Customer Reviews

Tambu

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Long berated because of their "studio" background, Toto remains one of the most entertainiing and enjoyable groups of our time. They are extremely musical and talented, and they know how to write great songs. "I Will Remember" is absolutely one of their best. The arrangement is out of this world, the vocals haunting, and the whole feel of this song is overwhelming. Why in the world it wasn't a huge hit is beyond me. The whole album is basically good, but the aforementioned song is worth the price of the CD. As long as Toto keeps cranking out tunes, this fan will always investigate!

The muscianship on this one is outstanding. Great percussion and Lukather's vocals are "on the money". Great voice for these songs. If you are a Toto fan, don't overlook this one. I almost did. I often use this CD to test how good a CD system is. The production mix is excellent!

Toto's hits stopped at the end of the '80s, but the stellar musicianship and albums continued and in fact expanded in the '90s. Like so many others, I lost track of this band for much of the '90s but got reaquainted with them through the Internet. This was the first of the '90s albums I listened to. Since then I have bought both their last album "Mindfields" and 1992's entirely overlooked "Kingdom Of Desire", both of which I now like even better than this album. Nonetheless, this album is the one that made me fall in love with Toto all over again.

"Gift Of Faith" is a gorgeous, over 7-minute anthem to lead off the anthem. Melodic and somewhat guitar-driven, this song gets the album off on the right foot. Next comes the sad and yet beautifully haunting ballad "I Will Remember". Steve Lukather, who does most of the lead vocals on this effort, shines here as he does on all Toto ballads. The same can be said for later ballads on the album like "The Other End Of Time" and "Just Can't Get To You", both of which are also very endearing songs.

While this album doesn't rock as much as its predecessor, the aforementioned "Kingdom Of Desire", there are still some rocking tracks here as well. Songs like "Drag Him To The Roof" and the instrumental "Dave's Gone Skiing" are examples of that. There are also gorgeous mid-tempo tracks like "Slipped Away" and "Time Is The Enemy"; these songs, like many others here, can bring goosebumps with their layered, fantastic melodies.

"Baby He's Your Man", while probably my least favorite track on this album, is worth a mention due to its different direction. This is "Toto does R&B", with drum loops and female vocals rounding out a very unusual sound for Toto. Not bad, I guess, once you get used to it. One more track to mention, "The Road Goes On"--the last track on the album besides an unlisted one--is another gorgeous anthem/ballad with fantastic lyrics...."Now I see it all through different eyes; where I'm going, where I've gone. All I know - I'm still surprised that the road goes on and on." Enough said. For sure, I hope the road continues on for Toto, one of my favorite bands of all time.

Wow, I initially didn't expect a whole lot from this album but, boy, was I wrong.

I've had this CD for about a year, but have only recently begun listening to it on a regular basis. The band is as talented and as tight as ever and Steve Lukather does a fantastic job at the helm on this release. I'm not going to belabor this review with a lot of text/hype. Not wanting to be redundant, but if you want blow-by-blow song info, then please feel free to read some of the other well-detailed reviews.

This is a fantastic Toto album. It is musically diverse, but totally Toto. It's probably one of their best! If you are a fan of Toto (or have ever been one), and if you can find a copy of this CD, get it!!

TOTO is one of my favorite bands of all time made up of finest studio musicians on earth. Their 1982 album TOTO IV made huge hits such as Rosana(#2),I Won't Hold Back(#9) and Africa(#1) and won them multiple grammy awards. Other major hits include Hold The Line, 99, I'll Be Over You, Pamela and so.

After their official compilation Past To Present in 1990, TOTO crew assisted Tommy Denandar's solo project Radioactive in 1991 and put out their own Kingdom of Desire in 1992. Jeff Pocaro's untimely death that followed didn't stop them and we now have Tambu released in 1995(sort of Japan-first pattern). It is one of my favorite Toto albums.

Gift of Faith mighty-edged pop rocker opens the album gracefully. I Will Remember,one of my top favorites is well written ballad and I personally like it better than similarly styled I'll Be Over You in Fahrenheit album. The Other End Of Time is also classic TOTO ballad. Time Is My Enemy, a classic TOTO marked by magnificent drumworks is my #1 favorite. Drag Him To The Roof is catchy pop rocker. Just Can't Get To You is great ballad as well. The Road Goes On should have become huge hit. Very nice song. Blackeye is a 38 Special styled southern rocker.

Tambu is a nice example of 90s hidden melodic rock treasure.

Simon Phillips appears on "Tambu", replacing the long-time drummer Jeff Porcaro (deceased, natural causes), and seems to fit the Toto mold just fine; he also manages to stretch the skins on those drums a bit differently, to make his mark with Toto on this CD.

I was very pleased with this CD, enjoying the skillful and slick packaging (made to look like a cheap dime thriller/novel, a la Indiana Jones) as well as the music inside. Toto's sharp licks on keys and guitar are the best in the industry - take a look at any of the other pop stars out there, and you'll see members of Toto listed among the musicians in their liner notes.

