“Child’s Anthem” gave listeners of Toto’s 1978 eponymous debut album intriguing insight into this new band. The song almost overwhelms with touches of progressive rock, stellar musicianship by all the players, balanced and sharp production by the band and hooky writing by cofounder David Paich.
What was missing was Toto’s vocal element, which was subsequently introduced with “I’ll Supply the Love” — the Bobby Kimball-sung second single from Toto.
Formerly of S.S. Fools, Kimball was sort of an outsider to the core of Toto, as he was a few years older than most of the band — and didn’t share their studio pedigree. What he brought was a soulful high tenor to the vocal mix. Yet, some critics in the early days wrongly claimed Toto lacked a distinctive vocalist among the four who shared the microphone. Clearly, they hadn’t listened closely to “I’ll Supply The Love.”
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The David Paich composition jumps out of the speakers, with Steve Lukather — in full rock-hero mode — striking power cords quickly, followed by Jeff Porcaro’s two-handed snare work and a swooping bass line from David Hungate. By the time Kimball starts the song with the oft-repeated chorus, “I’ll Supply the Love” has presented as a tightly crafted bit of conventional AOR — but don’t be fooled.
Paich’s lyrics are instead cryptic, almost prog in nature: “I see a horseman in the sky; it makes me turn and wonder why,” Bobby Kimball sings “I hear the same old 14 reasons; must be the changing of the seasons.”
The song’s bridge quickly takes a deeper dive into progressive waters, with Steve Porcaro’s dramatic synthesizer flourishes and swirls supporting a chorus-like guitar break from Lukather’s Les Paul. (Or was he using an Ibanez back then?) Add into this a slightly behind the beat, and hopelessly funky bass part from David Hungate. “I’ll Supply the Love” sounds like two great tracks of different styles thrown together, with an end-of-the-song synth and piano rev up thrown in for good measure.
Is Toto’s “I’ll Supply the Love,” which reached No. 45 on the Billboard Hot 100, pop-music perfection? Add into the mix Lenny Castro’s guest bongo work and strong background vocals from David Paich and Steve Lukather, and you have your answer.
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