Chances are, even if you think you’ve never heard Toto, you’ve probably heard them in part. Made up of some of the hottest LA studio musicians, this 80’s prog-pop unit first hit big with staples like ‘Rosanna’, ‘Africa’ and ‘Hold the Line’… all while playing on–literally–thousands of other albums via the band’s individual members. The band still makes a huge splash in Europe and Scandinavia, entertaining thousands nearly every year with their unbeatable blend of pop, rock and jazz. While a powerhouse in the US from about 1978 to 1989, the band continues to craft incredible work all while taking a back-seat to mostly inferior pop pablum via satellite radio and video (and somehow staying off the Rock-N-Roll Hall of Fame radar).
Anyway, if you haven’t been keeping up with Toto fo the past few decades, it’s safe to say you’ve missed out on a body of truly remarkable music crafted by some of the most arresting players the industry has to offer.
Besides being the hottest studio guns, these guys managed to overcome the tragic passing of uber-drummer, Jeff Porcaro. In the wake of such a loss came a very underrated album, full of typically brilliant musicianship and compositional color: ‘Tambu’.
Certainly, Toto has been a star pupil of the Harlequin Romance School for Dopey Lyricism in the past. The faux ‘bodice ripper’ cover may be a self-parodying nod to this fact. The messages here, though, are slightly less focused on the ‘groove with me, mama’ tripe, and more serve the musical moods that Steve Lukather (monster guitars/vocals) and David Paich (keyboards) coax from their instruments. Toto’s deft meld of pop, jazz and whatever else happens to make to tape is simply without peer in modern music.
Ask Don Henley, Michael McDonald, Donald Fagan, David Sanborn, Yes’ Jon Anderson or anyone else who has either guested on a Toto project or sought their aid on one of their own, and they’ll probably tell you: Toto ain’t just a little dog yapping at the hells of modern rock.
So… let’s review: If your current music collection has no Toto 토토사이트 in it, whatever you are doing, hurl yourself onto the Internet and make a quick purchase. ‘Tambu’ is a stellar album often overlooked even by fans of the band who came to know them through earlier hits, so add that to your list of downloads and check out one of the most adept units in all of popular music.
