Holyanna
by Toto

Album: Isolation (1984)
Charted: 71
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This was written by Toto keyboard player David Paich and drummer Jeff Porcaro; Paich also sang lead.

    The song is about a girl who goes to Catholic school, but has a wild streak. In our interview with Paich, he said that his sister and her friends went to Catholic schools and provided inspiration for the track. "That's an amalgamation of a couple of my sister's girlfriends that I rolled into one girl, Holyanna," he said.
  • Note the religious imagery in the song title: Holyanna.
  • The video was directed by Steve Barron, who also did Toto's videos for "Rosanna" and "Africa."

    The role of Holyanna was played by Alice Adair, who later appeared in the movie Beverly Hills Cop II.

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