Robert Plant And The Yardbirds

Toto is an American indie rock band founded in 1977 in Los Angeles. The band has been without a break since their formation and still goes on touring to this day. The band’s present line up now consists of Robert “Sput” Urman, David Paich, and Steve Lukather, with John Pierce, Robert “Mutt” Santana, and Warren Ham as guests. The band gained popularity due to their memorable hit “Aja” and have since gone on to sell more than sixty-five studio albums and over one hundred live albums.

The original version of the Toto song “Aja” was “Tutu” which translates to “aya in Japanese”. In 1998, Toto released “Haitani” which was a track written by Peter Collins. After a string of singles, “Haitani” was not longer a favorite of the public and was gradually withdrawn from the lineup. “Haitani” later resurfaced and became part of the “American Recordings” set of “Aja” and “Ai Oh! “.

After the hiatus, Toto came back with “Reelin’ in the Years” which featured Yusef Islam. This song was the first album cover that was to feature Yusef Islam as a member of Toto. “Aja” was also updated with a new verse by Robert Plant which said that the old lyrics were “so old and tired, I hardly recognise them”. “Aja” reached number three on the chart and remained in the top ten for eleven consecutive weeks, the only time a group managed to stay in the top ten for so long.

“Aja” was a huge hit for Toto and it marked their return to the music scene after a long absence. “Reelin’ in the Years” became a classic and is well known as one of the best guitar songs ever written. The band went on to record four more albums including “Strawberries”, “Euphoria” and “Eruption” and they still sell incredibly well to this day.

Aja is not the only song written by Robert Plant which has achieved classic status. Other songs which have made the guitar great front again include “umersault” which went to number two in the UK and ” Seeds of Time” which peaked at number twenty. The acoustic guitar version of “Eruption” is still a staple number for shows all around the world. Other classics “I Just Want To Get Away” and “Wish You Were Here” have been covered by artists as diverse as David Gray, shredding legends Megadeth and Paul McCartney. The list continues on with artists like Skid Row, Nirvana, Paul McCartney, Queen, Ozzy Osbourne and plenty more to name but a few.

Many guitarists consider Tooro as a supergroup. With founding members Plant and Fisher there is a undeniable synergy which is present on each Ofanto album. This is made evident on such hits “Cantillation”, “Hurt”, “Love in the Future” and “Breathing”. These are very personal songs with memorable melodies. There is also a guitar player who gives these songs a slower feel with a solo on “Cantillation” which will blow your mind. The band has never had a bad track to follow and has always retained its spot at the top of the guitar hero genre.