Rock, Metal

Chicago - Chicago X (1976)

2010-05-24T12:44:40Z

Chicago - Chicago X (1976)


01. Once Or Twice (Terry Kath) - 3:00
02. You Are On My Mind (James Pankow) - 3:18
03. Skin Tight (James Pankow) - 3:17
04. If You Leave Me Now (Peter Cetera) - 3:53
05. Together Again (Lee Loughnane) - 3:48
06. Another Rainy Day In New York City (Robert Lamm) - 2:59
07. Mama Mama (Peter Cetera) - 3:27
08. Scrapbook (Robert Lamm) - 3:27
09. Gently I'll Wake You (Robert Lamm) - 3:31
10. You Get It Up (Robert Lamm) - 3:33
11. Hope For Love (Terry Kath) - 3:00
Bonuses:
12. I'd Rather Be Rich (bonus, original Version/rehearsal) (Robert Lamm) - 2:33
13. Your Love's An Attitude (bonus) (Terry Kath) - 5:59

Personnel:
- Terry Kath - guitar, vocals
- Peter Cetera - bass, vocals
- Robert Lamm - keyboards, vocals
- Laudir DeOliveira - percussion, vocals
- Lee Loughnane - trumpet, vocals
- James Pankow - trombone, vocals
- Danny Seraphine - drums, vocals
- Walter Parazaider - woodwinds, vocals
+
- David J. Wolinski - piano & mellotron on "Hope For Love"
- James William Guercio - acoustic guitar & bass on "If You Leave Me Now"; guitar on "Hope For Love"
- Othello Molineaux & Leroy Williams - steel drums on "Another Rainy Day In New York City"
- Jimmie Haskell - string & french horn orchestration on "If You Leave Me Now"; 
string conductor on "Gently I'll Wake You"

Although it was their tenth release Chicago X (1976) was actually the band's eighth studio effort -- as Chicago IV (1972) had been a live set from Carnegie Hall and Chicago IX (1975), which precedes this disc, was their first best-of collection. Musically, the combo had effectively abandoned their extended free-form jazz leanings for more succinct pop songs. That is not to say that the band couldn't rock, because they could as evidenced by the Terry Kath (guitar/vocals) full-tilt rave-up "Once or Twice," which commences the album. The hot brass section bows deeply and respectfully to their Muscle Shoals counterparts as Kath does his best funky Otis Redding vocal. Showing his tremendous depth of field, Kath bookends the LP with the empowering and positive "Hope for Love." In between those two extremes are some of Chicago's best-known works -- such as Peter Cetera's (bass/vocals) chart-topping light rock epic "If You Leave Me Now" and Robert Lamm's (keyboards/vocals) "Another Rainy Night in New York City." The latter side also reveals a minor motif, as it is a Latin-based song about the Big Apple. It follows in the footsteps of the improv-heavy "Italian from New York" from their previous studio effort, the fusion-filled Chicago VII (1974). Lamm contributes a few other tucked-away classics to Chicago X as well -- such as the aggressive and sexy "You Get It Up." There are also a pair from James Pankow(trombone/vocals) in the form of the syncopated "You Are on My Mind" -- which crossed over onto both the adult contemporary as well as pop music charts. His other composition is the classy brass of "Skin Tight." The upfront horn interjections and overall augmentation are akin to the sound made famous by their West Coast Tower of Power contemporaries. As a majority of their previous efforts had done -- all sans their debut -- Chicago X was a Top Ten album and "If You Leave Me Now" became a double Grammy winner, for both Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo Group or Chorus and Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s). The latter award was actually not given to the band, but rather to noted string arranger Jimmie Haskell and the group's longtime producer, James William Guercio. Another well-deserved Grammy was given to John Berg for his visually enticing cover art -- depicting Chicago's logo on the wrapper of what otherwise appears to be a Hershey chocolate bar. As the disc was released in the summer of the U.S. bicentennial (1976), the all-American image was undoubtedly and duly noted. ---Lindsay Planer, AllMusic Review

