TOTO CO-FOUNDER TAKES OUT HIS TOYS TO PLAY ON HIS SOLO DEBUT
This may be David Paich’s debut solo album, but it’s not his first time at the rodeo. As a prolific session musician and songwriter for TOTO, he has a knack for penning a melody and spinning a lyric or two.
The album is unmistakably TOTO, it’s got Paich’s pawprint all over it, along with some guest performances from Steve Lukather, Brian Eno, Michael McDonald, Ray Parker Jr., Don Felder, Steve Jordan of The Rolling Stones and Joseph Williams. It’s also incredibly short, running at under 30 minutes, but small things can be great too. After all, some classic albums have run around the 30 min mark, ‘A Hard Day’s Night’, ‘ Green River, ‘ Nashville Skyline’ and ‘ Lady Soul’ being some notable mentions. 'Forgotten Toys' would be unlikely to fit into the definition of a classic album, but there are some worthy tunes all the same. ‘All The Tears That Shine’, featured on TOTO XIV and is given a slight makeover, ‘Queen Charade’ featuring Don Felder, is a sassy little blues number. But it’s the unexpected instrumental closer ‘ Lucy’ that sees Paich reconnect with his Jazz roots, along with some Al Jerreau style scat singing that is a real high point.
Although Paich had been occasionally picking up these forgotten toys from the studio toy box, Covid gave pause and a time for Paich to fully reconnect and give full attention to his imagination, and also invite some friends around to play.