I Found the Sun Again is the eighth studio album by Steve Lukather, released by The Players Club (Mascot Label Group). It was released on February 26, 2021, the same day as his bandmate from Toto, Joseph Williams, released his album Denizen Tenant under the same label.[4]
| I Found the Sun Again | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | February 26, 2021 | |||
| Recorded | February 2020 | |||
| Studio | Steakhouse (North Hollywood, Los Angeles) | |||
| Length | 50:20 | |||
| Label | The Players Club | |||
| Producer | Ken Freeman, Steve Lukather | |||
| Steve Lukather chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from I Found the Sun Again | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| American Songwriter |   [1] |
| Classic Rock | [2] |
| Uncut | 6/10[3] |
This is Lukather's first solo studio album in eight years,[3] following Transition (2013), marking the longest gap between two albums to date.
Background
editThe then current lineup of Toto played their last show on October 20, 2019, before breaking. Tensions were rising within the band and its management because of a lawsuit Susan Porcaro-Goings (Jeff Porcaro's widow) had against Lukather and David Paich, the sole directors of Toto Corporation, because she hadn't been paid money due her former husband's estate. This, according to Lukather, drove a wedge between him and then-member of Toto Steve Porcaro. Furthermore, Paich's health was pretty fragile so he wasn't able to tour.[5]
After this situation, Lukather says that he and Joseph Williams were "the only ones who wanted to keep working". As Williams was already working on a solo album, Lukather decided to release one himself too, with both of them collaborating on each other's efforts.[6]
Recording
editLukather desired to do an old-school, early 70s vibe record.[6][7] In his own words: "I wanted to see if I could do it the way we used to do it".[8] In order to achieve that, the whole album was recorded in eight days in February 2020, "recording a song a day", with no rehearsals, demos, click tracks or computers.[9][10] As claimed by Lukather: "all that stuff you're hearing is being played live", including the solos. There were "very minimal overdubs", specifically some double-guitar parts and the vocals.[6][8] In an interview with MusicRadar, Lukather described the recording process as the easiest and most enjoyable of his career to date.[7]
Furthermore, Lukather says that "not everything was written out". Jeff Babko and him had co-written some stuff as a "good road map", plus "some stuff that we figured that was needed in the songs and the right voicings", but the majority of the work was improvised.[8]
The band hired for the recordings included Gregg Bissonette on drums, Jorgen Carlsson and John Pierce on bass, and David Paich and Jeff Babko on keyboards. Then, in Lukather's words, Joseph Williams "took it home and layered a few backgrounds".[11]
Songs
editOf the eight tracks, there are five original songs, as well as three covers chosen by Lukather as "an homage to the people that I love": "The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys" by Traffic, Joe Walsh’s "Welcome To The Club" and "Bridge of Sighs" by Robin Trower. According to Lukather, he took the cover songs first "because that was gonna set the tone of what I wanted to write pretty much for the record".[8] These three were songs that he "played in junior and high school in bands" and influenced him.[12]
With "The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys", Lukather said that he "wanted to play and stretch out".[6] He also denoted that this version includes "one of the greatest piano solos" that he's heard of in his life by Jeff Babko, and that David Paich plays a great "Steve Winwood organ solo".[10]
As stated by Lukather, Walsh "really dug" the cover of "Welcome to the Club" included in the album.[12]
About "Bridge of Sighs", Lukather said that he chose that song because "Robin [Trower] doesn't get enough love" and he "wanted to capture that era when it was recorded in the early '70s". He has also affirmed that it's a great and fun song to play, that he loves the lyrics and the vibe of the song, and that "not a lot of people have done it" as far as he knows.[9][8]
Looking at the original songs, the album starts with "Along for the Ride". Lukather has indicated that he wanted it to be punchy and that he "didn't want people to think that I'd lost my rock and roll sense".[11] He has also acknowledged that "there's probably a bit of Jeff Beck in there".[7] Andy Greene of Rolling Stone has written that the lyrics of this song show the "frustration and anger he's felt over the past couple of years", alluding to the lawsuit and the end of the previous incarnation of Toto.[5]
According to Greene, "things get even more bitter on 'Serpent Soul'", the next song on the album.[5] Lukather said about it that "we wanted to just write something swampy" and that it's his tribute to Little Feat.[11]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Along for the Ride" |
| 4:56 |
