Toto / Christopher Cross.

Venue:

OVO Arena, Wembley

Date: 05/02/2025

Christopher Cross doesn’t visit the U.K too often these days, (2019 was the last time,) and that’s a shame. His music has endured over the 45 years since that all-conquering first album, (‘the green album,’ as he calls it; the one with the flamingo on the cover,) hauled in five Grammy awards and set the course of the genre of Yacht Rock through the ‘80’s, (as Toto guitarist, Steve Lukather, says later; “Where’s my fucking yacht?”)

Cross is a consummate guitarist, (Becker & Fagen asked him several times to be on Steely Dan albums, but he declined,) and his band reflects that, giving his arrangements a distinctly ‘Dan feel’ throughout the set. It is a four-piece band plus three female singers, with the star of the show being the drummer, French jazzer Francis Arnaud. Sounding like Porcaro, Keltner and current Dan drummer, Keith Carlock, all at the same time, I spent much of the 45 minute-set with my eyes glued to that left-hand jazz grip which always looks so classy when he is rolling around his impeccably-tuned kit.

The setlist is pulled from Cross’s first two albums, five of the nine songs coming from that debut, and naturally it’s the hits which register the most reaction. When pianist Jerry Leonide ends his short set-piece solo by sliding into the intro to Sailing, Wembley goes nuts; and rightly so; it is still such a beautifully evocative song. Sailing is followed by Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do) and, four songs later, the set ends with Ride Like the Wind. Cross is enthusiastic, polite and funny and, get this; stands in between two small guitar-racks from which he changes his own guitars and plugs in his own lead, speeding up the between-song gaps significantly. Big Time Plank-Spankers, take note, (Big Time Plank-Spankers, TMFTL, obviously.)

I have to declare an interest right here; Toto is one of my most-seen live bands. I saw them a few months before Jeff Porcaro died and have hardly missed a U.K tour since, in venues from London’s Astoria and Shepherd’s Bush Empire right up to the NEC/Genting Arena/Resorts World/bp pulse LIVE/Utilita Arena/Barclaycard Arena; (they’re all the same venue, ffs,) where I saw this tour on Sunday night. Tonight it’s the OVO Arena, Wembley, a place I detest for live music, a throwback to the aircraft hangers of old, (good riddance, Earl’s Court,) and the place where I first saw Springsteen, in 1981. I swear that these are the same seats, (on the floor of the arena) that I stood on at that gig, singing the intro to Thunder Road loud enough to burst my lungs, as a steward desperately tried to get me to sit down. The leg-room is worse than a Ryanair flight and the seat is so thin that the big unit sitting next to me has half-a-cheek on my side. Even when we stand up which, thankfully, we do for much of the set, the space is so small and claustrophobia is a short breath away.

Enough of my old-fart moaning; what about Toto, I hear you yell.

The seven-piece band hits the stage at 9pm, roaring into Child’s Anthem, track one, side one of their 1978 debut album. It has been a set-opener many times and never fails to deliver; there is no ‘warming up through the first two songs’ here. Then it’s straight into Carmen from their much-underrated fifth album, Isolation and, beejeesus, then it’s Rosanna. Of course the place goes bonkers; getting THAT song THIS early in the set gets/keeps everyone on their feet and the joy it brings lasts throughout the show.

The band has only two originals left; guitarist Steve ‘Luke’ Lukather and keyboard player, David Paich. For health reasons, Paich rarely plays gigs outside of the West Coast of America, so is absent tonight but there has never been a Toto gig since they started in 1977 which has not featured Lukather. Jeff Beck called him ‘one of the very best to ever do it’ and who am I to argue? His sweary enthusiasm for his band never fails to come across as he prowls the stage like a caged lion, desperate to be let loose on the next solo.

On this tour, Jeff Beck’s widow, Sandra, has loaned Luke one of the maestro’s white Fender Strats, which he plays on two songs, making a huge fuss about how unworthy he is to even pick the thing up. Nonsense, of course; he absolutely wrings every note possible out of the guitar, leaving the impossible ones for Jeff.

The line-up is as good as I’ve seen on a Toto stage for many years: as he has been many times, the great Greg Phillinganes, hot off the Gilmour tour, is on keyboards (Gilmour and the rest of his band are all photographed backstage – a proper busman’s holiday;) lead vocals are covered by Joseph Williams, a Toto member from the late ‘80’s and back in the band for a good few years now; drums are pounded by Shannon Forrest, his second stint with the band; on bass is Luke’s childhood friend, John Pierce, (30 years in Huey Lewis and The News took him away from what would have been ‘his gig’ in the original Toto; sax, flute, congas and backing vocals are handled by Warren Hamm, a long-time touring member of the band while the highest notes and synths are handled with ease by young Dennis Atlas, an incredible find, as Luke attests. The musicians gel perfectly, the harmonies are gorgeous and the engine room of Pierce and Forrest is relentless, keeping the band on the front-foot the whole time.

Lukather? His top-end vocals might be slightly strained by a sore throat but his playing is still jaw-dropping at times. The audience is peppered with blokes looking at each other, eyes wide, mouths open, during every solo, as they have been for 48 years.

The setlist covers up to 1999’s Mindfields; a shame as there’s several great Toto songs from the past 25 years; and includes fan-favourites like I Will Remember, Pamela, Georgy Porgy and White Sister. You could argue that two keyboard set-piece solos and a drum solo in a 100 minute set is pushing it but, it’s Toto, ffs!

After the usual hilarious band introductions from Luke the set ends with the triple-whammy of Stop Loving You, Hold the Line and Africa and a sold-out room full of punters are sent home happy into the cold London night.

The tour heads to Belgium, Holland, Luxembourg, northern France, Switzerland, Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland through the rest of February, (Europe kept Toto going long after America had forgotten them, although the U.S is finally coming back around,) but doesn’t include Italy, Spain and southern France, their summer heartland, so fingers are crossed for a return next year.

A great double-bill, the kind of package which tours America all the time; more please, promoters.

The audience:

A good mix of old gits like me, some younger Africa fans and plenty of female representation.

It made me think..

I’m going to miss Toto shows so much when Luke finally decides he’s played Africa and Hold the Line enough.

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