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Chicago - Chicago XXXVI Now (2014)

2014-06-29T08:18:56Z

Chicago - Chicago XXXVI Now (2014)


(01) [chicago] Now
(02) [chicago] More Will Be Revealed
(03) [chicago] America
(04) [chicago] Crazy Happy
(05) [chicago] Free At Last
(06) [chicago] Love Lives On
(07) [chicago] Something’s Coming, I Know
(08) [chicago] Watching All The Colors
(09) [chicago] Nice Girl
(10) [chicago] Naked In The Garden Of Allah
(11) [chicago] Another Trippy Day
(12) [chicago] Introduction (Live)

Lou Pardini – vocals, keyboard
James Pankow - trombone
Jason Scheff - bass
Keith Howland - guitars
Lee Loughnane - trumpet
Robert Lamm – keyboards, guitar
Tris Imboden – drums
Walfredo Reyes Jr. - percussion
Walter Parazaider – saxophone, flute

There are few bands that can claim to have actively released 36 albums and enjoyed a career that spans five decades, but with ‘Chicago XXXVI: Now‘, Chicago does exactly that.

You would expect that after 47 years in the industry, a band will have found their winning formula; a blueprint they can rely on to please their long serving fans, and sure enough, that is the case here. The opening title track alone explores the smorgasbord of genres that Chicago has nestled into over the years, from brass-led pop rock, to a hard rock guitar solo, via jazz funk odyssey in the middle section.

‘Crazy Happy‘ is a hugely infectious number that smacks of the late 70s and early 80s, while ‘Free At Last‘ keeps the upbeat theme rolling with an opening guitar line that ventures into modern indie rock. Then of course, for the band best known for ballads such as ‘If You Leave Me Now‘, there had to be a new ballad present. From the seemingly ever-present chimes down to the title itself , ‘Love Lives On‘ delivers everything you could ever expect from a soppy ballad and then some. Elsewhere, ‘Naked In the Garden of Allah‘ introduces an experimental element of surprise, with Middle Eastern vibes running rampant over the track.

Besides an incredibly cheesy and overly patriotic ‘America‘ that could serve as a new National Anthem should ‘The Star Spangled Banner’ falter (“America is free… America is you and me”) there is however, a downside to all this. ‘Chicago XXXVI: Now’ represents the band’s first entirely new release since 2006′s ‘Chicago XXX’, but ‘new’ just doesn’t feel like the appropriate term. The album is due for release on July 4th, and yet it already sounds dated.

Of course, this is the sound of Chicago, and fans from their heyday are bound to enjoy this new offering. But for an album that was recording on a high-tech, portable recording studio that has travelled everywhere with the band, allowing them to record in Nashville, Toledo, New Jersey and many more locations, it all feels somewhat superfluous. There are flashes of brilliance here and some songs really stick in the mind, but overall, one cannot shake a looming sense of redundancy. --- hitthefloor.com

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Chicago - Texas International Pop Festival Vol. 1 (1969)

2012-07-30T16:33:12Z

Chicago - Texas International Pop Festival Vol. 1 (1969)


1. Intro / Introduction
2. Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is
3. South California Purples
4. Beginnings
5. 25 or 6 To 4
6. announcements
7. I'm A Man

Tracks 1-5: August 30, 1969
Tracks 6-7: August 31, 1969

Robert Lamm - keyboards, 
Terry Kath - guitar,
Peter Cetera - bass, 
Danny Seraphine - drums,
Walter Parazaider - woodwinds, 
Lee Loughnane – trumpet,
James Pankow – trombone.

