Toto (album)

Toto is the debut studio album by the American band Toto. It was released in 1978 and includes the hit singles "Hold the Line", "I'll Supply the Love" and "Georgy Porgy", all three of which made it into the Top 50 in the USA.[1] "Hold the Line" spent six weeks in the Top 10, and reached Number 14 in the UK as well.[2] Although not initially very well received by critics, the band quickly gained a following,[3] and the album gained a reputation for its characteristic sound, mixing soft pop with both synth- and hard-rock elements. The band would venture deeper into hard rock territory on their next album.

Toto
Studio album by
Toto
ReleasedOctober 15, 1978
RecordedMay – September 1978
StudioStudio 55, Hollywood, California
Genre
Length40:46
LabelColumbia
ProducerToto
Toto chronology
Toto
(1978)		 Hydra
(1979)
Singles from Toto
  1. "Hold the Line"
    Released: October 2, 1978
  2. "I'll Supply the Love"
    Released: March 11, 1979
  3. "Georgy Porgy"
    Released: 1979
  4. "Rockmaker"
    Released: 1979

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Classic Rock ReviewB+[4]
Sea of Tranquility[5]

Rolling Stone found Toto's attempt to transition from career session players to a band in their own right a failure, calling David Paich's songs "excuses for back-to-back instrumental solos" and saying that none of the four lead vocalists are better than passable.[6]

In a retrospective review, AllMusic argued that the album received a strongly negative critical reaction only because critics felt threatened by Toto's demonstrated ability to create outstanding songs in any genre, which was a contradiction to popular critical assumptions about genre delineations and inspiration's supremacy over craft. They commented on the irony of the critics' reaction, in that it was this ability that made the album so well-liked by listeners of the time.[3]

Cover art

Philip Garris, well known for painting many Grateful Dead album covers, created the album's emblem after listening to a lyric from the song "Manuela Run" ("You better watch that sword that's hanging over you") which referred to the Sword of Damocles. The sword also represented the band's powerful, hard-edge sound, and, due to their ability to play many types of music, Garris made the sword double-edged to show their versatility. The iron ring represented a piece of work being constructed (the record itself), and the ribbons represented the Year of the Child.[7]

Track listing

All tracks are written by David Paich, except where noted.

Side one
No.TitleLead vocalsLength
1."Child's Anthem"instrumental2:46
2."I'll Supply the Love"Bobby Kimball3:46
3."Georgy Porgy"Steve Lukather4:09
4."Manuela Run"David Paich3:54
5."You Are the Flower" (Bobby Kimball)Kimball4:11
Side two
No.TitleLead vocalsLength
1."Girl Goodbye"Kimball6:13
2."Takin' It Back" (Steve Porcaro)S. Porcaro3:47
3."Rockmaker"Paich3:19
4."Hold the Line"Kimball3:56
5."Angela"Lukather with Paich4:45

Singles

Personnel

Toto

Additional musicians

Production
  • Arranged and Produced by Toto
  • Engineered and Mixed by Tom Knox
  • Assistant Engineers: Dana Latham and Gabe Veltri
  • Recorded at Sunset Sound (Los Angeles, CA), Studio 55 (Los Angeles, CA) and Davlen Sound Studios (North Hollywood, CA).
  • Mastered by Ron Hitchcock and Mike Reese at The Mastering Lab (Los Angeles, CA).
  • Cover Art: Philip Garris
  • Design and Photography by Ed Careaff Studio.
  • Management: The Fitzgerald Hartley Co.

Charts

References
  1. Toto USA chart history, Billboard.com. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
  2. Toto UK chart history Archived 2013-06-16 at WebCite, The Official Charts. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
  3. Toto at AllMusic
  4. https://www.classicrockrevisited.com/show_review.php?id=1346
  5. Fleck, Steve. "Toto: Toto". Sea of Tranquility. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  6. Shewey, Don (January 25, 1979). Toto review, Rolling Stone.
  7. "Jeff Porcaro Interview about Toto's Sword".
  8. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  9. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved August 1, 2012
  10. "dutchcharts.nl Toto – Toto" (ASP). Hung Medien (in Dutch). MegaCharts. Retrieved August 1, 2012.
  11. Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970-2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
  12. "charts.nz Toto – Toto" (ASP). Hung Medien. Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved August 1, 2012.
  13. "norwegiancharts.com Toto – Toto" (ASP). Hung Medien. VG-lista. Retrieved August 1, 2012.
  14. "swedishcharts.com Toto – Toto" (ASP) (in Swedish). Retrieved August 1, 2012.
  15. "The Official Charts Company - Toto – Toto" (PHP). Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 1, 2012.
  16. "allmusic ((( Toto > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums )))". allmusic.com. Retrieved August 1, 2012.
  17. "Album Search: Toto – Toto" (in German). Media Control. Retrieved August 1, 2012.
  18. "RPM Top 100 Albums of 1979". RPM. Retrieved August 1, 2012.
  19. "Top Pop Albums of 1979". billboard.biz. December 31, 1979. Retrieved August 1, 2012.
  20. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2018 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 10 August 2020. Retrieved December 26, 2018.
  21. "Canadian album certifications – Toto – Toto". Music Canada. Retrieved August 1, 2012.
  22. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Toto; 'Toto')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved August 1, 2012.
  23. "American album certifications – Toto – Toto". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 1, 2012. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
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