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
We Made It
Toto Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I could feel your heart break into a hundred pieces
We were too torn apart, now it seems so senseless
And if we're clever, we'll put it together, it may be forever
[Chorus:]
We made it, made it, made it before, I know that we can make it again
Down on my luck, you arrived just in time, my angel
Thought you'd given me up, like a rhyme that needs no reason
I want you enough to keep my life untangled
If we're clever, we'll put it together, 'cause it may be forever
I want you enough to keep my life untangled
If we're clever, we'll put it together, 'cause it may be forever
If ever we'll make it, we're gonna make it girl
And I know we can take it, we got to take it, girl
If ever we can make it, we gotta make it
And I know we can take it...
The song "We Made It" by Toto is a soulful love song that talks about a couple that encountered challenges in their relationship but is still hopeful that they can make it work. The first two lines of the chorus, "We made it, made it, made it before, I know that we can make it again," reaffirms the couple's belief in the strength of their love. The first verse of the song alludes to the couple having hit a rough patch in their relationship, possibly due to a misunderstanding or mistake. The line "Bad time for love - you caught me on your birthday," implies that something happened on the singer's partner's birthday that made the situation worse. The second verse of the song highlights the significance of the partner's presence in the singer's life, stating that they came at the right time when he was down on his luck. The line "I want you enough to keep my life untangled" implies that the partner is an essential stabilizing force in the singer's life. The relationship is precious to the singer, such that he believes that they can make it work if they use their intelligence and work together.
Overall, the song conveys the theme of hopefulness and perseverance through challenging times in a romance.
Line by Line Meaning
Bad time for love - you caught me on your birthday
Our timing for love was not ideal as I upset you on your special day
I could feel your heart break into a hundred pieces
I could sense that I hurt you deeply
We were too torn apart, now it seems so senseless
Our previous fights and disagreements seem pointless now
And if we're clever, we'll put it together, it may be forever
If we are smart and work together, we have the potential to make our love last forever
We made it, made it, made it before, I know that we can make it again
We overcame obstacles in the past and can do it again, I am confident in our love
Down on my luck, you arrived just in time, my angel
When I was at my lowest point, you came into my life like a guardian angel
Thought you'd given me up, like a rhyme that needs no reason
I thought you had given up on me like something that is easily forgotten or dismissed
I want you enough to keep my life untangled
My desire for you is strong enough that I am willing to keep my life simple and uncomplicated
If ever we'll make it, we're gonna make it girl
If we have a chance to make our love work, we will make it happen
And I know we can take it, we got to take it, girl
I am confident that we can handle anything that comes our way, we just need to try
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: DAVID PAICH, JEFF PORCARO
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.