Nashville, TN (October 3, 2025) — Legendary songwriter, synth pioneer, and founding member of TOTO, Steve Porcaro, today releases The Very Day(Green Hill Music), his long-awaited new solo album and first since 2016. Best known for penning Michael Jackson’s timeless “Human Nature” and shaping the sound of ’80s pop, Porcaro now turns the spotlight inward with a set of deeply personal songs—some brand-new, some decades in the making—culminating in a record that blends his composer’s instincts with the joy of collaboration. His role as an architect of that sound was recently spotlighted in HBO’s acclaimed Yacht Rock: A Dockumentary, which revisited the smooth pop era he helped define.
At the heart of The Very Day is the focus track “Saints & Angels”, a breezy, bar-band anthem co-written with Porcaro’s Toto bandmate David Paich and Stan Lynch, formerly of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and sung by his longtime friend Jason Scheff. Equal parts Beatles uplift and Los Lobos swagger, the track plays like a love letter to Porcaro’s home state of California, tracing the coast from towns named for saints to the City of Angels.
“I had a rough cassette with just a melody and some scatting,” recalls Porcaro. “Years later, I pulled it out and knew I wanted to finish it. We brought in Jason [Scheff] and Stan Lynch, and it turned into this carefree ride up the coast—a fun, simple song that feels like California itself.”
Watch the lyric video for “Saints & Angels” here:
The album’s scope is wide, with guest turns from Porcaro’s close circle of collaborators: “Change” delivers a soulful reflection on the power of incremental good; Jude Cole takes lead on “2X Lover,” a song Porcaro says he’s been holding onto for years; and Gardner Cole, Marc Bonilla, Jason Scheff, and German acid-jazz duo Tab Two all help bring long-shelved ideas to life.
For Porcaro, finishing these songs was both a personal milestone and a new chapter: “I’ve spent my life spinning plates—writing for TV, producing, being part of so many other projects. This was the first time the coast was clear, and I could do exactly what I love: be in the studio, finish my songs, and bring them to life with my friends. I’ve learned the importance of that ‘finishing muscle’—when I finally get a song across the line, I sleep like a baby and think, ‘Wait ‘til the world hears this.’”
(Photo credit: Heather Porcaro)
Known as one of music’s true genre-jumpers, Porcaro brings together the hooks of classic singles with the indulgence of the progressive bands he grew up loving—Steely Dan, Emerson Lake & Palmer, Yes. The result is a record that moves easily between pop, rock, jazz, and cinematic textures, united by Porcaro’s sense of melody and craft.
“Touring is behind me,” he adds. “This album is about being true to myself, without a label telling me what to do. I just want to write great songs and keep getting better at my craft. That’s the whole mission now.”
Blake Davis, General Manager of Green Hill, also shared his thoughts: “Working with Steve on this album has been an honor. His fingerprints are all over modern music history, and with The Very Day he sounds as fresh and inspired as ever. It’s rare to see someone with his legacy take such joy in the craft, and we’re proud to help share that with the world.”
With The Very Day, Porcaro delivers a record that feels at once timeless and personal, the work of an artist whose fingerprints are on thousands of hits but who still finds joy in the simple act of finishing a song.
The Very Day – Track Listing
Marilyn
Miss Jane Sinclair
Change (feat. Michael McDonald)
The El
Does It Really Matter
Listen to My Heart (with Gardner Cole)
Water from the Sky (with Marc Bonilla)
Prelude
2X Lover (feat. Jude Cole)
Tonight (feat. Tab Two)
Saints and Angels (with Jason Scheff)
Stream The Very Day here.
