(Porcara Musica, exclusively licensed by Green Hill Productions – 2025)
Picture by Scarlett McDonald
The release of a new album by an artist you love is always an event to mark on your calendar. Steve Porcaro’s new project, simply entitled The Very Day, is no exception to this rule, nine years after Someday/Somehow, his first solo album. Since that release, Steve had been able to step back permanently from the band Toto, of which he was a founding member. After initially leaving in 1987, he returned to the band in 2010 for almost a decade, appearing on several tours and albums to the delight of the Californian band’s fans. Whether for those nostalgic fans who were able to see him on stage again or those like me who had the chance to discover him and see him in the flesh for the first time, it was a feeling of returning to the band’s roots and origins.
I don’t think I’ve ever told anyone this, but when I went to my first Toto concert in 2003, I knew nothing about the band’s history (and Wikipedia wasn’t around to help me out), only recognizing the names of its members from Michael Jackson’s album liner notes, which I had been reading for years. So I was hoping to see Steve Porcaro on stage that day, to catch a glimpse of the composer of “Human Nature” and bring to life the admiration and fascination that already existed in my mind. That wasn’t the case, but this first experience with Toto turned me into a full-fledged fan, to the point where I became interested in and researched the band’s discography in detail, discovering all the work that went into the keyboardist’s synthesizer programming, which is so characteristic of his style. Even though he is no longer officially a member of the band, I still enjoy poring over album booklets to find any traces of his involvement and noticing some of his programming as I listen to the music. I don’t want to stray too far from the main subject, which is his new solo project, but I enjoy explaining the importance Steve Porcaro has had in my interest in music.
This decade with Toto has therefore confirmed an admiration and a respect that have grown even more over the years, with the previous album being something of a revelation for me, in the sense that Steve Porcaro was able to draw me completely into his own world without the presence of his bandmates. That’s why I couldn’t pass up this new release, especially since the artist just sold the rights to his songs a few months ago. It’s a way for him to focus on his own music, made at home, for pleasure. Touring and composing music for film and television are now a thing of the past, and this new album, The Very Day, expresses this turning point and the new era that lies ahead for the musician. The latter began on Friday, July 4, with the preview release of the track “Miss Jane Sinclair.” I was eager to listen to the entire project and savor it as it should be savored.
It’s now a done deal, and this new album kicks off with the track “Marilyn,” and the mention of a female name is enough to make us think of Toto (whose sublime “Lea” was composed by Porcaro!), but the first notes and the voice of the man himself are there to remind us that this is indeed Steve Porcaro, with all the ingredients that make him so charming. The soaring synthesizers backed by brass instruments are a winning combination, and this feeling doesn’t fade throughout the eleven new tracks. It must be said that the cast assembled here is top-notch, and we could easily mention drummer Shannon Forrest, guitarist Michael Landau, and percussionist Lenny Castro as recurring elements in this non-exhaustive list of a sort of All-Star Game of West Coast musicians. When it comes to brass, the artist has cleverly alternated between old friends such as Larry Williams and Chuck Findley, while inviting the German band Tab Two to demonstrate the openness and richness of his musical universe on the festive and playful track “Tonight”. He thus expresses a more up-tempo vibe than on his previous opus. This combination of brass instruments and his keyboard is also expressed in another way during an instrumental interlude entitled “EI” in which Steve invites the late trumpeter Carl Saunders to join him. It would have been perfect for a movie soundtrack, but as I said, those days are gone. It’s true that these new songs aren’t just here to showcase Steve Porcaro’s synthesizer and its multiple programming, but that it blends perfectly with the other prodigies and their instruments featured on the album. One example is Marc Bonilla’s guitar on the track “Water From The Sky” which demonstrates the rapport between the main artist and his various guests throughout the album. Already present on the previous album, the Porcaro/Bonilla duo had collaborated on the series Justified, and this complicity is even more evident here! I would even go so far as to describe it as a kind of intense battle between the two instruments, to the point of making us feel a violent and threatening storm, expressed in music by our two protagonists. This conclusion, materialized by rain, allows us to catch our breath, as the tension was so palpable. We feel the artist’s desire to invite only people he respects both personally and professionally, and brotherhood and complicity permeate every note.
