Bruce Anthony Conte (March 3, 1950 – August 8, 2021) was an American R&B and
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
fusion guitarist, known primarily for his work with the band
Tower of Power
Tower of Power is an American R&B and funk based band and horn section, originating in Oakland, California, that has been performing since 1968. There have been a number of lead vocalists, the best-known being Lenny Williams, who fronted the b ...
, of which he was a member from 1972 to 1979. He performed on seven albums, and rejoined the band for live work briefly in 2006-2007.
Fresno
Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...
, California USA. Conte and his cousin
Victor Conte
Victor Conte Jr. (born 1950 in Fresno, California) is a former bassist with Tower of Power and the founder and president of Bay Area Laboratory Co-operative (BALCO), a sports nutrition center in California. He served time in prison in 2005 after pl ...
began playing in a 'family'
rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...
band as junior high school students in the early 1960s. Throughout high school they performed in the rhythm sections of several local bands, including Common Ground, playing the local
club scene
A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music.
Nightclubs gener ...
in 1967–69.
In 1969 Conte moved to the San Francisco
Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...
and joined
The Loading Zone
The Loading Zone was an American rock band of the late 1960s and early 1970s. They issued two albums worth of material, with differing band lineups, before disbanding in 1971.
Career
They were formed in Berkeley, California in 1966 by singer-key ...
, who shared rehearsal halls with, and regularly opened shows for, Tower of Power. Conte became close to Tower of Power's founder and leader,
Emilio Castillo
Emilio Castillo (born September 24, 1950) is an American saxophone player and composer, best known as the founder of the band Tower of Power.
Background
In 1965, Emilio Castillo took to music after he and his brother Jack were caught stealing by ...
, and to
Stephen Kupka
Tower of Power is an American R&B and funk based band and horn section, originating in Oakland, California, that has been performing since 1968. There have been a number of lead vocalists, the best-known being Lenny Williams, who fronted the ...
—the primary songwriters for the group—and began co-writing songs with them and occasionally sitting in with the band.
In 1972, Tower of Power began recording their eponymously titled third album, but at the beginning of the sessions, Castillo decided to change a number of band members and Conte and fellow Loading Zone member
Lenny Pickett
Lenny Pickett (born April 10, 1954) is an American saxophonist and musical director of the ''Saturday Night Live'' band. From 1973 to 1981 he was a member of Tower of Power.
He is known for his skill in the altissimo register (executed by using ...
.
Conte remained with Tower Of Power until 1979, performing on the albums ''Tower of Power'', ''Back To Oakland'', ''Urban Renewal'', ''In The Slot'', ''Ain't Nothin' Stoppin' Us Now'', ''We Came To Play'', and the live album ''Live And In Living Color''. Conte also contributed backing vocals, as well as a number of songs to these albums both as sole and co-writer.
In an interview with
Robb Lawrence
Robb is a surname of Scottish origin, formed from a diminution (reduction) of the name Robert. Robert was a popular name, especially after its use by three Scots Kings in the fourteenth century. Rob is first recorded as a surname in the mid-15th ...
, Conte cited as his primary influences
Albert King
Albert Nelson (April 25, 1923 – December 21, 1992), known by his stage name Albert King, was an American guitarist and singer who is often regarded as one of the greatest and most influential blues guitarists of all time. He is perhaps b ...
,
Grant Green
Grant Green (June 6, 1935 – January 31, 1979) was an American jazz guitarist and composer.
Recording prolifically for Blue Note Records as both leader and sideman, Green performed in the hard bop, soul jazz, bebop, and Latin-tinged idioms ...
,
George Benson
George Washington Benson (born March 22, 1943) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He began his professional career at the age of 19 as a jazz guitarist.
A former child prodigy, Benson first came to prominence in the 1960s, pla ...
and
Jimmy Nolen
Jimmy Nolen (April 3, 1934 – December 18, 1983) - accessed November 13, 2011 was an American
(primarily his work with
James Brown
James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...
). Conte's lead playing is mostly in an expanded blues style often using
blues
Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...
,
pentatonic
A pentatonic scale is a musical scale with five notes per octave, in contrast to the heptatonic scale, which has seven notes per octave (such as the major scale and minor scale).
Pentatonic scales were developed independently by many ancie ...
and
Dorian mode
Dorian mode or Doric mode can refer to three very different but interrelated subjects: one of the Ancient Greek ''harmoniai'' (characteristic melodic behaviour, or the scale structure associated with it); one of the medieval musical modes; or—mos ...
scales.
After leaving Tower of Power in 1979, Conte played in a number of groups in the San Francisco and Los Angeles areas, as well as with
Al McKay
AL, Al, Ål or al may stand for:
Arts and entertainment Fictional characters
* Al (''Aladdin'') or Aladdin, the main character in Disney's ''Aladdin'' media
* Al (''EastEnders''), a minor character in the British soap opera
* Al (''Fullmetal ...
in his All-Stars, and released four solo albums. One of these is ''Bullet Proof'' on
Severn Records
Severn Records is an American independent record label that concentrates on blues music. Its motto is "Roots Music for the 21st Century".
History
On July 11, 1997, a company named Echo Records was incorporated in Maryland by David Earl. By the t ...
(2002).
In 2006 Conte rejoined Tower of Power, touring with the band for 14 months, before moving to
Cebu
Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 ...
in the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
.
Back in Los Angeles in 2012, Conte, an insulin-dependent
diabetic
Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level (hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased app ...
, announced that a routine blood test in July of that year had revealed that he had
leukemia
Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ' ...
. An appeal to raise funds for his medical treatment was established via the Jeremy Wilson Foundation.
Equipment
Conte's guitar throughout nearly his entire period with Tower of Power was a 1957
Gibson
Gibson may refer to:
People
* Gibson (surname)
Businesses
* Gibson Brands, Inc., an American manufacturer of guitars, other musical instruments, and audio equipment
* Gibson Technology, and English automotive and motorsport company based
* Gi ...
Les Paul
Lester William Polsfuss (June 9, 1915 – August 12, 2009), known as Les Paul, was an American jazz, country, and blues guitarist, songwriter, luthier, and inventor. He was one of the pioneers of the solid-body electric guitar, and his prototype ...
Goldtop. Conte performed primarily using the neck pick-up and played the guitar so much that he wore through the pickup cover. Conte sold the guitar in 2006.
During the Tower of Power years, Conte played through a 1967 Fender Super Reverb in the studio, using a Fender Quad Reverb or sometimes Twin Reverb for live work. He also used Vox wah wah and MXR Phase 90 effects pedals. More recently Conte has played a Baker guitar through a
Rivera
Rivera () is the capital of Rivera Department of Uruguay. The border with Brazil joins it with the Brazilian city of Santana do Livramento, which is only a street away from it, at the north end of Route 5. Together, they form an urban area of aro ...
amplifier.
Death
Conte died on August 8, 2021, after being diagnosed with
leukemia
Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ' ...