Favorite songs include:

I Will Remember / Slipped Away / If You Belong to Me / Time is the Enemy / Drag Him to the Roof / Dave's Gone Skiing / The Turning Point

Good stuff from great guys.

Peace Out.

This 1995 Toto effort is, in my opinion, one of their most soulful albums. The semi-acoustic sound helps the mood of the album, and of course, the technical skill of the band is perfect. When it was first released, the band seemed to go into a different phase of style, which was brave and new. The 1999 "Mindfields" album, intrestingly, went back to the sound of earlier albums. But for me, whatever these guys do, is fantastic. The bad press that Toto always seem to get is simply not justified. Stand out tracks from Tambu: "Gift of faith", "I will remember" and "The road goes on"

As a recording engineer with some 33 years experience, I have listened to hundreds of LPs and CDs, always searching for the best examples of our art. Quite a few of those have had some connection with one of my favorite engineers, Elliot Scheiner (Steely Dan, Sting, The Eagles, R.E.M., Dave Grusin, Billy Joel, Bobby McFerrin, Donald Fagin, Eric Clapton, and many others,) who has done a spectacular job on Tambu. As the first CD since Jeff Pocaro's passing, Simon Phillips fills Jeff's shoes with some of the freshest, most creative rock playing in Toto's history and Scheiner's drum sounds are stunning! (The tom sounds on "I Will Remember" alone are worth the price of the whole CD.) The entire CD is an audio feast. Completed in 1995, before "loudness wars" squashed the dynamics of music with over-compression, this CD sounds wonderful on ear-buds to $100K audiophile systems and everything in between (go buy the best headphones you can afford for the most inexpensive Hi-Fi experience!) And for those who still think Toto is just a "radio" band, check out " Dave's Gone Skiing"--these guys can PLAY! Tambu has been in my top five for many years and I expect it to stay there for many years to come. You owe it to your ears to buy this CD!

It bugs me when less-erudite music fans lump TOTO in with the other so called "Arena-rock" bands of the late 70's/early 80's. Sure, bands like Styx, Reo Speedwagon, and Boston have some gems in their pile; but they don't even come close to displaying the combination of soul, groove, master musicianship, and unparralled creativity of TOTO.

Tambu, Toto's 9th is a perfect example of the medling of the above-mentioned styles. From the haunting beauty of "I Will Rememeber You" to the sassy R&B of "Baby He's Your Man" (featuring the talented Jenny McCrae) to the fusion-rock style of "Drag Him to The Roof"; this album is probably Toto's finest moment. Other stellar tracks include "The Turning Point" and "Time Is The Enemy" which showcase the ultimate groovemaster of the keys, David Paich, and the always versatile vocals of guitar-hero (and deservedly so) Steve Lukather; who's talent rarely gets the accolades its deserves. Luke is probably the greatest guitar player since Hendrix; and one listen to this album or 1993's Kingdom OF Desire (TOTO, Relativity) you would be likely be hard-pressed not to agree. Tambu combines Funky R&B grooves with lush soulful ballads, topped off with the pure driving force of rock 'n'roll.

Tambu is somewhat of triumph for TOTO, who suffered the loss of co-founder and drummer-extradoniere Jeff Porcaro, who died suddenly in 1992. Jeff, famous for his shuffle and samba groove would be proud of this record. Tambe celebrates some of the early TOTO sound, while nicely progressing into a whole new style. If the defintion of a progressive artist or band, is to refuse to stagnant and re-package TOTO might very well be the ultimate in proressive by that definition.

A really strong effort from toto- but a couple of minor quibbles. Nothing wrong with Steve as the leaf vocalist, but I was generally used to more lead vocalist taking on different tracks. Also this album is really programed as: track 1: upbeat, track 2: ballad, track 3: upbeat, track 4: ballad, and this formula continues thorugh until the end.
Some of the tracks are a bit generic and I am not familiar with them, even on repeated listens.
'Drag him to the roof' is a really good rock song. I think the riff at the beginning is extremely catchy. And it is refreshing that David Paich sings lead (I think), not Steve. Chorus is also effective. One of the better rockers on the album.
'Gift of faith' is also an excellent opener and sounds single worthy.
'Baby he's your man' is an example of the generic style rocker, I was talking about. A dull, repetitive rock song. I also cannot remember how it goes, or the other rocker 'turning point'. 'Just can't get to you' is probably one of the most dull ballads I have heard, with an annoying repetitive, meaningless chorus. This is the weakest track here by a long way.
Don't be fooled by the title 'Dave's gone skiing'- it might seem like a filler track, but is one of the strongest- the first section is a fast and catchy passage, followed by a second slower section with some virtuoso piano playing and a spine tingling electric guitar solo. The instrumental then reverts back to the first catchy section.
The final song is the ballad 'The road goes on'. Nice harmony vocals, reminiscent of 'I will remember'. This is a beautiful song and probably the strongest on the album.
It is a real mixed bag this one. They should have left off the aforementioned three tracks, but some of the other stuff here is first rate.