This assertion remains true even when other artists take the lead vocals, as the atmosphere and Porcaro’s unique style are preserved. Let’s give a shout-out to Michael McDonald’s performance on “Change”, as well as Gardner Cole’s on “Listen To My Heart” and Jude Cole’s on “2x Lover”. These two ballads are my favorite sweet treats on the album. They’re like extra servings of dessert that you go back for out of pure greed. I mustn’t forget the excellent “Saint’s & Angels”, sung by Jason Scheff, an iconic member of the band Chicago who deserves our attention. Indeed, (drum roll!), this is a collaboration with David Paich, who is also credited with the composition!
Ultimately, and throughout the album, regardless of the style and the different voices present, as well as the many virtuosos who came to support Steve’s vision, you come away from listening to it with the conviction that this is an album totally mastered by Steve Porcaro. The desire and motivation are there, reflected in the programming and lyrical synth flights that represent his universe so well and make it unique.
With all that, whoever wouldn’t be tempted to listen to this would be missing out. Especially since I’ve gathered the account and impressions of the man himself, who kindly agreed to answer a few questions that came to mind while listening to these new songs.
Picture by Scarlett McDonald
Hello Steve, and thank you for this interview. How do you feel about the release of your new album, The Very Day?
I’m very excited to finally have this music out so I could share it with everybody. It’s been a long time coming. Way, way too long. There’s a lot more to come.
Your previous album, Someday/Somehow, was released in 2016. Had the idea for this second solo album already taken root in your mind at that time, or did it come about later, after you left Toto in 2019?
I’m constantly working on music- bits and pieces but FINISHING songs is a different story and truly a challenge. I really do hate how long it’s been in between these records but the good news is, now that this is all I do you’ll be hearing new music from me much more frequently
Is this approach of taking your time and letting a demo mature something you consciously incorporate into your working method?
I always wish I was faster, but it takes what it takes and again now that this is all I do, being I’ve stopped touring and I’ve stopped doing film work, I just have myself and life’s distractions to deal with. I’m constantly seduced by new software, new synthesizers and new possibilities but it’s always with the intention of it helping me to not sound like anyone else, to produce my music and hopefully get it out there quicker.
Generally speaking, when listening to the album, there is a sense of camaraderie between musicians who have known each other for a long time, who are always very professional, and who enjoy getting together. Would you agree with that?
Absolutely. Most of these guys I’ve known most of my adult life or longer and others like Shannon Forrest I feel like I’ve known all of my life.
During studio sessions, what kind of producer are you in order to get the musicians to deliver what you have in mind for a song? Have you always worked this way, or has it evolved with experience?
What’s great about the technology today is that we can try everything. In the old days we were limited to the amount of tracks we had using multitrack tape recorders. Sometimes if someone you were working with had a different idea how things should go, you’d have to make a decision because there was only one or two tracks left and it had to be one way or the other. Now we can try both. If I’m working with someone and they have an idea that differs from how I think it should go we’re always able to give it a try. I love nothing better than to be surprised when something I was sure wasn’t going to work does and I’m proven wrong. We always just want it to be as good as it can be. Now some of my friends and contemporaries could look at that freedom as being a curse. Sometimes the artists can have too much freedom and be able to try too many different ideas. You could look at being limited to the number of tracks you could use as a healthy limitation. I love being in the studio and I’m a natural born tweaker so I love being able to take advantage of this technology and have the options. At the end of the day though, when it’s my album, I get to have final say.
From the very first track, “Marilyn” and on most of the album’s tracks, the brass section is much more prominent than on the previous album. Even though you are a programming specialist who could easily reproduce these sounds, was it important for you to invite this type of musician to participate in your project?
It’s been really apparent to me lately how short life is and my rule on this record and moving forward was that if someone could do it quicker than me – better than me I would do it that way or use that person. If I was trying to make a sound like real horns instead of me spending hours trying to get that nuance and that realism to the sound I just hired horn players. I just want to do what I can do and no one else can-which for me is to focus on my writing and use synthesizers for sounds only they can make.
Regarding the brass section, to expand on the previous question, your instrumental track “The EI” is a duet between yourself and the late trumpeter Carl Saunders. It’s the only part of the album that reminded me of Toto’s discography with the instrumental “Don’t Stop Me Now”. I know you didn’t write this song, but did this musical encounter with Miles Davis inspire you to collaborate with another trumpet player, one who is obviously appreciated, like Carl Saunders?
