article

Chicago is a rock band that was formed in 1967 in Chicago, Illinois. Well known for being one of the first (and, indeed, one of the few) rock bands to make extensive use of horns, Chicago started as a politically charged, sometimes experimental rock band and later moved to a softer sound, becoming famous for producing a number of hit ballads. They had a steady stream of hits throughout the 1970s and 1980s.

Beginnings

The band was formed when a group of DePaul University music students began playing a series of late-night jams at clubs on and off campus. They added more members, eventually growing to seven players, and went professional as a cover band called The Big Thing. The band featured an unusual and unusually versatile line-up of instrumentalists, including saxophonist Walter Parazaider, trombonist James Pankow, and trumpet player Lee Loughnane, along with more traditional rock instruments -- guitarist Terry Kath, keyboardist Robert Lamm, drummer Danny Seraphine, and bassist Peter Cetera (who was the last to join the original group). While gaining some success as a cover band, the group worked on original songs and, in 1968, moved to Los Angeles, California under the guidance of their friend and manager James William Guercio, and signed with Columbia Records. Upon release of their first record in early 1969, the band took a new name, Chicago Transit Authority.

The band's first album, the eponymously titled The Chicago Transit Authority, was an audacious debut: a sprawling double album (unheard of for a rookie band) that included jazzy instrumentals, extended jams featuring Latin percussion, and experimental, feedback-laden guitar abstraction. The album began to receive heavy airplay on the fledgling FM radio band; it included a number of pop-rock gems — "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?", "Beginnings", and "Questions 67 and 68" — which would later be edited to a radio-friendly length, released as singles, and eventually become rock radio staples.

Soon after the album's release, the band's name was shortened to simply Chicago, when the actual Chicago Transit Authority threatened legal action.

Chicago's heyday

The band's popularity exploded with the release of their second album, another double-LP set, which included several top-40 hits. This second album, titled Chicago (also known as Chicago II), was the group's breakthrough album. The centerpiece track was a 15-minute suite composed by James Pankow called "Ballet For A Girl In Buchannon" (the structure of this suite was inspired by Pankow's love for classical music). The suite yielded two top ten hits, the crescendo-filled "Make Me Smile" and prom-ready ballad "Colour My World", both sung soulfully by Terry Kath. Among the other popular tracks on the album: Robert Lamm's dynamic but cryptic wah-wah-buttressed "25 Or 6 To 4" (sung by Peter Cetera), and the lengthy "It Better End Soon". With that, the pattern had been set: the band, ever prolific, recorded and released music at a rate of more than two LP discs per year (always titled with the band name and a Roman numeral) from their third album in 1971 through the 1970s.

Some fans say a low point of the group's early career came when they released an ambitious quadruple-album live set, Chicago at Carnegie Hall Volumes I, II, III, and IV, consisting of live performances, mostly of music from their first three albums, from a week-long run at the famous venue. The performances and sound quality were judged sub-par; in fact, one group member went on record to say that "the horn section sounded like kazoos." The packaging of the album also contained some rather strident political messaging about how "We * can change The System," including massive wall posters and voter registration information. Nevertheless, Chicago at Carnegie Hall went on to become the best-selling box set by a rock act, and held that distinction for 15 years.

The group bounced back from this misstep in 1972 with their first single-disc release, Chicago V, a diverse set that reached number one on both the Billboard pop and jazz albums charts and yielded the Robert Lamm-composed-and-sung radio hit and perennial fan favorite "Saturday In the Park", which mixed everyday life and political yearning in a more subtle way.

In 1973 the group's manager, Guercio, produced and directed Electra Glide in Blue, a movie about an Arizona motorcycle policeman. The movie starred Robert Blake, and featured Cetera, Kath, Loughnane, and Parazaider in supporting roles. The group also appeared prominently on the movie's soundtrack.

Other successful albums and singles followed in each of the succeeding years. 1973's Chicago VI also topped the charts buoyed by hits "Feelin' Stronger Every Day" and "Just You and Me". Chicago VII, the band's double-disc 1974 release, featured the Cetera-composed "Wishing You Were Here", sung by Terry Kath with background vocals by Cetera and The Beach Boys and some fusion jazz. Chicago VII also provided one of the group's enduring signature tunes, the anthemic "I've Been Searching So Long," which started with as a soft ballad and culminated in a hard-rock conclusion featuring Terry Kath's electric guitar soloing against the Chicago horn section. "Happy Man," another song from Chicago VII, was also a popular favorite on FM radio. The next year's release, Chicago VIII featured the political allegory "Harry Truman" and the nostalgic Pankow-composed "Old Days". That summer saw a very successful joint tour across America with The Beach Boys, with each act performing some of the other's material.

