T.O.P. and A.W.B.

**timmyfunk** · 04-23-2012, 07:09 PM

TOWER OF POWER AND THE AVERAGE WHITE BAND
Keswick Theatre-Glenside, Penn. 4/21/12

Because of Philadelphia's reputation for dedicated Soul, R&B and Funk preservation, I found it necessary to make the pilgrimage to Glenside, Penn. to see some true Funk soliders. AWB has scaled itself down to a six-man outfit and actually currently has three African-American members. They sailed through most of the...ir hit catalog [[though "A Love Of Our Own" was conspicously absent), came back for one encore [[Pick Up The Pieces of course) and did a meet and greet after their performance.

TOP was absolutely phenomenal. The legendary TOP horn section was so tight that almost sounded exactly like their studio recordings. These brothers are the true keepers and inventors of the "Oakland Stroke". Their current lead singer [[who's name escapes me at the moment) gave orignal TOP vocalist Lenny Williams a total run for his money.

The only thing that that threatened to ruin the show was the composition of the audience. Any Funk enthusiast worth his or her own salt knows that the audience can be the most important member of the band. On this night, the AARP crowd was in full attendance, and clearly, they simply did not feel like dancing. How anyone can attend a show given by either of these bands and not want to shake that ass is an X-File to me. They didn't totally ruin the experience, but they definitely guided it's path to a sizable degree. Regardless, no one should pass up the chance to catch this incredible double bill if they happen to come to your way.

**P-Shark: The Revenge** · 04-25-2012, 06:54 PM

Lenny Williams wasn't the original singer. That would be Rufus Miller & Rick Stevens who's currently doing life

**Jerry Oz** · 04-25-2012, 07:30 PM

AWB was so funky back in the day. A true R&B outfit that wasn't a gimmick like Wild Cherry was for a song or so. "A Love Of Your Own", "Pick Up the Pieces", "Cut the Cake", and "School Boy Crush" are part of the reasons that early '70s soul and R&B is my favorite music EVER. And believe me, I love music. I am glad to hear that they're stroking and keeping it real. One question: Is Steve Ferrone still keeping beats for them? He was one of the most underrated drummers from the '70s and '80s, in my opinion.