In the slew of guitar heroes dating from the late 70s and 80, there is one name that seems to come up time and time again - not always the guy doing the spotlight solo necessarily, but the guy setting the stage, structuring the song, putting together the perfect part under enormous pressure and then getting it in one take...
..and that name (as you've probably guessed) is Steve Lukather. Whether you're a fan of mega-band Toto and the amazing guitar acrobatics which he could regularly perform with them, or a fan of his multifaceted successful solo career, or you own any of the thousands of records Lukather has played on over the years, it's impossible to draw any conclusion other than that Steve Lukather is one hell of a guitar player.
I first came across him when learning "Rosanna" for the band I was in at the time and there was something about the combination of melody, bluesy attitude and chromatic quirkiness that really resonated with me.. I even owned a Musicman Luke signature series for a time (predating the acquisition of the Green Special). So you won't be surprised to hear I've been looking forward to this one.
So, presented for your delectation are four of the choicest licks I've come across this month from transcribing Toto solos (and I'm pretty sure Rosanna is a good candidate for a Five Minute Solo video lesson) - but first, as is csutomary, a little potted history:
Born October 21 1957 in California's beautiful San Fernando valley, the infant Steve played around with drums and keyboards but it was only when given a cheap Kay guitar and a copy of "Meet The Beatles" aged 7 that he began to teach himself guitar, stating in interviews that it was George Harrisons' solo on "I Saw Her Standing There" that piqued his interest and made him want to play.
During the early 1970s, while at high school, Lukather was taking lessons with noted jazz and swing guitarist Jimmy Wyble, and became interested in the idea of a career as a session musician - it was also during this period that he met the musicians who would become the founding members of Toto, including Mike Porcaro. Already an established musician playing drums for Steely Dan, he quickly became Lukather's mentor, and after Lukather did his frst session for Boz Scaggs in 1973, he was asked to join Toto when it formed in 1976 and went on to have a long and successful career with them, right up to the present day as they are touring again in 2025.
So, a little historical context now given, let's check out some licks!
This first one is from "Animal" in C#m and illustrates my favourite elements of Lukathers' playing - his ability to decorate basic pentatonic phrases with just the right amount of chromaticism without ever quite going overboard:
Here, we're starting in basic Box 3 C# minor pentatonic at the 14th fret, jazzed up with lashing of chromatic passing tones before moving a minor 3rd shape chromatically down the G and B strings and finishing off with a whammy bar enhanced run down the scale finishing on the 5th (G#).
But it's not just outside note choices that can spice up familiar phrases. In this lick taken from "Carmen" in Em, Steve does a neat trick in the descending E minor sequence, playing a four note melodic grouping in a triplet rhythmic grouping, resulting in the "hemiola" effect.
We've spoken about before in this blog, where a different note from the sequence fall son the beat each time. What's particularly cute here is that it's generally heard the other way around - a three note melodic grouping played in a two or four note rhythmic grouping (think the widdly bit from Free's "Alright Now" solo, or basically ANY BRITPOP SOLO EVER).
Even a guitarist as proficient as Lukather isn't above using the Magic Three Notes from time to time, and this next solo from "Gril Goodbye" illustrates - Steve takes the concept onto the B & E strings, but the basic idea is still intact, tarted up with a bend and a pull off - pulling back the spring before letting go into a chromatically-enhanced (there's a good way to describe his playing!) F#m pentatonic flurry.
Note the climactic pre-bend and finishing note B - Steve knows the next chord is Em so targets the 5th, giving a feeling of anticipation before the last part of the solo.
For all his enviable command of the flash stuff though, Steve knows when to dial it back and let the melody take centre stage, something he does to great effect on "I Think I Could Stand You Forever" in A Mixolydian (think D major scale notes but played from the A).
Here, Lukather articulates the verse vocal melody using slides, limiting himself to tasteful embellishments in the last couple of bars (the two mini-trills) and finishing on a rather lyrical bend/pull-off/hammer-on combination with a bend up to the E - again, the 5th of the underlying chord. A satisfying resolution, but one less... obvious than going back to the root.
As always, the deeper I go into these players styles, the more I find to admire - I think I could stand to transcribe Mr. Lukather forever!
Keep an eye out for the "Licks Of The Legends" video on the YouTube channel and see you next month for another 80s icon, the awesome Randy Rhoads!
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