But for all their effort, none of their singles went to number one until Chicago X in 1976, when Cetera's slow, exquisite ballad "If You Leave Me Now" climbed to the top of the charts. The song also won Chicago their only Grammy award, for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group in 1977. Ironically, the tune almost did not make the cut for the album, and was recorded at the very last minute. The huge success of the song would foreshadow a later reliance on ballads that would typecast the group on radio, despite the presence of ballads on all the previous albums. The group's 1977 release, Chicago XI, was another big success for the band, which included Cetera's hit ballad, "Baby, What a Big Surprise". Things (in some cases) went downhill for the group afterwards.

Time of transition

1978 was a tragic and transitional year for the band. The year began with an acrimonious split with long-time manager Guercio. Then, singer/guitarist/group founder Terry Kath died of an accidental self-inflicted gunshot wound, delivering a devastating blow to the band. Kath's death could have meant the end for the band, but instead the group held fast and later that year recorded and released Hot Streets, their first album without Kath and Guercio and their first album with a title rather than a Roman numeral. (They returned to the old naming scheme immediately afterwards, for the most part). The release also marked a move somewhat away from the jazz-rock direction favored by Kath and towards more pop songs and ballads.

Guitarist/singer/songwriter Donnie Dacus joined Chicago for Hot Streets, and stayed with the band through the 1979 album Chicago 13. Dacus is also featured on the DVD included in the Rhino Records Chicago box set from 2004.

The second phase of the band's career took off in 1981 with a new producer (David Foster), a new label (Warner Brothers), and the addition of keyboardist/guitarist/singer Bill Champlin and guitarist Chris Pinnick.

Foster brought in top studio musicians for some of the tracks on Chicago 16 (including the core members of Toto), and Chicago once again topped the charts with the single "Hard To Say I'm Sorry/Get Away". The following album, Chicago 17, became the biggest selling album of the band's history, with two more Top Ten singles, "You're The Inspiration" and "Hard Habit To Break".

But a conflict arose as to which direction the band was taking due to Cetera's increasing focus on slow ballads. That, plus the pressure of launching a solo career while supporting the band's concert schedule, caused Cetera to leave the band in 1985. Although other band members (including Lamm and Champlin) have released solo material, Cetera has proved the most successful, topping the pop charts with The Karate Kid, Part II theme song "The Glory of Love" and also with a duet with Amy Grant, "Next Time I Fall (In Love)".

The post-Cetera era

Cetera was replaced by bassist/singer Jason Scheff, who joined the band for the final Foster-produced album Chicago 18. This album was not as commercially successful as the previous two, but still produced the #3 single "Will You Still Love Me?", and also an updated version of "25 Or 6 To 4" with a concept video that got a lot of airplay on MTV. Soon after the album was recorded, the band dismissed guitarist Chris Pinnick and hired the talented Dawayne Bailey from Bob Seger's Silver Bullet Band. Bailey and Scheff had previously played in bands together, so Scheff introduced Bailey to the band in time for the Chicago 18 tour (Scheff and Bailey's first concert with Chicago took place on Friday Oct 17, 1986 in Rockford, Illinois).

In 1988, the band replaced producer Foster, and they topped the charts again with the Diane Warren composed single, "Look Away" from the album Chicago 19. The album also yielded three more Top 10 hits. Chicago 19 was followed in short order by Greatest Hits 1982-1989, which included the hit "What Kind of Man Would I Be?," a remixed tune originally included on 19.

During 1989, Chicago did a reprise joint concert tour with The Beach Boys.

The band continued in the decade of the 1990s, even though their popularity began to decline. There was also another personnel change: Danny Seraphine was fired by the band in 1990 and was replaced by ace session drummer Tris Imboden, who first appeared on the 1991 album Twenty 1. Imboden was well-known in the industry as the longtime drummer for Kenny Loggins. On a happier note, Chicago was recognized with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on July 23, 1992.

