The Band Toto Asia
Toto was expanding its production facilities overseas and operating in France, Germany, Indonesia, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and the People's Republic of China. North America was seen as a market that would grow for bidet and washlet toilet seats, as opposed its "base" markets in Japan and China.
Dhaniram Toto was documenting Toto words to ensure the future generations could read them. However, many of the words were replaced with foreign ones, like dui, which is Bengali for verandah.
Origins
Established in 1917, Toto's early years were a mirror of Japan's economic growth. In the first half, Toto manufactured products to meet the growing demand for modern, brand new urban housing. To do this, it used the first tunnel kiln in the country to produce ceramics in continuous flow. It also pioneered the use automation to control production, which allows for greater efficiency and consistency.
The company began expanding its operations overseas in the latter part of the 1980s to take advantage of new markets and sales opportunities. It created the Cera Trading Company, importing and marketing other products of manufacturers to complement its own line of sanitary earthenware and plumbing fittings. This strategy increased sales and expanded the firm’s global market share.
In the 1990s, Toto had shifted its focus on research and development of household appliances that use water. It also improved its distribution system to better serve its customers and increase profit. The company employed the same just-in time approach in its supply chain management and sales program. This resulted in a greater level of satisfaction with the customer.
Toto continues to invent toilet technology. The latest toilet, for example it has an extremely powerful tornado flush that is more ecologically friendly than conventional toilets. The company also uses recycled water in its manufacturing process and has a green purchasing policy. Toto also produces bathtubs, faucets, and hand dryers with higher energy efficiency than conventional models.
The company's first museum opened in the year 2015, and it has exhibitions about Toto's iconic products and their evolution, its group companies (all related to ceramics), history of plumbing and other products like bath units and, in a separate gallery, Toto products sold around the world. The museum also has a bathroom that includes a WASHLET toilet and other toilet-related innovations.
Before beginning the formation of Toto members of the group performed sessions for a variety of musicians. Boz Scaggs' album Silk Degrees featured keyboardist David Paich and guitarists Mike Porcaro & Steve Lukather and drummers Jeff Porcaro & Steve Lukather. They also performed on albums by Steely Dan, Seals and Crofts, and Sonny and Cher.
Discography
You might expect a band with a name such as Asia to be a prog band however, it's actually a pretty straightforward rock group. The band began as four members and released two albums in 1979, the self-titled debut album and 1980's Armed to the Teeth. The band has a varied musical background, but their biggest success came in 1982 when they released Toto IV.
The album was a major blockbuster, but it was not without its share of issues. Record companies put the band on the position with the order "give us an album that's a smash or we'll drop you" and the pressure was on to meet the deadline. Luckily for Toto, they did, with the help of the smash hit single "Africa."
Toto's musical mastery is the result of their prior experience. Before forming the group, the band members worked as session musicians for artists such as Boz Scaggs. Steely Dan and Seals and Crofts. Their sonic trademark has become the standard of 1980s music, and has inspired a lot of contemporary artists.
The album starts out hard with songs like Running Out of Time or Unknown Soldier that show the band's ability to write great AOR tunes that slowly get into your head. The album also has some more mellow, jazzy tracks, like The Little Things and Chinatown. The album concludes with Great Expectations. This song is a mix of folk and the distorted AOR that could seem like a complete blunder, but works very well.
After Toto IV, the band's fortunes changed to the downside. David Hungate left the band to pursue a solo career. The band had a variety of drummers. In 1984, Bobby Kimball left the band after drug charges. The band remained with Michael Porcaro, Steve Lukather and Michael Porcaro.
Toto released Isolation despite the turmoil. It was not as well-liked as IV. However, the band managed to release another chart-topping album in 1992 with Kingdom of Desire. The album marked the end of the original Toto lineup and was also the first album to feature the new singer, Simon Phillips.
Tours
The band has performed for millions of people across the world, performing sold-out shows in Europe, North America and Asia and also Australia and New Zealand. The band has a wide repertoire, and its catalog has been played over a billion times on streaming services around the globe. The band's music has inspired numerous generations of fans.
Steve Lukather has forged a rich, deep friendship with Joe Williams that is flourishing professionally all over the world. In 2018, the duo celebrated 40 Tours Around the Sun with a massively successful global tour. The album of the same name landed at 5 on the Billboard 200. The band's newest tour features their most popular songs and rarely-performed live deep cuts and some songs from Lukather's and Williams catalogs.
TOTO has a customer satisfaction rating of 20 according to its Net Promoter Score which is a measure of how likely customers are to 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 may even actively hinder others from using their products or services.
Join Toto for an unforgettable cultural experience in Asia. This highlights tour of the region the French once called Indochine offers luxurious accommodation, a day on a deluxe junk in Halong Bay, and an exploration of the mysterious temples of Angkor Wat. Also, you'll spend a night in the charming town of Luang Prabang, a UNESCO World Heritage city that will delight the senses. This is a trip that you will not wish to miss!
Line-up
The band's third album, Turn Back, marked the return to the traditional sextet style of the previous albums. It was a stronger, more consistent effort with an edge that was more pronounced than Hydra. The more edgy sound of the album reflected the maturation of the group and included drummer Bobby Kimball's increased ability on the drums and an improved, mature vocal delivery from singer Joseph Williams. Keyboardist David Paich's work was more refined, sharper and less cloying than earlier performances.
After touring to promote the album, the group recorded a live performance in Amsterdam that was released as a two-CD set entitled Falling In Between Live on Eagle Records. The studio album came out just a few months later and the group went on a world-wide tour in support of it. During this period, keyboardist Greg Phillinganes replaced Paich and bassist David Hungate quit the group to spend time with his family.
In 1998, Paich & Lukather began searching through old tapes & demos to discover songs that had never been recorded before. The album was released in 2001 as a duo album called Then and Now. It was the band's first album without one single track titled "A". The album also included a previously unreleased track titled "Kari-Anne".
By 스포츠토토 , Toto had begun to decline in popularity. The group's fourth album, Old Is New was a commercial failure and vocalist Williams was suffering from laryngitis, which restricted his singing capabilities. Hungate also returned to Nashville and Leland Sklar's drumming was replaced by Shem Von Schroeck.
Downes along with the other original members of Asia--Wetton, Palmer, and Howe--convened an event in England in the beginning of 2006 to discuss the possibility of formally reforming the group. The group, which was missing Howe who was busy with Yes at the period, was later renamed Toto XIV. They 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 featured a special appearance by singer Michael McDonald and a backing vocalist named Mabvuto Carver.