"Adamo is like Lou Rawls fronting Tower of Power..."
-- "Stuart Hamilton, Amazon.co.uk
"Think Lou Reed, but funkified..."
-- "Sandy Shore, Smoothjazz.com
As he joins the Strokeland family, Tony Adamo's story continues. This powerhouse of a singer/songwriter has come full circle — from radio announcer to Hollywood agent, to fronting many rock and funk bands that played the Reno, Tahoe, and Las Vegas circuit. All that while, Adamo was setting his sights on a recording career. As fate would have it, he hooked up with veteran guitarist/producer Jerry Stucker in San Francisco, where he embarked on the journey.
Stucker soon introduced him to legendary bassist Paul Jackson (Herbie Hancock and the Headhunters). Jackson thought the Adamo/Stucker song 'Hey, Lou' was very hip and laid down a funky bass track for the tune. Jackson soon featured the song on his second solo release, FUNK ON A STICK, on Backdoor Records.
Strokeland fans will be more than familiar with some of the outstanding musicians who contributed to Tony's latest release, STRAIGHT UP DEAL, including members of the original Tower of Power Horns - Mic Gillette, Skip Mesquite, and the Funky Doctor himself, Stephen 'Doc' Kupka. Other world class players on this release include Mike Clark (Headhunters), Paul Jackson (Headhunters), Ernie Watts, Eddie Henderson, James Gadson, and many more.
Tony is already recording tracks for a new CD planned for a 2009 release with Jerry Stucker producing once again. Stucker brought in legendary drummer Steve Gadd for one of the new cuts. Gadd created a wall of chilled-out drum grooves for the tune and Adamo's voice sails over top. Stay tuned for the release sometime later this year
