"Rosanna" | ||||
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Single by Toto | ||||
from the album Toto IV | ||||
B-side | "It's a Feeling" | |||
Released | ||||
Recorded | 1982 | |||
Studio |
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Genre | Yacht rock [4] | |||
Length |
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Label | Columbia | |||
Songwriter(s) | David Paich | |||
Producer(s) | Toto | |||
Toto singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Rosanna" on YouTube |
"Rosanna" is a song written by David Paich and performed by the American rock band Toto, the opening track and the first single from their 1982 album Toto IV . This song won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year at the 1983 ceremony. "Rosanna" was also nominated for the Song of the Year award. It is regarded for the half-time shuffle which drummer Jeff Porcaro developed for the song. The groove has become an important staple of drum repertoire and is commonly known as the "Rosanna shuffle".
The song reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100 for five consecutive weeks, behind "Don't You Want Me" by the Human League and "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor. [5] It was also one of the band's most successful singles in the UK, peaking at No. 12 on the UK Singles Chart and remaining on the chart for eight weeks. [6]
The song was written by David Paich, who has said that the song is based on numerous girls he had known. As a joke, the band members initially played along with the common assumption that the song was based on Rosanna Arquette, who was dating Toto keyboard player Steve Porcaro at the time. Arquette herself played along with the joke, commenting in an interview that the song was about "my showing up at 4 a.m., bringing them juice and beer at their sessions". [7]
In the verses, the key is changed from G major to F major, accompanied on the original recording by the lead vocalist changing from Steve Lukather to Bobby Kimball. [8]
The drum pattern is known as a "half-time shuffle", and shows "definite jazz influence", [9] featuring ghost notes and derived from the combination of the Purdie shuffle, Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham's shuffle on "Fool in the Rain", and the Bo Diddley beat. The Purdie shuffle can be prominently heard on Steely Dan's track "Home at Last" from Aja , which Jeff Porcaro cited as an influence. [10] [11]
The overlapping keyboard solos in the middle were created by David Paich and Steve Porcaro recording a multitude of keyboard lines (some of which were cut from the final recording) using a Micro-Composer, a Minimoog, Yamaha CS-80s, Prophets, a Hammond organ, and a GS1, among other instruments. [8] Paich credits Porcaro with both coming up with the concept for the segment and playing a majority of the parts. [8] The album version starts with the drum beat only then kicks into the rest of the melody, then ends with two renditions of the song's chorus and goes into a musical interlude and fades out from there. According to Lukather, this final instrumental section was a spontaneous jam during the recording session: "... the song was supposed to end but Jeff carried on and Dave started playing the honky-tonk piano and we all just followed on". [8] The single edit goes right into the melody at the beginning, then the song fades out during the first singing of the chorus at the end.
Steve Porcaro and Lukather describe it as "the ultimate Toto track". [12] Cash Box said that it "is a varied palette of pleasing pop shades". [13] Billboard said "The arrangement is more complex than anything Toto's known for, mixing rock power chords with softer passages". [14]
Classic Rock History critic Brian Kachejian rated it as Toto's greatest song, saying that it was "Easily one of the 1980's best singles". [15]
The West Side Story -inspired video was directed by Steve Barron and set in a stylized urban streetscape, with Rosanna represented by a dancer whose bright red dress contrasts with the gray surroundings. The band plays within a chain-link fence enclosure. Cynthia Rhodes is featured as the lead dancer Rosanna, which led to her being cast in Staying Alive the following year. [16] Patrick Swayze was also uncredited as a dancer in the music video and he and Rhodes would both star in the movie Dirty Dancing . [17]
Despite not playing on the actual recording, new bassist Mike Porcaro (brother of Jeff and Steve) appears in the video, as original Toto bass player David Hungate left before the video was made. Lenny Castro is also featured with the band as a percussionist. [18]
Chart (1982–1983) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australia (Kent Music Report) [19] | 16 |
Austrian Top 40 [20] | 11 |
Belgian Radio 2 Top 30 | 22 |
Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary Tracks | 7 |
Canadian RPM Top Singles | 4 |
Dutch Top 40 | 3 |
TROS Europarade | 20 |
French Singles Chart | 46 |
German Singles Chart [20] | 24 |
Irish Singles Chart | 11 |
Italian Singles Chart | 12 |
New Zealand Singles Chart [20] | 22 |
Norwegian Singles Chart [20] | 2 |
South African Singles Chart | 3 |
Spanish Radio Chart | 31 |
Swiss Singles Chart [20] | 3 |
U.K. Singles Chart [21] | 12 |
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 2 |
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary | 17 |
U.S. Billboard Top Rock Tracks | 8 |
Chart (1982) | Rank |
---|---|
Australia (Kent Music Report) [22] | 74 |
Canadian RPM Top Singles | 27 |
Dutch Top 40 | 31 |
Italian Singles Chart | 30 |
South African Singles Chart | 15 |
US Top Pop Singles (Billboard) [23] | 14 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA) [24] | Gold | 35,000‡ |
Canada (Music Canada) [25] | Gold | 50,000^ |
Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [26] | Gold | 45,000‡ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [27] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
United States (RIAA) [28] | Platinum | 1,000,000‡ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
In 2018, American rock band Weezer released a cover of the track to poke fun at an attempt by fans to get them to cover "Africa", another song by Toto. [29] Weezer went on to release a cover of "Africa" five days later.