| 2. | "Serpent Soul" |
| 4:55 |
| 3. | "The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys" | 10:36 | |
| 4. | "Journey Through" | Babko | 5:55 |
| 5. | "Welcome to the Club" | Joe Walsh | 5:57 |
| 6. | "I Found the Sun Again" |
| 6:18 |
| 7. | "Run to Me" |
| 3:19 |
| 8. | "Bridge of Sighs" | Robin Trower | 8:24 |
Personnel
editAll credits sourced from the album's liner notes.[13]
- Steve Lukather – guitars (all tracks), lead vocals (tracks 1–3, 5–8)
- Jeff Babko – synths (tracks 1, 5, 6, 8), keys (track 1), Wurli Rhodes (track 2), piano (track 3), Rhodes piano (tracks 3, 4, 6), effects (tracks 3, 6, 8), organ (track 5)
- David Paich – organ (tracks 1, 3, 4, 6, 8), piano (tracks 2, 5)
- Gregg Bissonette – drums (tracks 1–6, 8)
- Ringo Starr – drums, tambourine (track 7)
- Jorgen Carlsson – bass (tracks 1–4, 6, 8)
- John Pierce – bass (tracks 5, 7)
- Joseph Williams – background vocals (tracks 1, 2, 6, 7), all keys (track 7), strings (track 7), horn arrangements (track 7)
Technical
- Ken Freeman, Steve Lukather – production
- Joseph Williams – co-production (track 7)
- Ken Freeman – engineering, mixing
- Brendan Collins, Ryan Potesta – assistants
- Bruce Sugar – additional recording
- Gavin Lurssen, Reuben Cohen – mastering
- Roy Koch – artwork
- Alex Solca – photography
Charts
edit| Chart (2021) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[14] | 16 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[15] | 161 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[16] | 87 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[17] | 21 |
| French Albums (SNEP)[18] | 141 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[19] | 16 |
| Scottish Albums (OCC)[20] | 63 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[21] | 10 |
| UK Independent Albums (OCC)[22] | 16 |
| US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[23] | 72 |
| US Top Current Album Sales (Billboard)[24] | 41 |
References
edit- ^ Zimmerman, Lee (February 26, 2021). "With a Soaring New Solo Album, Steve Lukather Finds His Own Sunny Vista". American Songwriter. Retrieved November 16, 2021.
- ^ Flys, Phoebe (February 26, 2021). "Steve Lukather: I Found The Sun Again album review". Classic Rock. Retrieved November 16, 2021.
- ^ a b Scoppa, Bud (April 2021). "Toto co-founder and prolific session guitarist revisits his roots". Uncut. Retrieved November 16, 2021.
- ^ "I Found the Sun Again (2021)". Steve Lukather Official Website. 2021. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
- ^ a b c Greene, Andy (November 20, 2020). "Toto: Inside 'Africa' Hitmakers' Slow Fall and Surprise Resurrection". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
- ^ a b c d Kawashima, Dale (March 16, 2021). "Steve Lukather Interview - Writing Hits For Toto, Other Artists". SongwriterUniverse. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
- ^ a b c Sharma, Amit (February 11, 2021). ""I guess I'm a rock guy trying to play jazz" – Steve Lukather talks Rosanna, Eddie Van Halen and his new solo album". MusicRadar. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e Mastropolo, Frank (May 13, 2021). "Steve Lukather Q&A: 'I Foud the SUn Again' & the Leaf Blower Battle". RockCellar Magazine. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
- ^ a b Bienstock, Richard (November 20, 2020). "Steve Lukather Talks His New Solo Album, Reforming Toto and Going Viral at Age 63". Guitar Player. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
- ^ a b Prasad, Anil (2020). "Innerviews: Steve Lukather - Wild Ride". Innerviews. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
- ^ a b c "Toto Steve Lukather eonmusic interview February 2021". eonmusic. February 2021. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
- ^ a b Ryan, Jim (March 18, 2021). "Steve Lukather On New Solo Album, Toto's Future And Music Industry Economics". Forbes. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
- ^ I Found the Sun Again (liner notes). Steve Lukather. The Players Club. 2021. TPC76312.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ "Austriancharts.at – Steve Lukather – I Found the Sun Again" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Steve Lukather – I Found the Sun Again" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Steve Lukather – I Found the Sun Again" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Steve Lukather – I Found the Sun Again" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
- ^ "Lescharts.com – Steve Lukather – I Found the Sun Again". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Steve Lukather – I Found the Sun Again" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
- ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – Steve Lukather – I Found the Sun Again". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
- ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
- ^ "Steve Lukather Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
- ^ "Steve Lukather Chart History (Top Current Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved August 18, 2023.