TOTO "africa" classic or dud

One of the ten best songs ever.

It's true -- it's all about that chorus.

(although saying it's one of the ten best songs ever is a bit over the top).

It's not even the best song on the new Singstar Rock Ballads. And singing along to it really does hammer home just how ridiculous the lyrics in the verses are.

LIGHTNING IN A BOTTLE>

this song has done more for africa than bono ever will

I almost said classic, then I realized that the song in my head was Phil Collins' "Take Me Home". This is somewhere in between c and d.

ok, ill just go ahead and retract that. this thread shouldn't have to be tainted by bono.

(xpost)

wait, toto did the soundtrack to dune????

I still like "Roseanna" better.

Georgie porgy is one of the 10 best songs ever

saying you like "Roseanna" better is indefensible

nuh uh, it's got that sick jeff porcaro beat!

wait, toto did the soundtrack to dune????

Yeah, that is a bit of a mind-blower. Fuck was David Lynch thinking?

can't believe such serious discourse over the band that proclaimed "you supply the night, I'll supply the love"...the cover of the Hydra LP pretty much says it all...bleh...

I actually got temporarily excited when I recently found out Toto did the Dune score -- anticipating an extended Yamaha CS-80 workout. Sadly, it's entirely orchestrated but for a few demos they tacked on to a recent reissue of the record.

songwriting - classic
productio - 80's dud

i agree, pleasant plains, that that is indefensible. but tell me, are you familiar with the stray "turkey gobble" in "roseanna"? anyone know what i'm talking about? it fascinated me as a kid.

that rune lindbaek africa edit/rework thing is pretty hot.

that "africa" beat was wasted on jojo, jadakiss would've been perfect over that.

This song is amazing.

I know nothing about this turkey gobble, andrew.

turkey gobble: listen close during the quiet part before they bust out the big finale "meet you all the way!" bit. i think it appears after he quietly sings "now she's gone..."

i'm sure you have it handy. get back with us on that quicklike.

What the hell? Are you talking about the 3:34 mark? How did you even catch that?

PATRICK SWAYZE!!

xp
that's it! just latched onto it as a kid i guess.

HURRY BOY SHE'S WAITING THERE FOR YOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Um, that's a bgd singer going, "Ooh, oooh!!!"

or the guitarist rubbing the strings a bit--same tone

does anyone else mis-remember the lyrics as featuring the line

"I passed the rains down in Africa"

?

Wait a minute, you suspect that it's not really a TURKEY GOBBLING? Get out of here!

So classic I paid a quarter for the cassette only to discover that it's unlistenable dreck past "Africa" and "Rosanna." I think the clunky insertion of the word "Serengeti" is part of this song's charm.

I feel like if you were going to suddenly surprise people by blurting out part of a pop song from this period "FRIGHTENED BY THIS THING THAT I'VE BECOME!" would be a top-notch choice.

the key of dreams version w/ the vocoder is super-ace, too!!

Jeff Porcaro died in a bizarre gardening accident.

No he didn't. He dropped dead of a cocaine overdose while mowing his lawn.

Explain the cover-up for us, Naive Teen Idol.

Africa? classic.

Toto? Huge motherfucking dud.

Explain the cover-up for us, Naive Teen Idol.

-- Pleasant Plains

Hahahahah!

Me, I like "Africa" fine, but "Georgie Porgie" was their peak. (They shoulda made Cheryl Lynn their fulltime singer)

oh man i just remembered. as a kid i misheard the chorus as "there's nothing that a hundred men on mars could ever do." with my powerful 3rd-grade intellect, i figured they meant that what with mars' gravity being different and all, a man maybe could lift much greater weights on the surface of mars. and it would take over 100 men lifting great weights on the surface of mars to keep me away from this special lady down in africa! how romantic!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Fe11OlMiz8

"there's nothing that a hundred men on mars could ever do."

You mean that isn't the chorus?

the chorus is catchy but kinda generic

UTTERLY preposterous

It's been nearly three years since I last saw the video (upthread!) and I think I finally understand it ... Mr. Toto is trying to hunt down the warrior guy, but before he can positively identify him through piecing together the picture in the book, the warrior hunts *him* down (he carries exactly the same shield as the one in the book) and the evidence is burned. An African librarian observes everything and her glasses get rained on, which is supposed to be ironic or whatever.

STILL one of the best songs ever.

...nd her glasses get rained on...
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2292/2081138864_5675a12dfb.jpg?v=0

That's right.

i also thought he sang "i guess the rain's down in africa." like out of resignation. well, i guess the rain's down in africa. so it goes.

Not to be a wet blanket or anything, but the lyrics to this song are not exactly hard to discern. And I, too, was a kid when it came out.

I stress the blames on the swastika?

This song can kiss my goddamn arse.

"Africa" is great, and I also thought "men on Mars" for a while. That's all.

wristband close up

Me reading the Wikipedia entry for this song:

He completed the melody and lyrics for the chorus in about ten minutes

Ah, so that explains why the lyrics are so--

Paich refined the lyrics for six months before showing the song to the rest of the band