Steve Lukather: Luke (1997)

"Welcome to the 3rd installment. You will find this record to be a bit of a departure from my other two because I really wanted to do something different. Maybe because my life is just different now and when I began writing and recording for this record I was in a rather introspective, life-evaluating space. Consequently, my approach to the whole reord, musically and sonically, just seemed to take another direction. I was inspired by all the music I grew up listening to and how it has influenced and chronicled different phases of my life and it came out liberally and deliberately on the record. In fact, I think this record is the closest amalgamation of all the different facets of me than anything I have recorded in the past, thus the original title. I experimented with some different instrumentation and recording techniques this time. All the tracks were recorded live except for vocals and a few other oddities. The solos that I do have on the record like Tears of my own shame and Blue bird were kept intact with all their imperfections as to keep the approach REAL and honest. I decided to focus on other aspects of my music this time. You hear sounds like pedal steel guitar, harmonicas, Mellotrons and some different guitar tones and rawer-sounding bass and drum parts. I mixed all this in with some modern recording techniques. I even purposefully distorted the vocals on some occasions... so there is nothing wrong with your system (haha). I think we captured the spirit of where I seem to be coming from at this time. I want to thank ALL of the musicians and Tom for their input and keeping me from myself when it was necessary, for making me keep things I would normally "fix" and maybe "fix" the edge right out of. I also want to thank Elliot Scheiner for coming in and mixing my album and putting some fresh ears on it.

See ya on the road!!" (Luke)
Tracklist:1 The real truth (Lukather, Waybill)
2 Broken machine (Lukather, Soussan)
3 Tears of my own shame (Lukather, Soussan)
4 Love the things you hate (Lukather, Soussan)
5 Hate everything about you (Lukather, R. Crowell)
6 Reservations to live (The way it is) (Lukather, Waybill)
7 Don't hang me on (Lukather, Soussan)
8 Always be there for me (Lukather)
9 Open your heart (Lukather, Goodrum)
10 Bag o'tales (Lukather, Soussan)
11 Blue bird (Stephen Stills)
Personnel:

Steve Lukather, Gregg Bissonette, John Pierce, Jim Cox, Phil Soussan, Maxie Anderson, Alfie Silas Duno, J.D. Maness, Pino Palladino, David Paich.

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Mike Porcaro: Brotherly Love (2010) [2 CD]

For almost a half century, the name Porcaro has been synonymous with musical greatness. It began with Papa Joe Porcaro, whose roots go back to gigging in Connecticut before transplanting and continuing his music career in Los Angeles. Soon to follow were three amazing prodigies who embraced the Los Angeles music scene in the mid to late 70’s and didn’t let go. Jeff, Mike and Steve Porcaro’s talents transcended their band Toto and touched thousands of recordings that came out of the LA music scene. But their success in the music industry is only a small part of what makes the Porcaro family so special. Having had the good fortune to meet many members of the family, what strikes me most about each and every Porcaro is how upbeat, personable and friendly they are. And although I didn’t have the opportunity to meet Jeff, I get the sense that he was every bit as inviting and open as his parents, brothers and his sister, Joleen. When you consider the loss of Jeff and the impact this had on the world of music and his fans – even to this day - I can’t imagine how this impacted the Porcaro family. We now have come to realize that another Porcaro brother, Mike, is struggling with ALS on a daily basis and has been for a few years. I have no doubt that the spirit of the Porcaro family is stronger than ever and rallying around him. For those of you who know Mike or have had the opportunity to watch him perform with Toto, it only takes a glance at his face while he’s performing to tell you how passionate he is about music. Mike’s groove is so deep-in-the-pocket-tight, but loose enough that his bass parts always seem to blend so nicely with everything Toto lays down. I’ve always likened Mike’s role in Toto to that of George Harrison’s with the Beatles. George was often thought of as the quiet one, but in many ways the ‘glue’ of the band. Like Harrison, Mike didn’t get the spotlight as often as his band mates, but he was always so steady, reliable and rhythmically solid both on albums and during live performances.

With the realization of Mike’s condition, it was such a wonderful surprise to learn about “Brotherly Love” and that Mike spearheaded this project. As mentioned, “Brotherly Love” is a 2 CD set that was recorded live in Germany in 2002 as a tribute to Mike’s brother, Jeff. It features an all-star cast of musicians, including David Garfield, Steve Gadd, Greg Bissonette, Lenny Castro, Glenn Hughes, brother Steve Porcaro and father Joe Porcaro. The songs on this project cover many Porcaro influenced selections, including ones by Toto, Boz Scaggs, Los Lobotomys, Michael Jackson, Al Green, Steely Dan and more. “Brotherly Love” has been released in Japan, but is only available as an import here in the States. There is speculation that it might be available here soon.

I highly recommend this album for anyone who is not only a fan of Mike Porcaro, but for those of you who are a fan of his love and passion for the music he created with so many incredible musicians over the years, including his brothers, Jeff and Steve. The Porcaro spirit runs deep on the appropriately titled “Brotherly Love.”

Tracklist:

Disc 1:
1. Rosanna (7:08)
2. Manic Depression (4:43)
3. Georgy Porgy (9:38)
4. Lowdown (8:07)
5. E Minor Shuffle (8:05)
6. English Eyes (7:21)
7. Human Nature (5:24)
8. Straight No Chaser (8:52)
9. Africa (6:52)
10. Let's Stay Together (Bonus Track) (8:37)
Disc 2:
1. Stuffy (1:31)
2. Jeff's Strut (8:06)
3. Babylon Sisters (7:31)
4. Big Bone (7:44)
5. Corbitt Van Brauer (10:43)
Personnel :
Mike Procaro - Bass
David Garfield - Keyboards
Steve Porcaro - Keyboards
Michael O'Neill - Guitar
Lenny Castro - Percussion
Larry Klimas - Sax, Flute
Ralph "Mosch" Himmler - Trumpet
Glenn Hughes - Lead Vocal (1, 2, 10)
Bobby Kimball - Lead Vocal (1, 6, 9, 10)
Alex Ligertwood - Lead Vocal (3, 4, 9, 10)
Steve Gadd - Drums (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 10, 11, 12, 15)
Gregg Bissonette - Drums (1, 2, 5, 9, 13, 14)
Robin DiMaggio - Drums (4, 9)
Chase Duddy - Drums (6)
Joe Porcaro - Drums (8), Percussion (9)
John Robinson - Drums (10)
Bernard Purdie - Drums (13)
Doug Bossi - Guitar Solos (1), Additional Guitars (6)
David Paich - Piano (9), Additional Vocals (9)
Joseph Williams -. BG Vocals (6, 9)
Brotherly Love
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