In 1992 and 1993, Chicago wrote and recorded their 22nd album, Stone Of Sisyphus. Their record company at the time, Warner Bros. Records, was unhappy with the finished result, and thus the album was never released officially, although in succeeding years bootleg recordings of the album have surfaced worldwide, including over the Internet. Selected tracks from the unreleased album have since been officially released on four international compilation greatest hits CDs and the recent Rhino Records box set, and four were rerecorded for band members' solo albums. One track, "The Pull", was performed live during their 1992 appearance at the Greek Theatre (taped for PBS, and released on video in 1993).

Starting on their 1994 tour, Chicago attempted to merge their unique sound with Big Band music for the 1995 album Night & Day Big Band, which consisted of covers of songs originally recorded by Sarah Vaughan, Glenn Miller, and Duke Ellington (from whom the album mainly got its inspiration).

Keith Howland joined the band as guitarist in 1995 to replace the departed Dawayne Bailey.

During a Los Angeles concert in 1997, Chicago teamed up with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra to perform a James Pankow/Dwight Mikelson orchestral arrangement of Pankow's rock epic "Ballet For A Girl In Buchannon". Also during this year, the group released The Heart of Chicago 1967-1997, a compliation album which went gold and yielded the #1 Adult Contemporary hit "Here in My Heart."

In 1998, Chicago released The Christmas Album, which mixed traditional holiday favorites with original compositions. It went gold in the US. (The album was re-released with additional tracks in 2003, under the title What's It Gonna Be, Santa?)

The band released a live album in 1999, Live in Concert, which did not include any of Cetera's solo compositions. In 2000, the group (minus Cetera) had the opportunity to tell their story in an episode of VH1's Behind The Music. This included gems such as Pankow relating the early 1980s record company executive "who said we should lose the horns. Lose the horns? Would they tell Elton John to lose the piano?" The show, however, was not without its difficulties. The episode put more emphasis on the tragic death of Terry Kath than their entire career combined. Cetera completely disowned the special and went so far as to not allow VH1 to use any of the songs he composed for the band, even declining to be interviewed (although stock news footage of a Cetera interview does appear).

Chicago today

Despite the personnel changes over the years, the group still keeps active more than three-and-a-half decades after its founding. They may be the only major rock group that has never broken up or even taken an extended hiatus, although with original frontmen Kath and Cetera long gone, the group sometimes seems like an ensemble calling itself Chicago (this problem is encountered by many aging rock groups and is not unique to Chicago). Nevertheless, four of the six founding members (major songwriters Lamm and Pankow, plus Loughnane and Parazaider) remain to this day providing continuity, while Bill Champlin has put in over 25 years with the band, Jason Scheff over 20, Tris Imboden with 15 and Keith Howland having 11.

As a new century turned, the band sold their entire recorded output to Rhino Records (after years with Columbia Records and Warner Brothers as well as their own short-lived label). In 2002 Rhino released a two-disc compilation, Only the Beginning, which spans the band's entire career. Rhino has also begun releasing new versions of most of the band's albums, each including several bonus tracks; and in 2005 they released a new compilation entitled Love Songs.

Chicago continues to appear in big and small venues world-wide. In 2004-2005 they toured jointly with the band Earth, Wind & Fire; a DVD recorded during that tour, Chicago/Earth, Wind & Fire - Live at the Greek Theatre, was certified platinum just two months after its release.

The group released their first all-new album since Night & Day Big Band, entitled Chicago XXX, on March 21, 2006. Two songs from this album, "Feel" and "Caroline" were performed live during Chicago's Fall 2005 tour; the studio recording of "Feel" debuted on WPLJ radio in New York in November, 2005. "Feel" was the first single released from the new album. "Love Will Come Back" is the second single released from XXX. The album was produced by Rascal Flatts bassist Jay Demarcus, who is a friend of Chicago bassist Jason Scheff. Seven of the 12 tracks on XXX were co-written by Scheff.

During March 2006 Chicago made a multi-week appearance at the MGM Grand Las Vegas, which was repeated in May of the same year. They are also in the middle of a summer 2006 US tour with Huey Lewis & the News. Highlights of the tour include Chicago's Bill Champlin performing with Huey Lewis & the News on a couple of songs, and members of Huey Lewis & the News contributing to Chicago's percussion-laden song, "I'm A Man." Huey Lewis sings the lead vocal on Chicago's "Colour My World." Chicago will play additional dates later this year after the joint tour with Huey Lewis & the News concludes.

