Mike Porcaro, longtime bassist for the rock band Toto, died on Sunday morning after a long battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease), according to Rolling Stone. He was 59.
Toto to Release First Album in Nearly a Decade
His brother, Steve Porcaro, the keyboardist of the band, confirmed the death on Facebook today:
The Toto guitarist/singer Steve Lukather also nodded to Porcaro’s passing on Twitter:
My brother Mike Porcaro is now now at peace. I will miss him more than I could ever put into words. My deepest love to the family. God Bless
— Steve Lukather (@stevelukather) March 15, 2015
Porcaro, the son of the jazz percussionist Joe Porcaro, joined the Grammy-winning rockers Toto in 1982 and was with the band for their most successful album, Toto IV, which featured the hit singles “Africa” and “Rosanna.” He appeared on many more Toto albums, including Isolation and The Seventh One, before he retired from the band in 2007 due to complications from ALS.
Toto is set to tour Europe this spring in support of their new album, Toto XIV.