O/T- I've never heard of TOTO

[Pittman75]

Hey Guys

After reading the subject line, don't kill me! I'm a noob, and I have never heard of TOTO before hearing of steve lukather through looking at MM guitars. Can some Toto freak give me the low down on who they are, and some good albums to get? I want to discover something new, and I hear Lukather is amazing. I don't trust Wikipedia for info on them, so basically, who wants to rant about how awesome they are and give me some ideas?

Thanks, and don't hate me! Remember, I'm just a newbie!

 

[roburado]

In a nutshell, Toto were a bunch of guys who knew each other from high school. A number of them were brothers: the Porcaro brothers. One of them, I forget who played with Steely Dan. The Toto guys kind of ended up being in the band for Boz Scaggs for a while. Later, they did their own thing. Many of them ended up doing big-time session work. Chances are, if you listen to a U.S.-made pop song from the 1980's you're listening to some of the guys from Toto. This notably includes Michael Jackson's "Thriller," which hit big around the same time that their own album "Toto IV" did. Probably, because of their skill and ubiquity, 1980's pop got a bad name by people who preferred the raw sounds that became the rock of the early 1990's. On this forum, I typed something like, "I always get s#!+ for digging Toto." Luke responded with something like, "I get s#!+ for being in Toto!"

I'd say get an album like "The Essential Toto" to get a bird's eye view of where they've been. Then, go from there. "Toto IV" is, I think, their most successful album. Get "Falling In Between" to see where they are now.

 

[Multiversal]

They also invented this glorious portable toilet:

 

[candid_x]

Rob, thanks for that brief bio.

 

[roburado]

No problem.

 

[ivanmihaljevic]

There's no way you've never heard Africa and Rosanna, you probably just don't know those are Toto songs.
When I tell someone that I listen to Toto, a lot of people tell me that they've never heard of the band, but if you start singing Rosanna or Africa, they recognize the songs right away.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPT_3PEjnsE"]YouTube - Toto - "Africa" Music Video[/ame]
[nomedia="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuD746QqPp4"]YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.[/nomedia]

Does this ring a bell? I'm pretty sure you've heard these songs a billion times already.

 

[Sweat]

Hey Toto is awesome been a fan for 3 decades now, just do some internet searching and you will find some amazing stuff, Roburdo said it perfectly about the history and you really need to check out Falling in Between. Hell I was buying a cell phone Saturday and the sales guy did not know who Toto was or Dream Theater or who Luke or JP was, and this guy was in his 30's so dont feel bad

 

[ivanmihaljevic]

Hell I was buying a cell phone Saturday and the sales guy did not know who Toto was or Dream Theater or who Luke or JP was, and this guy was in his 30's so dont feel bad

LOL, you've been asking a cell phone salesman about Toto, Dream Theater, Luke and JP?
I'd probably just ask him for a cell phone recommendation

 

[phatduckk]

search youtube for steve lukather for some live and behind the scenes type footage of Luke ripping it up. Luke is an AMAZING player

YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.

 

[Sweat]

LOL, you've been asking a cell phone salesman about Toto, Dream Theater, Luke and JP?
I'd probably just ask him for a cell phone recommendation

LOL, we were talking and I said the phone I was buying matched my new JP guitar and that started a conversation about guitars he was a Gibson dude, hell he had never even heard of EBMM

 

[NorM]

search youtube for steve lukather for some live and behind the scenes type footage of Luke ripping it up. Luke is an AMAZING player

YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.

Was it you who asked Luke, "What's it like to be the best guitar player in the world?"
I would like to think it's you cause that makes me smile. <- Like this.
At the christmas Biff Babies gig (05?) Luke, standing next to Steve Morse, gestured something like "hey let's you and me show off or dual". If I was the judge I would have to say it was a tie. You know coming from me that's HUGE talk. But I can say it 'cause Luke Rocks.

 

[phatduckk]

Was it you who asked Luke, "What's it like to be the best guitar player in the world?"

honestly, i dunno. sounds like something id say tho.

Luke an I were chatting at the desert bash after the Bongo clinic and I asked Luke some guitar questions and got schooled. the man know his music.

beej caught up to us during this and had a much better time keeping up than i did.

Luke is awesome.

 

[DavidOfOz]

Once you start listening to the Toto back catalogue, you'll probably find that you already know a stack of their songs but just didn't realise it was Toto. The thing I love about Toto is they cover a wide range of styles. Not every song they've done sounds like Africa and Rosanna...heck, when you hear Toto playing live, not even Africa and Rosanna sound like Africa and Rosanna! The band isn't afraid to evolve and experiment!

I'd say get an album like "The Essential Toto" to get a bird's eye view of where they've been. Then, go from there. "Toto IV" is, I think, their most successful album. Get "Falling In Between" to see where they are now.

+1. Once you've listened to The Essential Toto, Toto IV and Falling in Between, check out Mindfields, Tambu and Kingdom of Desire to get a sense of the band's stylistic diversity.

Check out www.toto99.com - Official TOTO Website for more info, bios, Toto encyclopedia, videos etc.

My subjective opinion: best band ever.

(Roburdo...that was a great summary! I *still* get s#!+ for digging Toto too...and mainly from musicians.)

 

[paranoid70]

I gotta be honest, apart from Africa, Rosanna and Hold the Line I haven't heard anything from Toto either.

Would you guys say those songs are typical of Toto's/Luke's music?

 

[DavidOfOz]

... There's not too much over-the-top guitar on these albums as Toto is a band where the song is priority one, so gratuitous guitar pyrotechnics are kept to a minimum.