The song is featured in the season four episode of The Middle titled "The Hose".[ citation needed ]
Toto is an American rock band formed in 1977 in Los Angeles, California. Toto combines elements of pop, rock, soul, funk, progressive rock, hard rock, R&B, blues, and jazz. Having released 14 studio albums and sold over 40 million records worldwide, the group has received several Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2009.
Toto IV is the fourth studio album by American rock band Toto, released in March 1982 by Columbia Records.
Isolation is the Gold-certified fifth studio album by Toto, released on October 18, 1984. Isolation is the first album to feature longtime bassist Mike Porcaro and the only album with Fergie Frederiksen as the primary vocalist. Isolation failed to achieve the popularity of its predecessor, Toto IV, although it achieved gold record status and gave the band their highest charting mainstream rock single "Stranger in Town". Relatively few songs from this album were featured in live performances after 1985's Isolation World Tour.
Toto is the debut studio album by American rock band Toto. It was released in 1978 and includes the hit singles "Hold the Line", "I'll Supply the Love" and "Georgy Porgy", all three of which made it into the Top 50 in the USA. "Hold the Line" spent six weeks in the Top 10, and reached Number 14 in the UK as well. Although not initially very well received by critics, the band quickly gained a following, and the album gained a reputation for its characteristic sound, mixing soft pop with both synth- and hard-rock elements. The band would venture deeper into hard rock territory on their next album.
Hydra is the second studio album by American rock band Toto, released in 1979. It reached #37 on the Billboard Pop Albums. While most of the album's singles failed to make any impact in the charts, "99", a song inspired by the 1971 science fiction movie THX 1138, reached #26 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Hold the Line" is a song by American rock band Toto from their 1978 eponymous debut studio album. Written by the band's keyboardist David Paich, the lead vocals on the song were performed by Bobby Kimball.
Toto XX: 1977–1997 is a compilation album by Toto to celebrate their 20th anniversary. The album features rare original demos, outtakes, previously unreleased recordings and live tracks from the band's 20-year career. Despite its being labeled as a compilation album, Steve Lukather in 2014 defined the album as the tenth studio album overall.
"Make Believe" is a song by the American rock band Toto, released as the second single from their triple platinum 1982 album Toto IV. It peaked at number 19 in Cash Box magazine and at number 30 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on September 25, 1982. The song was also featured on the 2006 video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories on the radio station Emotion 98.3.
"99" is a song by the American rock band Toto. The song appeared on the Hydra album in 1979. As a single, it reached number 26 on the Billboard charts. In Canada, the song peaked at number 17 on the RPM singles chart.
"I'll Be Over You" is a hit single by the American rock band Toto. Released as the lead single from their 1986 album, Fahrenheit, the song reached number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1986. Lead vocals were sung by guitarist Steve Lukather, who co-wrote the song with hit songwriter Randy Goodrum. Guest musician Michael McDonald provided the vocal counterpoint on the recording.
"I Won't Hold You Back" is a song by American rock band Toto, written and sung by Steve Lukather for their fourth album, Toto IV, released in 1982. The song features the Eagles' bass player Timothy B. Schmit on backing vocals during the choruses.
"I'll Supply the Love" is a song written by David Paich and recorded by Toto, with lead vocal's by Bobby Kimball. It was issued on Toto's debut album, Toto, and released as a single in January 1979. It peaked at number 45 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, where it spent nine weeks on the chart.
Falling in Between Live is the fourth live album by American band Toto, released in 2007. It was recorded live at Le Zénith, Paris, France.
"Georgy Porgy" is a song by American rock band Toto. It was written by band member David Paich and included on their self-titled debut album in 1978. Released as the album's third single in 1979, the song reached number 11 on the New Zealand Singles Chart and number 38 on the US Billboard Hot 100. It also peaked at number 18 on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
"Africa" is a song by American rock band Toto, appearing as the tenth and final track on their fourth studio album Toto IV (1982). It was released as a single in the US through Columbia Records in October 1982, the album's third single overall and second in Europe. The song was written by band members David Paich and Jeff Porcaro, produced by the band, and mixed by Grammy-winning engineer Elliot Scheiner.
"Miss Sun" is a 1980 hit for Boz Scaggs first recorded in 1977 by David Paich along with David Hungate, Steve Lukather, and Jeff Porcaro.
"Stranger in Town" is a hit song by American rock band Toto from their 1984 album Isolation.
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