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Sax player and founding member Emilio Castillo: "We wrote it in one sitting and as soon as we were done writing it I knew it was going to be a hit. I actually called my manager and I said, 'We wrote a hit.' He said, 'Yeah, sure.' I go, 'No, I'm serious. We wrote a hit.' I played it for him over the phone and he heard a verse and the chorus and he goes, 'Damn, I think you're right.'
Castillo: "It was kind of a made up story. I almost based it on that same relationship that I had with that girl Sharon, the one that I wrote You're Still A Young Man about. Basically it says our relationship is ending and how hard it is to say goodbye to her. I write a lot about specific situations but I let the song play out in a general way." (Thanks to Emilio for speaking with us. His full interview is available in the Songfacts Interviews. You can learn much more at his website, towerofpower.com.)
Comments:
During the summer of 1973, we heard this song on Bay Area radio station KFRC AM 610 it seemed like at least once a day. And I never got tired of it. This hit, along with "You're Still a Young Man" (which got similar airplay and was just as popular the previous summer) were the songs that helped define Tower of Power. They still tour today, decades later, showing that soul music, with great brass, percussion, and vocals, endures because it touches our hearts. Those of us who grew up during the 70's maybe had a relationship like Emilio "Mimi" Castillo was thinking about when he wrote this song for his new band (see interview above). Let's just say when we hear these songs today, they bring back some good, perhaps bittersweet, memories. Who else remembers those summer hits of the 70's?
- Pat, Paradise, CA, CA
Dave Matthews was never a member of TOP
- David, Fresno, CA
This and You're Still A Young Man are the two best TOP songs. Amazing they had a different lead singer and still had the same incredible passion onthis song.
- Scott, Palm Desert, CA
Lenny Williams handled the vocals for this song from their self-titled second album. You may recognize the voice from a song he sang on Kenny G's album "DuoTones" entitled "Don't Make Me Wait For Love". Tower of Power was a stepping stone for quite a few musicians. Past members include Dave Mathews and smooth jazz tenor sax favorite Richad Elliot.
- Tim, Fort Worth, TX