The Band Toto Asia
Toto was expanding production facilities abroad, and doing business in France and Germany, Indonesia, Korea and Taiwan, Thailand and the People's Republic of China. North America was seen as a market that would grow for Washlet toilets and bidet seats, as opposed its "base" markets in Japan and China.
Dhaniram Toto was documenting Toto words to ensure the next generation would be able to read the words. Many words were replaced by foreign words. For instance dui, which was Bengali for verandah, was used.
Origins
The company was founded in 1917 and its early years mirrored Japan's economic growth. In the first half, Toto produced goods to meet the demand for modern, contemporary urban housing. To do this, it used the first tunnel kiln in the nation to produce ceramics in a continuous flow. It also pioneered the use of automation to control production, which allows for more efficiency and consistency.
The company began expanding its operations overseas in the late 1980s to benefit from new markets and sales opportunities. It launched the Cera Trading Company, importing and selling other products from other manufacturers to complement its own range of sanitary earthenware and plumbing fittings. This strategy increased sales and increased the company's market share in the world.
In the 1990s, Toto began to concentrate on research and development for water-related appliances. It also redesigned its system of distribution to better serve its customers and improve profit. The company embraced a just-in time approach to managing its supply chain and applied the same method in its sales strategy. This resulted in a higher degree of customer satisfaction.
Toto has been able to continue to innovate in the toilet technology. The latest toilet, for example, has an extremely powerful tornado flush that is more ecologically friendly than traditional toilets. Toto also makes use of recycled water in its production process and has a green purchasing policy. Toto also produces bathtubs, faucets, and hand dryers that have higher energy efficiency than standard models.
The first museum of the company opened in 2015, and it has exhibitions on Toto's most iconic products and their evolution, its group companies (all that deal with ceramics) and the history of plumbing and other products such as bath units and, in a different gallery, Toto products sold around the world. The museum houses a bathroom with a WASHLET and other toilet innovations.
Before forming Toto the members of the group did sessions for various musicians. Boz Scaggs' album Silk Degrees featured keyboardist David Paich and guitarists Mike Porcaro & Steve Lukather, drummers Jeff Porcaro & Steve Lukather. They also performed on albums by Steely Don, Seals and Crofts and Sonny and Cher.
Discography
You would expect a group with a name such as Asia to be a prog rock group, but it is actually a pretty straightforward rock band. The group began as a quartet, and they released two albums - 1979's self-titled debut album and 1980's Armed to the Teeth. The band has a varied musical background, but their greatest success came in 1982 when they released Toto IV.
The album was a major blockbuster, but not without issues. The record companies placed the band under pressure to release an album that was a success or they would drop the album. Toto was able to do this through the aid of the hit song "Africa."
Toto's musical mastery is a result of their previous experience. Before joining the group, members worked as session musicians for artists like Boz Scaggs. Steely Dan and Seals and Crofts. Their distinctive sound has become the standard for the '80s, and has influenced many contemporary artists.
The album begins with a hefty dose of hard rock with songs like Running Out of Time and Unknown Soldier showcasing the bands ability to write great AOR songs that slowly build their hooks into you. The album also features jazzier, slower tracks like The Little Things and Chinatown. The album closes with Great Expectations, a song which combines folk and distorted AOR and sounds completely wrong, but actually is incredibly effective.
After Toto IV, the band's fortunes started to plummet. David Hungate left the band to focus on his solo career and the band had several drummers. In 1984, Bobby Kimball was fired from the band in the aftermath of drug-related charges. However, the band continued as a trio with Michael Porcaro and Steve Lukather.
Despite the turmoil, Toto forged ahead and released Isolation that was not as successful as IV. The group managed to release an album that topped the charts, Kingdom of Desire, in 1992. This album marked the end of the original Toto lineup and was also the first album featuring the new singer, Simon Phillips.
Tours
The band has performed around the world to a global audience of millions, and has sold-out shows across Europe, North America, Asia as well as Australia and New Zealand. The band's repertoire is huge, and their collective catalog has accumulated over one billion streams on streaming services across the globe. The band's music has influenced multiple generations of fans.
Steve Lukather and Joe Williams have formed a strong and vibrant friendship that flourishes professionally on a global scale. In 2018, the duo celebrated their 40th anniversary of Tours Around The Sun with an incredibly successful tour around the world. The album that bears the same name was ranked at #5 on the Billboard 200. The latest tour of the band features their most popular hits and rarely-performed live deep cuts as well as an assortment of songs that come from Lukather's and Williams catalogs.
TOTO has an NP Score of 20. This score measures the likelihood that customers will recommend the brand. Promoters are those who are highly satisfied with the company and actively encourage others to make use of their products or services. Detractors are those who evaluate the company poorly and might even actively dissuade others from using their products or services.
Join Toto for an unforgettable cultural experience in Asia. This highlights tour of the region that the French once called Indochine offers luxurious accommodation, a trip on a luxurious cruise ship in Halong Bay, and an exploration of the mysterious temples of Angkor Wat. You will also spend an evening in the charming city of Luang Prabang. This UNESCO World Heritage City is a feast for your senses. This is a once in a lifetime trip that you shouldn't be missing!
Line-up
Turn Back, the band's third studio album is an attempt to return to the traditional sextet style, and an even more consistent and powerful effort with a harder edge. The edgier sound of Turn Back reflected the development of the group. Bobby Kimball's growing ability to play was evident in the vocal delivery of Joseph Williams, who had grown more confident and mature. Keyboardist David Paich's work was more precise, sharper and less cloned earlier recordings.
After touring to promote their album, the group recorded the band's Amsterdam live performance that was released by Eagle Records as a 2-CD set entitled Falling In Between. A new studio album followed shortly after, and the band embarked on an extensive world tour to promote it. During this time keyboardist Greg Phillinganes replaced Paich and bassist David Hungate quit the group to spend time with his family.
In 1998, Paich and Lukather started searching through old demo tapes and tapes to make a new album featuring songs that had never been recorded before. The album was released in 2001 and released as a double album titled Then and Now. It was the band's first album that did not contain the single track "A". The album also included a previously unreleased track called "Kari-Anne".
By 2003, Toto had begun to decline in popularity. The fourth album, Old Is New, was a commercial flop and singer Williams suffered from a bad laryngitis infection which hampered his singing. Hungate also returned to Nashville and Leland Sklar's drumming duties were replaced by Shem Von Schroeck.
Learn Additional , Wetton Palmer and Howe, the original members of Asia The original Asia members met in England in the early part of 2006 to discuss the possibility that the band could be reformed. This lineup, minus Howe (who was a member of Yes at the time) was eventually referred to as Toto XIV and toured extensively.
In 2010, the band reunited for another reunion tour with a slightly different line-up, including guitarists Mike Porcaro and Steve Lukather, drummer John Pierce, bassist Shannon Forrest, and multi-instrumentalists Warren Ham and Dominique Taplin. The band also featured a guest appearance by singer Michael McDonald, and a backing singer named Mabvuto Carpenter.