Dallas International Motor Speedway, 
Lewisville, Texas, August 30-31, 1969

The Texas International Pop Festival was a music festival held at Lewisville, Texas, on Labor Day weekend, August 30-September 1, 1969. It occurred two weeks after Woodstock. The site for the event was the newly-opened Dallas International Motor Speedway, located on the east side of Interstate Highway 35E, across from the Round Grove Road intersection. The festival was the brainchild of Angus G. Wynne III, son of Angus G. Wynne, the founder of the Six Flags Over Texas Amusement Park. Wynne was a concert promoter who had attended the Atlanta International Pop Festival on the July Fourth weekend. He decided to put a festival on near Dallas, and joined with the Atlanta festival's main organizer, Alex Cooley, forming the company Interpop Superfest. Artists performing at the festival were: Led Zeppelin, B.B. King, Canned Heat, Chicago (then called Chicago Transit Authority), Delaney and Bonnie and Friends, Freddie King, Grand Funk Railroad, Herbie Mann, Incredible String Band, James Cotton, Janis Joplin, Johnny Winter, Nazz, Rotary Connection, Sam and Dave, Santana, Shiva's Headband, Sly and the Family Stone, Space Opera, Spirit, Sweetwater, Ten Years After and Tony Joe White. Attendance at the festival remains unknown, but is estimated between 120,000 and 150,000. As with Woodstock, there were no violent crimes reported. There was one death, due to heatstroke, and one birth. ---ucoz.com

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Chicago XXXIII - O Christmas Three (2011 )

2011-12-07T19:30:17Z

Chicago XXXIII - O Christmas Three (2011)


01. Wonderful Christmas Time (3:50)
02. Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree (3:28)
03. I Saw Three Ships (3:05)
04. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays (4:12)
05. What Are You Doing New Years Eve (5:06)
06. It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year (3:32)
07. I'll Be Home For Christmas (3:11)						play
08. On The Last Night Of The Year (3:38)
09. Merry Christmas Darling (3:12)							play
10. Rockin' And Rollin' on Christmas Day (4:09)
11. My Favorite Things (3:20)
12. O Christmas Tree (3:44)
13. Jingle Bells (3:30)
14. Here Comes Santa Claus / Joy To The World (2:53)

Personnel:
    Robert Lamm - keyboards, vocals
    Lee Loughnane - trumpets, vocals
    James Pankow - trombone,
    Walter Parazaider - saxophones, flute
    Jason Scheff - bass, vocals
    Tris Imboden - drums, percussion
    Keith Howland - guitars, vocals
    Lou Pardini - keyboards, vocals
    Drew Hester - percussion
+
    America (Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell) – vocals, ukuleles, guitars (I Saw Three Ships)
    Hank Linderman - cuatro (I Saw Three Ships)
    Dolly Parton – vocals (Wonderful Christmas Time)
    Bebe Winans – vocals (Merry Christmas Darling)
    Steve Cropper – guitar (Rockin’ And Rollin’ On Christmas Day)
    Children's Choir

Now that Chicago have recorded their third collection of Christmas music -- cleverly titled O Christmas Three -- it's a reasonable question to ask whether there are still new carols for the group to sing. Naturally, the answer is yes, there are songs that they missed on their first two seasonal LPs, and they do a fair bit of them here, including songs like "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree," "I'll Be Home for Christmas," "Jingle Bells," and, of course, "O Christmas Tree," all songs they missed the first time around. Also, they have upped the quotient of originals and recent holiday tunes, opening the record with a rendition of Paul McCartney's "Wonderful Christmas Time" featuring Dolly Parton. She's not the only guest here, either, with America lending harmonies to "I Saw Three Ships," BeBe Winans singing "Merry Christmas Darling," and Steve Cropper laying down some guitar on "Rockin' and Rollin' on Christmas Day." Generally, Oh Christmas Three is brighter and cheerier than Chicago's two previous Christmas albums -- and those records were hardly dour, of course -- and that bit of good spirit is enough to make this the rare three-quel that doesn't dampen the legacy of whatever came before. ---Stephen Thomas Erlewine, AllMusic Review

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Chicago – Chicago II (1970)

2010-12-04T10:23:37Z

Chicago – Chicago II (1970)

