmembers also announced they would be touring in 2013 and 2014 with two other iconic acts from Northern California, Journey and the Steve Miller Band. ~ Greg Prato & Steve Leggett, Rovi
By Your Side
Tower of Power Lyrics
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Miscellaneous
By your side
Oh, It's saturday, all right
Bring some beers and come on over
The latest Ben Folds Five
Right by your side
We're a team, you know
You can pick a hundred fights
I'm right by your side
Right by your side
Chorus:
Half past wrong, talking way too much tonight
Sip another one with your favourite 'likie dies'
Smell the air, I swear it wasn't me now this time
We're gonna be, we're gonna be around 'till mokeys fly
Oehh, 'till they fly baby
I know that I ain't easy
It's difficult to please me
But you proved more than all right
Right by my side
You may mess up my hair
Torch it, shave it, I don't care
Because morale never dies when I'm right by your side
Right by your side
Chorus:
Half past wrong, talking way too much tonight
Sip another one with your favourite 'likie dies'
Smell the air, I swear it wasn't me now this time
We're gonna be, we're gonna be around 'till mokeys fly
Ohh, untill they fly.
Bridge:
Because when I look around and I found out things ain't going right
I just smile and figure what the hell, just stick it in your pocket
Because all is fine and I'm all right
Smile a while and I see the light
And I find out everything's just fine
Right by your side
Chorus:
Half past wrong, talking way too much tonight.
Sip another one with your favourite 'likie dies'.
Smell the air I swear it wasn't me now this time.
We're gonna be around 'till mokeys.
Sit right up and sing along with every little part of this song
Smile upon a rainy day, because you know it ain't to stay
And everything will be just fine, because in time the sun will shine
And I'll be by your side
Oh yeah
The lyrics to Tower of Power's song "By Your Side" speak to a close friendship where the singer promises to always be there for their friend. The song starts with an invitation to spend time together on a Saturday, with beers and music. The singer declares that they are a team and will never let their friend go, no matter how many fights they may have. The chorus speaks to the idea of being there for each other even when things are tough or when mistakes are made. The phrase "till monkeys fly" is used to emphasize how long the friendship will last.
The bridge is especially poignant, as it speaks to the idea of finding light in the darkness. The singer declares that when things aren't going right, they will just "stick it in [their] pocket" and keep going. They find that everything is fine as long as they are with their friend. The song ends on an optimistic note, with the promise that everything will be just fine and that the singer will always be by their friend's side.
Overall, the lyrics of "By Your Side" emphasize the importance of true friendship and the power of having someone there for you, no matter what. In a world where true friends are hard to come by, the song is a reminder of how important they are when you find them.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, It's saturday, all right
It's a Saturday, which is great.
Bring some beers and come on over
Come over and bring some beer.
The latest Ben Folds Five
Let's listen to the latest album by Ben Folds Five.
Right by your side
I'll always be by your side.
We're a team, you know
We work together as a team.
And I'll never let you go
I'll never abandon you.
You can pick a hundred fights
You can argue and fight with me many times.
I'm right by your side
I'll be there with you during the fights.
Right by your side
I'll always be there for you.
Half past wrong, talking way too much tonight
It's late at night, and we're talking too much, almost saying the wrong things.
Sip another one with your favourite 'likie dies'
Let's have another drink with your favorite mixer.
Smell the air, I swear it wasn't me now this time
I didn't pass wind this time, I promise.
We're gonna be, we're gonna be around 'till monkeys fly
We'll be around for a long time.
Oehh, 'till they fly baby
We'll be around for a very long time.
I know that I ain't easy
I know that I can be difficult to deal with.
It's difficult to please me
It can be challenging to make me happy.
But you proved more than all right
But you have shown that you are more than capable of meeting my expectations.
You may mess up my hair
You can mess up my hair.
Torch it, shave it, I don't care
You can burn it or shave it off, and I won't mind.
Because morale never dies when I'm right by your side
I'll always support you and keep your morale high.
Half past wrong, talking way too much tonight.
It's late at night, and we're talking too much, almost saying the wrong things.
Sip another one with your favourite 'likie dies'.
Let's have another drink with your favorite mixer.
Smell the air I swear it wasn't me now this time.
I didn't pass wind this time, I promise.
We're gonna be around 'till monkeys.
We'll be around for a long time.
Sit right up and sing along with every little part of this song
Sing along with every part of this song.
Smile upon a rainy day, because you know it ain't to stay
Be happy on a rainy day because it won't last forever.
And everything will be just fine, because in time the sun will shine
Everything will be okay, and the future is bright.
And I'll be by your side
And I'll be there with you always.
Oh yeah
Absolutely true.
Writer(s): E. Mcgee, C. Coulter
Contributed by Savannah J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@sadame1414
oooohh
the thought of losing you really shakes my soul.
I could never face the
fact. If you ever GO!
OOOOOOHHHHHH
B A B Y !!!!!
YAY AREA
O L D
S C H O O L !
@k.browne4489
This is before African American musical culture became vulgarized by wicked and callous outsiders. What a wonderful song! What a wonderful era.
@tonystanley4568
Love this tune I played it for my then girlfriend in 77 married her in 79 she passed away 5 years ago and yes it brings tears to my eyes
@maceoshaw1513
This is some Chicago steppin' music!
@tammiemartinez6485
Yeah it is... ๐
@agochoa
This album cover gives me great memories. A few years back, we were at my uncles house (absolutely huge), he has his own bar and a pool table. Saloon doors, dart board and a juke box. It literally looks like a real commercial bar, only in his house. I selected this song and him, my dad and the rest of my uncles were likeโฆ..๐๐๐ซค๐ซค๐๐๐๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐โ๐ฝโ๐ฝโ๐ฝโ๐ฝโ๐ฝ. He didnโt know he even had it and none of them had heard it in over 20 years. They were very impressed with my selection. They started talking about the memories they had back when they use to listen to this song. They poured me a nice strong drink and we played pool and listened to good music and laughed all night.
@joecalleros1359
It's because you were brought up right. When our family gets together Tower of Power is always on our Playlist.
@maceoshaw1513
Cool story!
@mariocuellar9060
Yes,I remember the first time I heard this&automaticly fell in love with this song!
@jeanettewilliams4626
Haven't heard this group since the 70s, love it,
@robertemartinez5243
I remember Saturday morning was cleaning day in our home. All 10 of us, auntโs, uncleโs, grandma and I would be listening to these songs as we cleaned. Great memoriesโฆ