Discography

Official albums

  1. The Chicago Transit Authority (April 1969) US #17; UK #9
  2. Chicago (January 1970) US #4; UK #6
  3. Chicago III (January 1971) US #2; UK #31
  4. Chicago at Carnegie Hall (October 1971) US #3
  5. Chicago V (July 1972) US #1; UK #24
  6. Chicago VI (June 1973) US #1
  7. Chicago VII (March 1974) US #1
  8. Chicago VIII (March 1975) US #1
  9. Chicago IX - Chicago's Greatest Hits (November 1975) US #1
  10. Chicago X (June 1976) US #3; UK #21
  11. Chicago XI (September 1977) US #6
  12. Hot Streets (October 1978) US #12
  13. Chicago 13 (August 1979) US #21
  14. Chicago XIV (July 1980) US #71
  15. Greatest Hits, Volume II (November 1981) US #171
  16. Chicago 16 (June 1982) US #9; UK #44
  17. Chicago 17 (May 1984) US #4; UK #24
  18. Chicago 18 (September 1986) US #35
  19. Chicago 19 (June 1988) US #37
  20. Greatest Hits 1982-1989 (November 1989) US #37; UK #6
  21. Twenty 1 (January 1991) US #66
  22. Night & Day Big Band (May 1995) US #90
  23. The Heart of Chicago 1967-1997 (April 1997) US #55; UK #21
  24. The Heart of Chicago 1967-1998 Volume II (May 1998) US #154
  25. The Christmas Album (August 1998) US #47
  26. Live in Concert (October 1999)
  27. Only the Beginning (July 2002) US #38; UK #11
  28. The Box (July 2003)
  29. Love Songs (January 2005) US #57
  30. Chicago XXX (March 2006) US #41