CD1:
  01 - Movin' In
  02 - The Road
  03 - Poem For The People
  04 - In The Country
  05 - Wake Up Sunshine                 play
  06 - Make Me Smile
  07 - So Much To Say, So Much To Give
  08 - Anxiety's Moment
  09 - West Virginia Fantasies
  10 - Colour My World
  11 - To Be Free
  12 - Now More Than Ever

CD2:
  01 - Fancy Colours
  02 - 25 Or 6 To 4
  03 - Prelude
  04 - A.M. Mourning
  05 - P.M. Mourning
  06 - Memories Of Love                 play
  07 - It Better End Soon 1st Movement
  08 - It Better End Soon 2nd Movement
  09 - It Better End Soon 3rd Movement
  10 - It Better End Soon 4th Movement
  11 - Where Do We Go From Here

Personnel
* Peter Cetera – bass, vocals
* Terry Kath – guitar, vocals
* Robert Lamm – keyboard, vocals
* Lee Loughnane – trumpet, vocals
* James Pankow – trombone
* Walter Parazaider – woodwinds, vocals
* Danny Seraphine – drums

The Chicago Transit Authority recorded this double-barreled follow-up to their eponymously titled 1969 debut effort. The contents of Chicago II (1970) underscore the solid foundation of complex jazz changes with heavy electric rock & roll that the band so brazenly forged on the first set. The septet also continued its ability to blend the seemingly divergent musical styles into some of the best and most effective pop music of the era. One thing that had changed was the band's name, which was shortened to simply Chicago to avoid any potential litigious situations from the city of Chicago's transportation department -- which claimed the name as proprietary property. Musically, James Pankow (trombone) was about to further cross-pollinate the band's sound with the multifaceted six-song "Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon." The classically inspired suite also garnered the band two of its most beloved hits -- the upbeat pop opener "Make Me Smile" as well as the achingly poignant "Color My World" -- both of which remained at the center of the group's live sets. Chicago had certainly not abandoned its active pursuit of blending high-octane electric rockers such as "25 or 6 to 4" to the progressive jazz inflections heard in the breezy syncopation of "The Road." Adding further depth of field is the darker "Poem for the People" as well as the politically charged five-song set titled "It Better End Soon." These selections feature the band driving home its formidable musicality and uncanny ability to coalesce styles telepathically and at a moment's notice. The contributions of Terry Kath (guitar/vocals) stand out as he unleashes some of his most pungent and sinuous leads, which contrast with the tight brass and woodwind trio of Lee Loughnane (trumpet/vocals), Walter Parazaider (woodwinds/vocals), and the aforementioned Pankow. Peter Cetera (bass/vocals) also marks his songwriting debut -- on the final cut of both the suite and the album -- with "Where Do We Go from Here." It bookends both with at the very least the anticipation and projection of a positive and optimistic future. ---Lindsay Planer, AllMusic Review

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Chicago – Chicago Transit Authority (1969)

2010-03-19T18:19:12Z

Chicago – Chicago Transit Authority (1969)


1. Introduction	 6:35
2. Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?	4:35
3. Beginnings 		7:54
4. Question 67 And 68	5:01	
5. Listen		3:24
6. Poem 58		8:35
7. Free Form Guitar	6:49
8. Southern California Purples	6:28
9. I'm A Man		7:42
10. Prologue, August 29, 1968	0:57
11. Someday (August 29, 1968)	4:10
12. Liberation		14:36

Peter Cetera - Bass, Guitar, Vocals
Terry Kath - Guitar, Vocals
Robert Lamm - Keyboards, Vocals
Lee Loughnane - Percussion, Trumpet, Vocals, Vocals (Background)
James Pankow - Trombone
Walter Parazaider - Vocals, Vocals (Background), Wind, Woodwind
Daniel Seraphine - Drums

