Composed entirely of seasoned studio musicians, Toto seemed to come out of nowhere. They did not get known first on the club circuit as nearly all bands do prior to being signed by a label. Their reputations in the studio were enough. For example, Paich, Hungate and Jeff Porcaro wrote songs for and performed on Boz Scaggs' album Silk Degrees.
Toto released their debut album Toto in October 1978, selling two million copies based on their top ten hit Hold the Line. The next two albums Hydra and Turn Back had little success, but Toto IV (released in 1982) featured the number one hit Africa as well as the top ten single Rosanna. Toto IV went multi-platinum and earned several Grammy Awards including 1983 Album of the Year and Record of the Year (for "Rosanna").
Their only film work to date was for the 1984 David Lynch science fiction film Dune. In addition to their own score, they also recorded the Prophecy Theme, composed by Brian Eno.
After the release of Toto IV, Mike Porcaro (brother to Jeff and Steve), joined the group on bass, replacing Hungate. In 1984, Bobby Kimball left the group after being arrested for selling cocaine and was replaced by Dennis Frederiksen aka Fergie Frederiksen, who was replaced not long after by Joseph Williams.
Steve Porcaro left the band in 1988, however, he still contributes as a sideman.
In 1990, Jean-Michel Byron replaced Williams for the new recordings on Past to Present 1977-1990, then left with Lukather becoming the group's lead singer.
On August 5, 1992, Jeff Porcaro died of a heart attack, days after completing work on Kingdom of Desire. The group considered disbanding, before adding British drummer Simon Phillips for the subsequent tour. In the years since Porcaro's death, Lukather has seemingly succeeded Paich as the band's de facto leader.
In 1999, Bobby Kimball returned to the lineup after a 15-year absence.
Greg Phillinganes joined the lineup in 2004 to fill in for David Paich during a tour, then officially joined Toto in 2005.
After a period of rumours and some allusions, on June 5th, 2008 Steve Lukather made an official announcement on his website stevelukather.net, stating: "The fact is yes I have left Toto. There is no more Toto." Lukather further stated that after 31 years of recording, producing and playing with Toto without even missing one single gig, he couldn't do it anymore: "I just can't do it anymore and at 50 years old I wanted to start over and give it one last try on my own." With Lukather being the only original member left in the band (Bobby Kimball was also an original member, but was out of the band from 1984-1998) there was no other option than to call it quits. As the main motivation for his decision, Lukather said: "When Dave retired that was REAL hard for me 'cause we started the band together. Hell, it's 35 years if you count High School where the core all met. When Mike fell ill and had to leave that was it for me. If there isn't Paich or at least one Porcaro how can we even call it Toto?" Luke also stated: "Honestly, I have just had enough. This is NOT a break. It is over. I really can't go out and play Hold The Line with a straight face anymore." The break-up of Toto after 31 years received mixed reactions from the fans, but in general the decision was understood and many agreed with Lukather's reasons to quit the band.
On April 5th, 2008, Toto played what would be their last show ever, in Seoul, Korea, as a part of their Falling In Between Live tour. This left lots of fans without a real farewell tour.
On February 26th, 2010, Steve Lukather announced on his Twitter-account that Toto are reforming for a brief tour in Europe in the summer of 2010 to honor bass player Mike Porcaro, who's suffering from ALS syndrome. Line-up will include David Paich, Steve Lukather, Steve Porcaro, Simon Phillips, Joseph Williams and Nathan East.
Toto released their fourteenth studio album and their first in nine years titled Toto XIV on March 20 (Europe), March 23 (UK and Oceania), and March 24, 2015 (North America). To promote the newly finished project, the band started a world tour running with an extensive European headline arena tour including appearances at key festivals, along with a North American tour to follow in the summer of 2015 and Asia later that year.[43][44]
On March 15, 2015, former bassist Mike Porcaro died, due to complications from his battle with ALS, in his sleep at his home in Los Angeles.[45]
On 6 April 2015, Toto announced that they would embark on 7 August 2015 in Mashantucket, Connecticut with veteran progressive band Yes on a joint summer tour of North America due to end on 12 September 2015 in Coquitlam, British Columbia.[46][47][48] Shannon Forrest has continued to perform as the band's drummer.
On 29 September 2015, Toto announced the first leg of their 2016 Tour in support of Toto XIV consisting of European and Japanese dates. Leland Sklar, who joined them on their 2007 and 2008 tours, replaced founding member Hungate.[49] Sklar left Toto in early 2017 and was replaced by Shem von Schroeck.
Toto will release their anniversary album "40 Trips Around The Sun" on February 9, 2018. Then, they'll embark on their world tour promoting their album and celebrating 40 years of music.
The original lineup (1978)
* David Paich - vocals and keyboards
* Steve Lukather - guitar and vocals
* Bobby Kimball - vocals
* Steve Porcaro - keyboards
* David Hungate - bass
* Jeff Porcaro - drums
The last lineup (2017)
* David Paich - vocals and keyboards
* Steve Lukather - guitar and vocals
* Joseph Williams - vocals
* Steve Porcaro - vocals and keyboards
Good for You
Toto Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I never get lost, so deep into us
I won't give up until you give in, but I know you must realize
[Chorus:]
I could be good for you, you could be good for me too, yeah
I could be good for you, you could be good for me too
How much will a smile, you satisfy
Stars gonna shine, the way that you feel
So there is no reason, I wonder why
[Chorus x3]
The lyrics of Toto's song Good for You talk about the possibility of two people who could be good for each other. The song is about a guy who is asking a girl not to give up on her dreams, but to realize that he could be good for her and she could be good for him too. The first verse talks about how deep the guy is into the relationship and how he won't give up until the girl gives in. The chorus says that they could be good for each other.
The second verse talks about how people may not understand their relationship, but it doesn't matter because they make each other happy. The guy says that the stars will shine for them if they follow their hearts. The song ends with the chorus repeated three times to emphasize that they could be good for one another. The song has a very positive message about love and relationships. It encourages people to follow their hearts and take a chance on love.
Line by Line Meaning
If you're dreamin', son don't you rise
If you have a dream, don't give up on it.
I never get lost, so deep into us
I am committed and devoted to our relationship and will never lose sight of that.
I won't give up until you give in, but I know you must realize
I will keep pursuing you even if you resist, but I hope you eventually see the potential in our relationship.
I could be good for you, you could be good for me too, yeah
Our relationship could be beneficial for both of us.
Everyone knows, but they don't know why
People recognize that there is something special between us, but they can't quite explain it.
How much will a smile, you satisfy
Your happiness brings me joy and fulfillment.
Stars gonna shine, the way that you feel
The universe seems to align when we're together, and it's evident in the way we both feel.
So there is no reason, I wonder why
There's no need to question the positive impact our relationship has on us.
[Chorus x3]
Our relationship has the potential to bring happiness and fulfillment to both of us, and we should explore it further.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: STEVEN LEE LUKATHER, BOBBY KIMBALL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Denis S. Pratt
on Take My Hand
Beautiful rendition of a reconciling moment that my mother and I will lay to rest.