Toto Album: “Super Hits”

Good songs, super even, as usual from Toto, but there are only a few hits, accompanied by quite a lot of relatively insignificant tracks. Don't waste your money on this - the 'Past to present' compilation, though not perfect, is a far better example of Toto's best work and covers most of their hits.

Whether you like their music or not, you cannot deny that Toto are among the most seasoned session musicians around. Including Steve Lukather on guitar, the legendary Jeff Porcaro on drums, and David Paich & Steve Porcaro on keyboards, in addition to David Hungate (1977-1983) and Mike Porcaro (1983-present) on bass guitar and a string of vocalists, Toto are one of the biggest bands in the world (they are still as big as ever in Europe, but in America, they haven't had much success in recent years), and this collection, 'Super Hits' does little to prove that.

You get 10 (that's all, 10) hits from Toto. Sure, you get 'Africa,' 'Hold the Line' and 'Rosanna' here, but where is 'I Won't Hold You Back' (arguably one of their biggest hits)? Or 'Holyanna'? Or what about 'Lea'? Or 'Pamela'? You get the picture. This collection is quite lacking, and it's missing many elements that made Toto one of the premier pop rock acts of the 1980s.

Overall, you can do better. Seek out 'Past to Present 1977-1990' (which is admittedly a little dated today, but for a casual fan, it does the trick just fine) or 'The Essential Toto' for a compilation (the European 2-CD edition is the one to buy), or if you want studio albums, 'Hydra,' the self-titled debut, 'Toto IV' and 'Fahrenheit' are all great choices. Buying those studio albums is the route I recommend taking to appreciate this band.

Just don't buy this. It's yet another cash grab from Columbia looking to milk the band's legacy. The 'Super Hits' series as a whole is pretty useless. Occasionally, an entry in the series will be worth the money (Aretha Franklin's and Keith Whitley's being the only two that come to mind right now), but that's seldom. Go seek out a better Toto album. ANYTHING is better than this. This is a dreadful Toto compilation. Avoid this like the plague.

NOT RECOMMENDED.

Toto was one of the most under-rated and over-criticized bands of the 80's. Never mind the fact that they won a ton of grammys for "Africa" and the Toto IV album. Critics loved to say they were just a studio band, and that they were sterile and banal. Ha! Just listen to their hits---"Africa," "Hold the Line," "I Won't Hold You Back," "Make Believe," "Rosanna," "99", etc., etc. They are an extremely creative and tight, and gave us songs that will last much longer than the current fluff saturating the market. Toto is a great band and this collection of their super hits is top notch!

I think the first reviewer got this right. its a budget cd that doesnt fill the disc at all, put out by the record company. these songs are the singles, which happen to be more ballad like than rock ones that most of their songs are. if you are a toto fan seriously look elsewhere (isolation, hydra, seventh one). if you are a new toto fan, also look elsewhere, unless you are like a top 40 party dj or something wanting the 'singles' theres seriously more to toto.

Probably in part because of MJ's passing, there's been reflection on 80's music. Needless to say, I stumbled upon this. While the big hits indeed sound familiar, I may as well be hearing their work for the first time (because I honestly never paid attention to it before). Good stuff.