Few debut albums can boast as consistently solid an effort as the self-titled Chicago Transit Authority (1969). Even fewer can claim to have enough material to fill out a double-disc affair. Although this long- player was ultimately the septet's first national exposure, the group was far from the proverbial "overnight sensation." Under the guise of the Big Thing, the group soon to be known as CTA had been honing its eclectic blend of jazz, classical, and straight-ahead rock & roll in and around the Windy City for several years. Their initial non-musical meeting occurred during a mid-February 1967 confab between the original combo at Walter Parazaider's apartment on the north side of Chi Town. Over a year later, Columbia Records staff producer James Guercio became a key supporter of the group, which he rechristened Chicago Transit Authority. In fairly short order the band relocated to the West Coast and began woodshedding the material that would comprise this title. In April of 1969, the dozen sides of Chicago Transit Authority unleashed a formidable and ultimately American musical experience. This included an unheralded synthesis of electric guitar wailin' rock & roll to more deeply rooted jazz influences and arrangements. This approach economized the finest of what the band had to offer -- actually two highly stylized units that coexisted with remarkable singularity. On the one hand, listeners were presented with an incendiary rock & roll quartet of Terry Kath (lead guitar/vocals), Robert Lamm (keyboards/vocals), Peter Cetera (bass/vocals), and Danny Seraphine (drums). They were augmented by the equally aggressive power brass trio that included Lee Loughnane (trumpet/vocals), James Pankow (trombone), and the aforementioned Parazaider (woodwind/vocals). This fusion of rock with jazz would also yield some memorable pop sides and enthusiasts' favorites as well. Most notably, a quarter of the material on the double album -- "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?," "Beginnings," "Questions 67 and 68," and the only cover on the project, Steve Winwood's "I'm a Man" -- also scored as respective entries on the singles chart. The tight, infectious, and decidedly pop arrangements contrast with the piledriving blues-based rock of "Introduction" and "South California Purples" as well as the 15-plus minute extemporaneous free for all "Liberation." Even farther left of center are the experimental avant-garde "Free Form Guitar" and the politically intoned and emotive "Prologue, August 29, 1968" and "Someday (August 29, 1968)." The 2003 remastered edition of Chicago Transit Authority offers a marked sonic improvement over all previous pressings -- including the pricey gold disc incarnation. ---Lindsay Planer, AllMusic Review

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Chicago – Chicago V (1972)

2010-12-06T09:36:50Z

Chicago – Chicago V (1972)


  01 - A Hit By Varese
  02 - All Is Well
  03 - Now That You've Gone
  04 - Dialogue, Pt.1            play
  05 - Dialogue, Pt.2
  06 - While The City Sleeps     
  07 - Saturday In The Park
  08 - State Of The Union
  09 - Goodbye
  10 - Alma Mater                play

Personnel
* Peter Cetera – bass, vocals
* Terry Kath – guitar, vocals
* Robert Lamm – keyboards, vocals
* Lee Loughnane – trumpet, flugelhorn, percussion, vocals
* James Pankow – trombone, percussion
* Walter Parazaider – woodwinds, percussion
* Danny Seraphine – drums, congas, antique bells

With four gold multi-disc LPs and twice as many hit singles to its credit, Chicago issued its fifth effort, the first to clock in at under an hour. What they lack in quantity, they more than make up for in the wide range of quality of material. The disc erupts with the progressive free-form "A Hit by Varese" -- which seems to have been inspired as much by Emerson, Lake & Palmer's Tarkus (1971) or Yes circa Close to the Edge (1972) as by the Parisian composer for whom it is named. Fully 80 percent of the material on Chicago V (1972) is also a spotlight for the prolific songwriting of Robert Lamm (keyboards/vocals). In addition to penning the opening rocker, he is also responsible for the easy and airy "All Is Well," which is particularly notable for its lush Beach Boys-esque harmonies. However, Lamm's most memorable contributions are undoubtedly the Top Ten sunshine power pop anthem "Saturday in the Park" and the equally upbeat and buoyant "Dialogue, Pt. 1" and "Dialogue, Pt. 2." Those more accessible tracks are contrasted by James Pankow's (trombone/percussion) aggressive jazz fusion "Now That You've Gone." Although somewhat dark and brooding, it recalls the bittersweet "So Much to Say, So Much to Give" and "Anxiety's Moment" movements of "Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon" found on Chicago II.

