Spin That 45

Tower of Power Official Facebook posted on their page today that bassist, Rocco Prestia is very ill. Stating; " Our brother and original Tower bassist, Rocco Prestia, needs our love, prayer and good vibrations more than ever before, as he is now resting and comfortable in hospice." It was not said what he is ill with but it's for those who have been longtime fans of ToP, Rocco has had several major health issues, including a liver transplant, which was successful. Rocco has recorded 22 albums with ToP. Those albums are the soundtrack of my life. Their songs are totally intertwined with my childhood. Like; "What Is Hip?," "You're Still A Young Man," "You Got to Funkifize,"  "Clever Girl," and soooo many others!!!   His unique "Fingerstyle Funk" of playing on the bass is so iconic and different than how a bass was played back then. To watch him in person was magical. Truly a talent. But as always, Rocco like to stick to...

  Originally featured on  Inside MusiCast  as  my Pick of The Day National Hispanic Heritage Month Edition Honoring Carlos Santana (mejicano), Orestes Vilató (cubano), Armando Peraza (cubano), Raúl Rekow (cubano) and Artist Cristobal Gonzáles (mejicano) Trying to choose my last Pick for this week, was so incredibly hard because there are just so many artists/musicians/bands out there that I have loved and grown up with. But this one is important. When I think of the band; Santana, I go back all the way to my childhood, growing up in East Los Angeles / San Gabriel, California. Families gathering for a wedding or quinceañera and always, ALWAYS - everyone would get up to dance to "Evil Ways," "Oye Como Va," "Black Magic Woman" and more! From the time Santana came out in 1969 and myself being only 8 years old, I've literally grown up on this band. Memories of my older brother and his "Pachuco" buddies hanging around listening to Abraxas or Santan...

  Originally featured on  Inside MusiCast  as  my Pick of The Day National Hispanic Heritage Month Edition Honoring Abraham Laboriel (mejicano), Alex Aluña (peruviano), Justo Almario (colombiano) and Dan Garcia (not sure but will guess mejicano or Mexican-American born). Let me just begin by saying that there isn’t ONE PERSON on this album that doesn’t deserve to be mentioned. They are all heavy hitters and legends in their own right.  😃  And man, do I love the projects they have been on. That being said, this Pick is based on honoring those who are Hispanic / Latino respectively and their contributions to music. Let me just tell you all who the band members were: Bill Maxwell, Abraham Laboriel, Alex Acuña, Hadley Hockensmith, Harlan Rogers, Dean Parks, John Phillips, Justo Almario and later; Lou Pardini (of Chicago) Released in 1983, spear headed by drummer; Bill Maxwell and Abraham Laboriel, this album was the debut by some guys who were studio musicians...

  Originally featured on  Inside MusiCast  as  my Pick of The Day National Hispanic Heritage Month Edition honoring Jimmy Haslip and Tejano / Pop Artist Selena I think we can all agree that we know that   Jimmy Haslip   is one BAAAD musician!!! His rep of those he has played with is so vast. How I personally knew about him before I realized that I loved West Coast music was when he toured with Chaka Khan along with my high school friend; keyboardist Tony Patler. That was the first time I'd ever heard of Jimmy. But he'd been out and made a name for himself before that; starting with CSN and one of my favorite albums, "Brother To Brother" by Gino Vannelli. Jimmy Haslip is one of the most intuitive musicians I've ever listened to and had the pleasure to see live. Case in point; this song by another Latina I would like to acknowledge; Selena. Written by Franne Golde and Tom Snow, "Dreaming Of You" is probably one of the most beautifully written songs from th...

  Originally featured on  Inside MusiCast  as my Pick of The Day: "The Higher You Rise" from the high def test record; "The Sheffield Track & Drum Record" featuring Robbie Buchanan and James Newton Howard, keyboards, Lenny Castro, percussion, Nathan East, bass, Mike Landau, guitar, and Carlos Vega, drums. National Hispanic Heritage Month Edition Today begins the first day of National Hispanic Heritage Month. As a Latina, I am very proud of my Hispanic roots and felt that it was only proper to feature two of  Inside MusiCast's favorites for my Pick today; Lenny Castro and the sorely missed; Carlos Vega. Recorded May 22, 1982 at the Sheffield Lab Studios at MGM in Culver City, this album was designed for systems and component testing and evaluation. Sheffield Lab Recordings, founded by engineer great; Doug Sax and legendary musician / arranger; Lincoln Mayorga, it is an audiophile label which produced direct-to-disc classical and jazz albums. What a fantastic ...

Originally featured on  Inside MusiCast , my Pick of The Day: "Jungle Boogie" by Kool & The Gang from their album "Wild And Peaceful" The music world has lost another legend. Ronald Bell, aka Khalis Bayyan co-founder of one of the best funk bands ever; "Kool & The Gang" with brother Robert "Kool" Bell.  Growing up in the desert of Palm Springs California, what was available to hear the latest in music was one radio station. When this song came out in 1973, I was about 12 years old. I remember hearing  this it on the radio and thinking - “what the heck is this?? Give me more!” And then to see them on Soul Train, American Bandstand, The Midnight Special, Don Kirshner's Rock Concert was great to see them moving and grooving, especially since my parents didn’t have a problem with me staying up late to watch the last two shows. Because we all have a soundtrack to moments in our lives, buying the 45 record was so memorable for me. . . My d...