True! I once read/saw an interview with Luke where he said that David Paich (Toto keyboard player) always tells him to "save the flashy s#!+ for the live shows."

Even so, most Toto albums have enough hot guitar playing to keep all but the most die-hard shredder fan happy. All Luke's solos fit the song perfectly, and add to it. ie They aren't solos for the sake of having a solo or for being self indulgent. And each album has penty of examples in the use of the guitar for rhythm, texture and atmosphere.

I think there's a mountain of stuff that can be learnt (in terms of becoming an all-round, versatile and tasteful player) by listening to what Luke does in Toto! And as a bonus, you'll get to hear some great musicianship from the other members of Toto.

 

[Sweat]

I gotta be honest, apart from Africa, Rosanna and Hold the Line I haven't heard anything from Toto either.

Would you guys say those songs are typical of Toto's/Luke's music?

Typical well yes and no, most known songs yes, great songs yes, but Toto is so versatile so many songs that are out of the casual listeners veiw, plus the latest is so good.

 

[DavidOfOz]

I gotta be honest, apart from Africa, Rosanna and Hold the Line I haven't heard anything from Toto either.

Would you guys say those songs are typical of Toto's/Luke's music?

Yes and no. Rosanna and Africa are typical Toto from a musicianship/production point-of-view. Everything Toto does is a lesson in quality/perfectionism. From a stylistic point-of-view, these songs are probably more typical of an era in Toto's history rather than typical of the band's style.

Toto plays so many styles of music, and each album is a little different. eg Toto IV (Africa and Rossana) and The Seventh One are more pop oriented than, say, Tambu (which is sometimes described as more "organic"). Kingdom of Desire is fairly heavy (some say more "raw"), and Falling in Between is nothing like anything before it (pure sophisticated brilliance). It's all good!

As you listen to the different albums, you do hear similarities in terms of personal playing, song-writing styles, and musical trademarks. But every new album is exciting to look forward to because you never know what Toto will do next!!

My experience in "converting" people to Toto is that those people who love Rosanna and Africa have more trouble getting into the more recent stuff. On the other hand, I know kids who love the Falling in Between and Mindfields albums, but aren't interested in the older Toto I, Hydra or Turn Back albums. Personally, I love the diversity! I can't wait to see them March 7th!

(my 2 cents)

 

[whitestrat]

PAMELA!!!

 

[Eilif]

I wouldn't be surprised that you'd never heard of Toto if you are younger. It's been almost 20 years since their last Top 40 single in the United States. But if you listen to classic rock radio, you've probably heard a Toto song or two.

Album suggestions:

1) Hydra (1979) or Turn Back (1981)
(the latter has more of Luke than the former, but the former has more synths, which was a trademark feature of the early Toto)
2) Fahrenheit (1986) or The Seventh One (1988)
3) Kingdom of Desire (1992)
4) Mindfields (1999) or Falling In Between (2006)

This will give you a little bit from each of their "periods", if one wants to use that word.

Toto IV (1982) was their big commercial success and won about a half dozen Grammys. There were at least three Top 40 singles off of that one record, including their only no. 1 single, "Africa". I've left it off of the list because this is the album from which come most of their songs that are played on the radio, so chances are you may have already heard stuff from this album.

Toto XX (1998), which is a collection of never before released tracks from the late 70s through the late 80s is the one to get if you can get only one album. It's a good sampler of Toto on one CD.

Kingdom of Desire features more of Luke than any other Toto album. On the rock -- pop spectrum, it's way over on the rock side. Luke is an awesome rhythm player as well as an awesome soloist, and these two sides shine throughout the album. Plus he sings lead vocals on this record. So if you want a heavy dose of Luke, this album is the one to get. However, it's not a representative album as far as Toto goes. I don't know if there can be a representative Toto album, but if there is one, Kingdom of Desire is probably as far away from it as one could get. It stands out from and is very different compared to everything else Toto has done. But it is a gem! And one of my favorites.

I'd say the Wikipedia entry is fairly decent, or at least it was the last time I read it. I don't know everything, but I've been a fan since 1979 and have followed them since, so I do know a lot, and the Wikipedia article wasn't that far off the mark.

And don't forget Luke's solo albums! He has four, with a fifth on the way:

1) Lukather (1989)
2) Candyman (1994)
3) Luke (1997)
4) Santamental (2003 I think) <-- rockin' Christmas tunes

Hey Guys

After reading the subject line, don't kill me! I'm a noob, and I have never heard of TOTO before hearing of steve lukather through looking at MM guitars. Can some Toto freak give me the low down on who they are, and some good albums to get? I want to discover something new, and I hear Lukather is amazing. I don't trust Wikipedia for info on them, so basically, who wants to rant about how awesome they are and give me some ideas?

Thanks, and don't hate me! Remember, I'm just a newbie!

 

[Phrat]

Gotta agree with all the guys here. Toto are probably THE great pop/rock band who have sucessfully mixed good songs with strong musicianship (frowned upon in these days of corporate indie!).

Its difficult to single out an album as a good example of Toto as they have covered a lot of areas of music. I would start with Falling in Between, their latest and most accessible album (not that the other albums are not accessible), then either Toto or Toto IV.

I should also add, if ever you get the chance to see them live, do it because you are guaranteed a fantastic show. Saw them twice on the current tour and both nights (the first being the first night of this mammoth tour in London) were two of the best gigs I have ever experienced.

Finally, when i met Mrs Phrat, she was a true child of the 90s with her Take That and Boyzone CDs but now she is a Toto fanatic and listens to nothing else so despite them being in their 50s (sorry Lucious ), they are still pulling in new fans of all ages.

THE WORLD NEEDS MORE TOTO!!!