That style of Jazz trumpet playing has always been part of my DNA. It’s the music my father listened to while we were all growing up. Before the Beatles, there was a lot of Miles Davis quintets on the record player.
I have to mention “Change” with Michael McDonald, a song that was originally intended for another famous singer. What are the origins of this track, leading up to the final version that is released today with some big names in the credits?
Back several years ago I’d gotten together with my songwriting partner Michael Sherwood. I played him three things I had started. He thought all of them would be good to pitch to Michael Jackson and gave me some input and some ideas. “Change” is the first one that was finished. There are two more I hope to finish.
The track “Does It Really Matter” caught my attention because you are the only one credited for its composition. Is it more autobiographical and personal because you created it alone?
Not necessarily. Looking back at it now I wish I brought someone in to make the lyrics a little better give them more of a narrative that might make more sense. I went with my typical word salad.
Another highlight of the album is the track “Water From The Sky” which can be considered a duet between your keyboard and Marc Bonilla’s guitar. Can you tell us about your musical chemistry with Marc Bonilla that led to this result?
Marc has always been one of the most underrated musicians I’ve ever known. He’s always marched to his own drummer and never compromises. That song starts off with a cue from the TV show Justified that we worked on together. We took it from there and he added some invaluable parts especially the solos.
The ballad on the album “Listen To My Heart” offers a beautiful chemistry between your voice and that of Gardner Cole. We could also mention the other singers on the album who did a remarkable job. Everything blends perfectly with your own vocal interpretations (and your synth notes!). Were all these choices for the vocals obvious from the start, or did it take a few different approaches to guide you in your thinking?
Yeah that was a strange one. All I had was a B section that I’d been sitting on for over 35 years. Words and music. I always liked it, just never knew what to do with it. I had always wanted to work with Gardner and I finally reached out to him one day and said I’d love to send you this B section would you please write a verse to it and I was hoping he’d also write a chorus or that what he did would inspire me to write a chorus. He wrote a great verse to it and even played drums which I kept. But he thought the B section was strong enough to be a chorus and that we were done. I was inspired one rainy weekend and wrote that third section by myself using the words he had written in the verses and did all those harmonies really just kind of experimenting with as many suspensions as I could. It’s kind of a strange one.
I’m going to stick my neck out and say that my favorite track is “2x Lover” and Jude Cole’s vocal range reminded me of the late Michael Sherwood. Can you tell me about the creative process behind this song?
It’s very much like the previous song we just talked about “Listen To My Heart”. I’d been sitting on that chorus for “2x Lover” also for over 35 years or so. I have a huge amount of bits and pieces. That’s all I had was that chorus. And in the spirit I’ve been in of finishing all these bits and pieces that have been laying around, I picked up the phone and called up Jude who I’ve always thought was incredibly talented and I’ve always loved his voice and asked him to come up with a verse and some lyrics and help me finish this song. He graciously agreed to help.
Toto fans will undoubtedly be delighted to hear another keyboardist on this album. I am, of course, referring to David Paich, who plays on “Change” and “Saint’s & Angels” and is credited with co-writing the latter with Stan Lynch and yourself. Can you tell us how this reunion came about?
I had just finished going through hundreds of cassettes that had bits and pieces, motifs song ideas and had digitized it all to make it easier to go through and organize. When I was done I found this tape, an old cassette that just said Dave and Steve on it. When I played the cassette it was obviously David on piano and me scatting a melody. It was very simple. There was just something about it I liked and I called David and said let’s finish this. I had the idea to write a love letter to California and it was especially important to me to acknowledge California’s Spanish/Mexican heritage. Plus I wanted to write a song that was simple that a bar band could play. We brought in our pal Stan Lynch to help us finish the lyrics and shape them up. He did a great job. Throughout the whole process of making this album David’s been incredibly helpful and supportive. He loved “Change” and asked if he could throw a Hammond part on. I asked him if it was a trick question. I love what he did.
Do you feel that your maturity and experience with your instrument continue to develop with an undiminished desire to make music, even though, in absolute terms, your fame and the respect of the public and your peers might lead you to think that you no longer have anything to prove?
I don’t feel that I have anything to prove. Maybe to myself. I just want people to hear what’s. in my head and I feel I’m just getting started.
Thank you Steve for this interview and this new album which will delight more than one! Enjoy listening everyone!
