Hubert Tubbs - lead vocals; Francis Rocco Prestia - bass; Bruce Conte - guitar, vocals; Chester Thompson - keyboards; David Garabaldi - drums; Emilio Castillo - tenor sax; Stephen "Doc" Kupka - baritone sax, vocals; Lenny Pickett - flute, clarinet, saxophone; Greg Adams - trumpet, flugelhorn; Mic Gillette - trumpet, trombone
This opening set of the S.N.A.C.K. Benefit captures Tower of Power at the pinnacle of their powers and at the time of their most popular album's release, 1975's Urban Renewal. The intense rhythms, powerful horn section and tight vocal arrangements are all here. This is Tower of Power at their funkiest.
Following Bill Graham's introduction of the band, they launch into a hot jam on "Oakland Stroke" that rips directly into an incendiary "What Is Hip?" to open the set.
Following some tuning and commentary on how much they enjoy being home, they introduce their new vocalist, Hubert Tubbs, before kicking off into Bump City's "Down To The Nightclub." They next slow things down and venture into soul territory with "Walking In The Sand," featuring prominent contributions by Lenny Pickett on flute, and it's back to the funk for "You're The Most (To Say The Least)."
They end the set with one of the first songs Kupka and Castillo wrote together, the highly Motown influenced "You're Still a Young Man," which would eventually become one of Tower of Power's signature songs and their biggest hit.