The Grammy Award-winning band had a capacity Meijer Gardens crowd of loyal fans on its feet with an array hits ranging from “Hold the Line” to “Rosanna” to new material. (Review, photo gallery)
‘The Road Goes On’: Toto brought 37 years of music to Meijer Gardens on Sunday. (Photo/Anthony Norkus)
After nearly four decades, 13 studio albums and multiple band member shakeups, Toto’s power of drawing an adoring crowd not only remains, but was on impressive display Sunday evening.
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Packed even tighter than usual, the sold-out show at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park began with a performance from singer-songwriter Patrick Sieben before giving way to the accomplished, veteran rock band.
Summer Sellout: The amphitheater once again was filled to capacity on Sunday. (Photo/Anthony Norkus)
“Nothing means more to Toto than loyal fans and you’ve been some of the most loyal fans. Thank you very much for all these years,” gushed singer Joseph Williams.
The band members engaged and joked with the audience throughout the night, all while appreciating the significance of having such a devoted following that has spanned almost 40 years.
Toto, whose sound seemed bigger and thicker than ever thanks to the amphitheater setting, produced an impressive two-hour set including the Grammy Award-winning “Rosanna,” songs from its latest studio album “Toto XIV,” and many other classics like “Pamela” and, of course, “Africa,” which closed out the evening.
Grand Rapids drummer and longtime fan Tom Taylor, a member of The Soul Syndicate among other bands, noted Toto always brings “top players” on the road, including Lee Sklar and Lenny Castro, and that the group still sells out huge arenas in Europe and Asia where its popularity has grown.
STILL A GREAT GROUP WITH A LOYAL FAN BASE
“The crowd was into the show from the time they hit,” Taylor said. “Having such a large catalog of songs and several live albums and DVDs, I’m always interested to hear how they play with the arrangements and combining parts of different songs together. ‘On the Run’ … segueing into ‘Goodbye Elenore’ from ‘Turn Back’ was a cool example.”
Loyal Fans: Toto brought many of them to Meijer Gardens. (Photo/Anthony Norkus)
Taylor said he’s glad the capacity Grand Rapids crowd got to experience “how great a group this still is after 37 years as a band. And most folks would be stunned by the amount of music either written or recorded by members of Toto by other artists.”
The band acknowledged its longevity by rolling out a version of its first hit single.
“Before we did our first album, when I got my first apartment, I bought a little piano and I started playing this riff,” started keyboardist David Paich. “I couldn’t stop playing this riff. Then I played it for the band and they kinda liked it, so we decided to put it on the first album. We’re gonna try it again tonight.”
Paich erupted into his famous piano intro and the crowd jumped to its feet for “Hold the Line,” a Toto classic from 1978 that band devotees in the audience were longing to hear.
As the sun started to fade, the band paid homage to late Toto members Jeffrey and Mike Porcaro, which prompted concertgoers to sway back in forth, smartphones (as the new lighters) held high and lit up in solidarity.
Up Next at Meijer Gardens: ABBA the Concert at 7 p.m. Wednesday (sold out)
PHOTO GALLERY: Toto and Patrick Sieben at Meijer Gardens
Photos by Anthony Norkus
