Toto/MO, USA 2019

TOTO has finally completed their 40th anniversary tour and announced a hiatus. Their latest live albums will be released all at once. This work is the first in a series of four simultaneous releases. This is a masterpiece audience recording of “September 27, 2019 Kansas City Performance”. Their “40 TRIPS AROUND THE SUN TOUR” started in February 2018 and traveled around the world for 1 year and 8 months. Especially since 2019, the Japanese performance is still fresh in my memory. First of all, let’s check the show’s position from their recent situation. ●2019, January 2-13: Oceania (8 performances), February 14-March 3: Asia (9 performances) 《March 21-April 11: Tour with Ringo》・6 March 13th – July 20th: Europe (27 performances)《August 1st – September 1st: Tour with Ringo》・September 20th – October 20th: North America (21 performances) ←★Here★《 December 17th + 18th: NERVE BUNDLE》●2020《March 27th – April 1st: NERVE BUNDLE》 This is the schedule for 2019/2020 that has been announced so far. Steve Lukather toured alternately with TOTO and RINGO STARR & HIS ALL STARR BAND. After TOTO’s 40th anniversary tour is over, they have also announced a show with their side project NERVE BUNDLE. In a recent interview, he announced that TOTO will cease activities after the US tour ends. Although it doesn’t seem like they are specifically disbanding, he declares, “Without a doubt, this form of TOTO (formed by Lukather/David Paich/Steve Porcaro/Joseph Williams) will disappear.” However, after this news spread around the world, his agent commented, “We are not stopping completely, we are just taking a break after touring for over two years.” For this reason, we cannot make any predictions, but there is no doubt that we have reached a major milestone. What will be released is a four-series series of such “North American” legs. This work is a live album corresponding to the 6th performance. And the quality of this work is also excellent. Perhaps due to the news of the suspension of activities, masterpiece recordings have appeared one after another from the last “North American” leg, and it has become a four-series release. Among them, this work is a masterpiece recording with great clarity. It’s not so close that you can mistake it for a sound board, but it’s not far away. Although it is true that the snare and bass drum are imprinted with an audience-like quality, this is only at the tone level and is not muddy or blurred. The high notes are rather wonderfully spacious, and the keyboard is beautiful, as if it’s raining glitter. It’s a sound that clearly captures the melody of a famous song, yet makes it shine. The show drawn with that sound is the final form of “40 TRIPS AROUND THE SUN TOUR”. From this tour, it has also become the official work “40 TOURS AROUND THE SUN”, but this work has been fine-tuned from there. It is the same as the performance in Japan in February. Let’s organize this here. ●70s/80s (13 songs)・TOTO: Hold the Line/Georgy Porgy(ACOUSTIC)/Girl Goodbye・TURN BACK: English Eyes・TOTO IV: Lovers in the Night/Rosanna/Make Believe/Africa・ISOLATION: Lion・FAHRENHEIT: I’ll Be Over You(ACOUSTIC) ・THE SEVENTH ONE: Stop Loving You(ACOUSTIC)/Home of the Brave ・Others: Dune (Desert Theme)/Human Nature(ACOUSTIC) (Michael Jackson) ●90s /2000s (4 songs)・KINGDOM OF DESIRE: Jake to the Bone・TAMBU: I Will Remember・MINDFIELDS: No Love (ACOUSTIC)・THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS: While My Guitar Gently Weeps (Beatles) ●After restart (2 Song)・OLD IS NEW: Devil’s Tower/Alone…and it goes like this. There is also an official version of “40 TOURS AROUND THE SUN” from this tour, but it is at the beginning of the tour. They also performed “Devil’s Tower,” “I’ll Be Over You,” and “Home of the Brave,” which you can’t hear there. Many of the rare songs that seemed bold at first have become perfect after two years of touring, and the impregnable ensemble is wonderful. The “North American” leg runs through to the end with this set, and it is a full show that is the “final answer”. The latest four series released as if counting down to the suspension of activities. The first of these is a masterpiece live album with brilliant clarity. Live at Uptown Theater, Kansas City, MO, USA 27th September 2019 PERFECT SOUND Disc 1(76:26) 1. Devil’s Tower 2. Hold the Line 3. Lovers in the Night 4. Alone 5. I Will Remember 6. English Eyes 7. Jake to the Bone 8. Rosanna 9. MC 10. Georgy Porgy 11. Human Nature 12. I’ll Be Over You 13. No Love 14. Stop Loving You 15. Xavier Talpin Piano Solo 16. Girl Goodbye Disc 2( 51:04) 1. Band Introductions 2. Lion 3. Dune (Desert Theme) 4. While My Guitar Gently Weeps 5. Make Believe 6. Africa 7. Home of the Brave Steve Lukather – vocals, guitars Steve Porcaro – keyboards Joseph Williams – vocals Shannon Forrest – drums Shem von Schroeck – bass Warren Ham – saxophone, vocals Lenny Castro – percussion Dominique “Xavier” Talpin – keyboards