Toto
Turn Back

"Turn Back" is the third work by Toto, dated 1981. A strange band, made up at the time by Steve Lukather (guitar), Bobby Kimball (vocals), David Paich (keyboards), David Hungate (bass), and the brothers Steve (keyboards) and Jeff Porcaro (drums). After the triumphant debut of the self-titled album (1978), driven to excellent sales by the singles "Hold the Line," "I'll Supply the Love," and "Georgy Porgy," complete with a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist Album, Toto's career suffered an unexpected slowdown. The Californian super-musicians, taken individually, are number one in the US music business, lending their talents as luxury session musicians to the biggest stars of the moment (just mention the presence of the entire band on Michael Jackson's record-breaking album Bad, which also featured a track, "Human Nature," penned by Steve Porcaro), but the world press creates around the band a negative reputation as a "virtual" superband, a group of musicians united without a common goal, just to "cash in" by creating cold and soulless products in the name of business. But great technique and eclecticism are not always synonymous with a lack of "sacred fire," even if the truth probably lies somewhere in between: the band Toto is anything but virtual, as evidenced by the 30 years of career celebrated in 2008 with a hugely successful world tour. Although perhaps, aside from the purely technical side, where our band excels notably, the history of rock will not grant them a leading role from the point of view of creativity and the ability to explore new paths.

It opens with "Gift with a Golden Gun", a nice driving rock track with Kimball's voice in the foreground and Luke's synthesized guitars weaving unique sound patterns. The following "English Eyes" is once again "conquered territory" for Lukather, opening with a hard and cutting riff, accompanied by the never mundane drumming of the late Jeff Porcaro and the powerful excursions of Kimball's voice, leading after the chorus to an instrumental part with keyboards crafting blends for the solo instruments (voice and guitar). Another "important" moment is the rock ride of "Goodbye Elenore," then a single taken from the album, a classic Toto track reminiscent of "Hold the Line" or "All Us Boys," with an inevitable conclusion entrusted to Lukather. But there's also room for sweetness, like in Kimball’s heartfelt cry in "A Million Miles Away" or the conclusion given to the almost country-like choruses of "If it's the Last Night".

In conclusion, a more than positive experience, an album to listen to for the small pearls of musical wisdom that the band knows how to insert in every single passage. A decidedly rock album, with Lukather’s guitar as the great protagonist. But an album that, even more than its predecessor Hydra, won't even remotely approach the success of the first album, forcing the band, after a brief tour, to recalibrate and recover atmospheres somewhere between fusion and r'n'b, which will make Toto IV (driven by the smash hits "Rosanna" and "Africa") a true winner.