SOD: Toto "Rosanna"

So what, I like Toto. Have you heard "Africa?" If not, I'm not sure when you were born, who your parents were, or what kind of music you fill your head with, but please click the link above to have your world blown. Toto was a band of immense popularity. With 17 albums to date, and over 35 million copies sold, these guys controlled the airwaves in the late 70's and 80's.

All three Porcaro brothers played for the band, but Jeff Porcaro is the standout. A pioneer of the classic 80's drum sound, Jeff Porcaro played with pretty much everyone, in the studio that is. Even if you've never heard the name, you probably know this guy better than any other drummer if you grew up listening to rock music from his era. He played with Steely Dan on three of their albums (Gaucho being my favorite of the three), Boz Scaggs, Hall & Oates, Warren Zevon, Lowell George, Pink Floyd, The Bee Gees, Michael Jackson, Elton John, Don Henley, Michael McDonald, Eric Clapton, Madonna (on Like A Prayer no less), Dire Straits, Bruce Springsteen... you get the idea. But sadly, Jeff didn't even make it to 40 years old. He fell ill after spraying pesticide on his lawn, and died after being rushed to the hospital. Upon closer inspection, the autopsy revealed the cause to be a hardening of the arteries from extensive cocaine use. Poor bastard just couldn't keep it in check, and everyone paid the price.

But the band wasn't just Jeff Porcaro obviously. There's been lineup changes through the years as there almost always are, but the core of the group from it's inception through 1982 was Steve Lukather (guitar/vocals), Bobby Kimball (lead vocals), David Hungate (bass), Jeff Porcaro (drums), Steve Porcaro (keyboard), and David Paich (keyboards/vocals). They've won a handful of Grammy Awards and were inducted into the RRHOF in 2009, though the latter doesn't mean very much to me. 

I know I speak of it often and fondly, but Tuesday Night Jam at Greens is a great place to get a cool dose of Toto. In fact, that's why I thought of the song today because at the last TNJ I attended, The Greens Family Band did one hell of a cover of "Rosanna". Johnny even managed to figure out a way to get the synthesizer solo effects used on the album version, to sound pretty freaking close on a Korg SV-1. That's impressive. Locals were digging it, women were swooning, summer love was thick and volatile. People were looking to make bad decisions, and Rosanna became the catalyst. At least, that's the way I remember it.