Unreleased album

  1. Stone Of Sisyphus (1994)

Official singles

  1. "Questions 67 & 68" (Columbia 44909/July 1969) US #71
  2. "Beginnings" (Columbia 45011/October 1969)
  3. "Make Me Smile" (Columbia 45127/March 1970) US #9
  4. "25 Or 6 to 4" (Columbia 45194/June 1970) US #4; UK #7
  5. "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?" (Columbia 45264/October 1970) US #7
  6. "Free" (Columbia 45331/February 1971) US #20
  7. "Lowdown" (Columbia 45370/April 1971) US #35
  8. "Beginnings" (Columbia 45417/June 1971) US #7
  9. "I'm a Man" (Columbia 45467/September 1971) US #24
  10. "Saturday in the Park" (Columbia 45657/July 1972) US #3
  11. "Dialogue (Parts I & II)" (Columbia 45717/October 1972) US #24
  12. "Feelin’ Stronger Every Day" (Columbia 45880/June 1973) US #10
  13. "Just You 'N' Me" (Columbia 45933/September 1973) US #4
  14. "(I’ve Been) Searchin’ So Long" (Columbia 46020/February 1974) US #9
  15. "Call On Me" (Columbia 46062/June 1974) US #6
  16. "Wishing You Were Here" (Columbia 10049/October 1974) US #11
  17. "Harry Truman" (Columbia 10092/February 1975) US #13
  18. "Old Days" (Columbia 10131/April 1975) US #5
  19. "Brand New Love Affair (Part I & II)"/"Hideaway" (Columbia 10200/August 1975) US #61
  20. "Another Rainy Day In New York City" (Columbia 10360/June 1976) US #32
  21. "If You Leave Me Now" (Columbia 10390/July 1976) US #1; UK #1
  22. "You Are On My Mind"/"Gently I’ll Wake You" (Columbia 10523/March 1977) US #49
  23. "Baby, What A Big Surprise" (Columbia 10620/September 1977) US #4; UK #41
  24. "Little One"/"Till The End Of Time" (Columbia 10683/January 1978) US #44
  25. "Take Me Back To Chicago"/"Policeman" (Columbia 10737/May 1978) US #63
  26. "Alive Again" (Columbia 10845/October 1978) US #14
  27. "No Tell Lover" (Columbia 10879/December 1978) US #14
  28. "Gone Long Gone"/"The Greatest Love On Earth" (Columbia 10935/March 1979) US #73
  29. "Must Have Been Crazy"/"Closer To You" (Columbia 11061/August 1979) US #83
  30. "Street Player"/"Window Dreamin’" (Columbia 11138/October 1979)
  31. "Song For You"/"I’d Rather Be Rich" (Columbia 11341/July 1980) - cancelled
  32. "Thunder And Lightning"/"I’d Rather Be Rich" (Columbia 11345/August 1980) US #56
  33. "Song For You"/"The American Dream" (Columbia 11376/September 1980)
  34. "Hard to Say I’m Sorry" (Full Moon/Warner 29979/May 1982) US #1; UK #4
  35. "Love Me Tomorrow" (Full Moon/Warner 29911/September 1982) US #22
  36. "What You’re Missing"/"Rescue You" (Full Moon/Warner 29798/January 1983) US #81
  37. "Stay the Night" (Full Moon/Warner 29306/April 1984) US #16
  38. "Hard Habit to Break" (Full Moon/Warner 29214/July 1984) US #3; UK #8
  39. "You’re the Inspiration" (Full Moon/Warner 29126/November 1984) US #3; UK #14
  40. "Along Comes A Woman" (Full Moon/Warner 29082/February 1985) US #14
  41. "25 Or 6 To 4" (Full Moon/Warner 28628/August 1986) US #48
  42. "Will You Still Love Me?" (Full Moon/Warner 28512/October 1986) US #3
  43. "If She Would Have Been Faithful..." (Full Moon/Warner 28424/March 1987) US #17
  44. "Niagara Falls"/"I Believe" (Full Moon/Warner 28283/June 1987) US #91
  45. "I Don’t Wanna Live Without Your Love" (Full Moon/Reprise 27855/May 1988) US #3
  46. "Look Away" (Full Moon/Reprise 27766/September 1988) US #1
  47. "You’re Not Alone" (Full Moon/Reprise 27757/January 1989) US #10
  48. "We Can Last Forever" (Full Moon/Reprise 22985/April 1989) US #55
  49. "What Kind Of Man Would I Be?" (Full Moon/Reprise 22741/November 1989) US #5
  50. "Hearts In Trouble" (Hans Zimmer) (DGC 19679/July 1990) US #75
  51. "Chasin’ the Wind" (Reprise 19466/January 1991) US #39
  52. "You Come To My Senses" (Reprise 19205/June 1991)
  53. "Feel" (exclusive download on iTunes Music Store/February 2006)
  54. "Love Will Come Back" (Rhino/May 2006)

DVDs

Other appearances

From time to time, other artists contributed to Chicago recordings. For example, Al Green guested on a bonus track on Chicago VI, while The Bee Gees guested on a track off of Hot Streets, and trumpet great Maynard Ferguson appeared on Chicago 13.

As a payback for the Gibb brothers appearing on Hot Streets, the horn section made an appearance on the Bee Gees' album Spirits Having Flown and also played on producer David Foster's solo album from 1985. The group also contributed to movie soundtracks, such as Two of a Kind, Summer Lovers, and the Tom Cruise movie Days of Thunder.

Peter Cetera and Donnie Dacus contributed backing vocals to Billy Joel's single "My Life", produced by Phil Ramone (who produced Hot Streets and Chicago 13).

Peter Cetera appeared on one of Paul Anka's songs, "Hold Me 'Til The Mornin' Comes", in 1983.

The Chicago horn section performed on the Three Dog Night album Suitable for Framing on two tracks -- "Feeling Alright" and "Celebrate". The album cover sends out "Special thanks ... Horns -- Walter, James, and Lee -- Chicago (C.T.A.)".

See also

External links

American musical groups | Rock music groups | 1960s music groups | 1970s music groups | 1980s music groups | 1990s music groups | 2000s music groups | Hollywood Walk of Fame | Illinois musical groups | Chicago musical groups

Chicago (Band) | Chicago (groupe) | Chicago (band) | シカゴ (バンド) | Chicago (formaţie rock) | Chicago (рок-группа) | Chicago (band) | Chicago (musikgrupp)

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Chicago (band)".

Home Page • arts • business • computers • games • health • hospitals • home • kids & teens • news • physicians • recreation• reference • regional • science • shopping • society • sports • world