Toto 2018-04-01
Royal Albert Hall, Kensington Gore London, England

Set 1
Alone
Hold The Line
Lovers In The Night
Spanish Tea
I Will Remember
English Eyes
Jake To The Bone
Lea
Rosanna

Set 2
Acoustic Set:

Miss Sun
Georgy Peorgy
Human Nature
Hollyanna
No Love
Mushanga
Stop Loving You

Set 3
Girl Good-bye
Angela
Lion
Dune
While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Make Believe
Africa

Encore:

The Road Goes On

Comment
Toto will return to the Royal Albert Hall in 2018 as part of their 40 Trips Around The Sun Tour, celebrating 40 years of hits.

Since the band was formed in 1977, Toto have released 14 studio albums together, and individually the band members can be heard on an astonishing 5000 albums. 40 years later, the band are still one of the top selling touring and recording acts in the world.

This show will celebrate classic tracks alongside previously unreleased music from their brand new Greatest Hits album (release date tbc).
[From : Electric Press - 2018 | 04-04
What do you expect me to say? That Toto were rubbish last night at the Albert Hall? To be fair to me, I’d have said if they were rubbish. But they weren’t. They were absolutely brilliant.

Toto is one of the most maligned bands in rock history. They’ve never been “in fashion”, whatever that is meant to be, or “hip”. They’ve simply been great. Today’s review in the Telegraph represents the usual piss-taking snobbery from the remnants of the music press. They’re badly dressed, guitar player Steve Lukather plays too many solos and – oh! – they’re badly dressed. And unhip.

Toto was Michael Jackson’s band. Hear Beat It and you hear Toto. Hear Human Nature and you hear Toto because they wrote it, too. Hear Boz Scaggs’ seminal Silk Degrees album and even Olivia Newton John’s Physical and you hear Toto. They’re played on circa 5000 records, as well as their own.

On 1st April, they started with a brand new tune, Alone, which is right up there with the best of Toto. Hold The Line is thrown away early in the set, albeit to rapturous applause and much enthusiasm. Then a mixture of deep cuts and a great revisited tune, Spanish Sea, take us to the end of the first set where they strike up a brilliant Rosanna, replete with the late Jeff Porcaro’s Rosanna shuffle, a supreme piece of drumming craftsmanship, a cross of John Bonham’s Fool In The Rain and Bernard Purdie’s half time shuffle, played beautifully by Nashville’s Shannon Forrest.

There is no break, as such. The band play an acoustic storytelling middle featuring Toto classics, deep cuts and never played live before tunes. It’s gorgeous. These guys can play.

A bunch of more deep cuts including some genuine hard rock takes us deep into Set 2 including a blinding version of George Harrison’s While My Guitar Gently Weeps. Soon we are at the end of the set. We know what’s coming next.

Lukather takes the mike, as he has done all night. Asks us if we are ready for “that tune”. Everyone in the building knows what “that tune” is. It’s ‘Africa’. The Telegraph reporter takes the piss out of the lyrics but who cares? The words are a bit of a dream. And if you look at it in the context in which they were written, it’s a lovely dream. If lyrics are not Toto’s strength – and they are certainly not a weakness – then how come Noel Gallagher’s nonsensical Oasis classics are never dissected in the same way? No one denies that Gallagher writes a mean tune. Everyone knows the words are from a rhyming dictionary. Hey – look at Stairway to Heaven. My least favourite Zeppelin song by a country mile with lyrics that mean fuck all. Everyone – except me – calls it a classic. Actually, the electric bit at the end IS classic. Give Toto a break.

Yes, there were people there last night who just wanted to hear Hold The Line, Rosanna and Africa. There’s nothing wrong with that. Christ – I’m not a better fan for preferring the deeper cuts. I just do.

Joseph Williams – lead vocals. Father – John Williams. Yes, THAT John Williams. Brilliant voice, two and a half hours every night. Never a note missed.

Steve Lukather – guitar/vocals. The beating heart of Toto. One of the great guitar players. We all log Luke.

David Paich – keyboards/vocals. The beating heart of Toto. Have I already said that? Formed Toto with the late, great Jeff Porcaro. Genius.

Steve Porcaro – keyboards. The last surviving Porcaro brother. Love that man, love that family.

Shannon Forrest – drums. Proper Nashville drummer, great producer too (see Michael McDonald’s last album).

Shem von Schroeck – bass/vocals. I have so much man love for this guy. SO talented. His twitter page is essential following. I feel like I know him.

Lenny Castro – percussion. This guy is a legend. Check out his incredible CV.

Warren Ham – sax/harmonica/vocals. Amazing addition to the band.

Sorry about the bad language. Haters can hate all they like. Last night, I saw Toto for the third time in my life. At the Royal Albert Hall. They were magnificent. To Luke and the boys: I can’t stop loving you. And I really don’t want to.

Here’s the setlist:

Set 1
Alone
Hold the Line
Lovers in the Night
Spanish Sea
I Will Remember
English Eyes
Jake to the Bone
Lea
Rosanna

Acoustic
Miss Sun
Georgy Porgy
Human Nature
(Michael Jackson cover)
Holyanna
No Love
Mushanga
Stop Loving You

Set 2
Girl Goodbye
Angela
Lion
Dune (Desert Theme)
While My Guitar Gently Weeps
(The Beatles cover)
Make Believe
Africa

Encore
The Road Goes On

Sources
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Created At
Wed May 23 2018 14:21:41 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Updated At
Wed May 23 2018 14:21:41 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

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