In a recent conversation with Something Else!, Toto’s Steve Lukather opened up about the backlash he has faced for his commitment to keeping the band together.
When the interviewer initially talked about his productivity, referring to the guitarist’s recent album and tour, he replied:
“Thank you, man. Well, here’s the thing. This pandemic thing, it’s like, ‘OK, I tried retirement. It sucked’ [Laughs]. It sucked. I’d rather be dead. That was bad. So given the opportunity to start back up and get on the road and make new music and keep moving forward, working with Ringo, who I adore and love, right? And yeah, there’s a lot of work going on. And how old am I now? I’ll be 66 in October.”
Discussing how long he can keep performing, Lukather continued:
“Damn, I can’t even believe it myself. But there’s a harsh reality to the expiration date. How long am I gonna be able to do this? I mean, some of our brothers can’t do it anymore medically or whatever. They just hate it, and they don’t want to be on the road ever again. Or just, you know, life and people change.”
Despite facing criticism for keeping Toto together, Steve is willing to preserve the music:
“Some people are pissed off at me that I’m trying to keep Toto together. It’s like just trying to keep the music alive and show some respect to it and get it out there. And I love doing it, Joseph, and I love doing it. And it’s a great honor for me to also be involved with Ringo Starr’s All-Starr band.”
The musician’s new eight-track solo album, ‘Bridges,’ arrived on June 16. His Toto bandmates, David Paich and Joseph Williams, contributed to most tracks. In addition to that, Lukather’s recent tour with Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band wrapped up on June 17. He will be back on the road with the band for the fall tour that will run from September 17 until October 13.
You can listen to Steve’s latest record below.
