XX - Toto

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Sublime
Quality and consistency of tracks	Mixed
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Good
Value for Money	Good

Advantages:	Discover unreleased TOTO tracks
Disadvantages:	The not so new tracks at the end

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

This album, simply named XX to commemorate the twenty years TOTO have been on the musical scene.
You probably already know from my review of their first album that I am an unconditional fan of this group. I love them to bits, because of the quality of their music and the greatness of their lyrics.
TOTO is made of a main group, namely Steve Lukather (guitar, vocals), David Paich (Keyboards, vocals), Bobby Kimball (vocals, but had a break in the middle of TOTO's career, but came back in the end), the Porcaro brothers (Steve on keyboards, Mike on bass, and Jeff on drums), and Simon Phillips, who became the drummer when Jeff Porcaro died in 1992. They all tend to participate on the writing of the songs/music, which makes TOTO a real bunch of artists (compared to most of today's bands who sing songs that others have written for them).

This album is not a normal album. It is a collection of songs that have never been released, as well as a few original demos and some live songs. It was released in 1998.

Here is my opinion on the songs:

- Goin' Home: When TOTO released their first Best Of, Past to Present, in 1990, they included four extra songs that had never been released. This song was meant to be on it, but didn't make it as it wasn't good enough. Personally, I love this song, as I link it to my own life away from my family "Goin' Home, cos I've been away much too long"... The mixture of voices between the low voices of Paich and Lukather in the background and Bobby's higher voice makes the song richer.

- Tale of a Man: one of their first songs, which never made it to the album... I really wonder why because I like it very much, especially the music. It starts with the keyboards and a background ssshhh sound, then a little drum intro, and then guitar and bass kick in, and it all comes out really well. Once more the voices are mixed, but what's really good is that the lower voices make Bobby's voice contrast even more, and they compliment it really well.

- Last Night: The singer here is Joseph Williams, who joined TOTO mid eighties when Bobby left the band. He did two albums with TOTO, and still worked with them afterwards. I love Joseph's voice, but I am still not sure whether I like this song or not. I can't seem to like the chorus, but love the rest of the song. I don't know if it is the way the song builds up and kinds of "climaxes" with the chorus, which I find for this song is a bit silly. Worth mentioning is the guitar instrumental in the end, which gives place to the rest of the instrument and then the sound fades, which gives a really nice ending.

- In a Word: another Joe Williams song. I prefer this one to the previous one. Joe has a really good voice, and I like the fact that the chorus is smoother than the rest of the song, which is quite unusual (usually the chorus prevails). Worth listening to.

- Modern Eyes: I really wonder what made David Paich write this song, and what took the producers to include this song in this album. I don't know if it's the sudden turn to Reggae-ish music, but I really can't stick this song... When it comes on I switch to the next one. There is no word to describe my feeling for it, it must be physical... But just to add to my point on the TOTO message board this song is always listed in the worst songs surveys.

- Right Part of Me: Glad to get freed from Modern Eyes, I welcome this ballad with open heart. It is sung by Bobby Kimball. He has got such a great sensual and smooth voice, his songs always sound fantastic, they always carry you.

- Mrs Johnson: I like this one. It is probably another one of their first songs. The lyrics are a bit simple, but I like the music.

- Miss Sun: their first contract demo... I like it, although it is quite simple, it is quite smooth and flows well.

- Love is a Man's World:another contract demo... but I don't like this one... I find it boring, and I hate the end of the song, which suddenly starts with Paich saying "It's disco time" for some reason and the music ends up totally different to what it was at the beginnning.

- On the Run: TOTO suffered a lot when their drummer, Jeff Porcaro, died in 1992. Very often, like in their CD booklet or on their website, they will include a little word about how much they love and miss him. This song, recorded live the year before his death, is probably here as a tribute to him. I like it, as no matter which song, I love when TOTO is live. Their songs are all worked on again and they come up with extra instrumentals, and their songs are so much greater. They really entertain when they are on stage, and as they say it themselves, they like it much better than recording in studio.

The last three tracks were added because TOTO wanted to offer something special from their last trip to Africa. I am not so keen on them, because I don't think they really find their place at the end of this album, and that I have gone off Africa a bit because of hearing it too much.

- Dave's Gone Skying: Instrumental from 1997, already present on the Tambu album. I don't really know why it is actually included in their Africa-themed tracks, as it is just a normal instrumental... a very good one though.

- Baba Mnumzane: one of the live add-ons that TOTO always surprises us with when they are in concert... They are real entertainers, and they work on and rearrange every bit of their songs when they are in concert, not like a lot of our artists nowadays who just sing their songs in public. Africa's influence on TOTO usually comes out a lot in their live gigs, and they always include percussions, and, in the case of this track, African singers and African songs. This track is lovely, as they are singing a capella. Definitely an African-themed track, but I still don't know why they took it out of its live context to put it at the end of this album.

- Africa: one of their classics, heard and heard again... This song is absolutely fantastic, but I have heard it too much.

Altogether, this album is a good one, but it is not my favourite. It is quite nice, when you know a few of their albums, to find out what they had been working on but never got released. This album is a good one to review about because previously I mentioned about the diversity of TOTO, regarding the instruments, the music genres, and the variety of singers/other artists that have influenced their work.

Just the practical bits: it is available from Amazon for £10.99, and for less than £5 secondhand. It is not the album I would recommend if you are only discovering TOTO, but you can still enjoy the TOTO magic and variety here.