Terry Kath's (guitar/vocals) heartfelt ballad "Alma Mater" seems to be influenced by a Randy Newman sensibility. Lyrically, it could be interpreted as an open letter to his generation; lines such as "Looking back a few short years/When we made our plans and played the cards/The way they fell/Clinging to our confidence/We stood on the threshold of the goal/That we knew, dear" effectively recall the monumental world events that had taken place during the late '60s and early '70s. Likewise, there is an undeniable one-on-one intimated in the verse "And though we had our fights/Had our short tempered nights/It couldn't pull our dreams apart/All our needs and all our wants/Drawn together in our heart/We felt it from the very start." This is a fitting way to conclude the album, if not the entire troubled era. [Due to the time constraints of a single-disc LP, Chicago never issued a studio version of the mini political epic "A Song for Richard and His Friends." It had been worked up and performed live while touring behind Chicago III (1971), and appears as a standout on the much maligned At Carnegie Hall, Vols. 1-4 (Chicago IV) four-disc concert package (1971). Some reissues of Chicago V included among its supplemental materials an eight-plus minute instrumental studio version of the track. Also featured as "bonus selections" were a seminal rendering of Kath's powerhouse "Mississippi Delta City Blues" -- which would be shelved for nearly five years before turning up on Chicago XI (1977) -- and the 45 rpm edit of "Dialogue, Pts. 1-2."] ---Lindsay Planer, AllMusic Review

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Chicago – Chicago VIII (1975)

2010-12-06T20:06:45Z

Chicago – Chicago VIII (1975)


  1 - Anyway you Want
  2 - Brand New Love Affair Part I and II
  3 - Never Been in Love Before
  4 - Hideaway
  5 - Till We Meet Again           play
  6 - Harry Truman
  7 - Oh, Thank you Great Spirit
  8 - Long Time No See             play
  9 - Ain't It Blue
  10 - Old Days

Personnel:
* Peter Cetera - bass, vocals
* Terry Kath - guitar, vocals
* Robert Lamm - keyboards, vocals
* Lee Loughnane - trumpet, vocals
* James Pankow - trombone
* Walter Parazaider - woodwinds
* Danny Seraphine - drums
* Laudir de Oliveira - percussion

Road-weary and running low on steam, the members of Chicago began tinkering with their formula on the nostalgic Chicago VIII. Robert Lamm continued to loosen his grip on the songwriting, allowing Peter Cetera, Terry Kath, and James Pankow to pen the majority of the album. The enthusiasm and drive that the band had displayed on their previous efforts was audibly escaping them, best exemplified by the lazy drawl that Cetera affects on his otherwise rocking "Anyway You Want." Finally, the jazz tinges continued to appear less and less, replaced by a brassy R&B approach that provides a more rigid structure for their tunes. But these factors don't necessarily count against the band, as many songs have a lazy, late-afternoon feel that provides a few feel-good moments. Pankow's "Brand New Love Affair -- Part I & II" is a smooth, light rock ballad that Terry Kath wraps his soulful voice around, transforming it into a brooding lament on lost love. This track also begins to incorporate the multi-vocalist approach that would become the trademark of their '80s work, as the second half of the song is sung by Cetera and Lamm as well. Kath's "Oh, Thank You Great Spirit" is another winner, as his delicate vocals drift along on a sparse and psychedelic (for Chicago at least) sea of guitars. Pankow's "Old Days" may be the only other notable track, a powerful rocker that showcases his tight compositional skills and provided the band with the only memorable hit song from the record. Lamm's contributions are the least-commercial songs, as his arty and dynamic tracks are nostalgic entries that show him moving in an atypical direction lyrically and musically. Only his "Harry Truman" really connects, and the instrumental tributes to Depression-era jazz and the goofy singalong ending manage to render the song silly before it can really sink in. Although not terrible by any means, Chicago VIII is heavily burdened by their obvious desire to take a break. The band hits upon some wonderful ideas here, but they are simply too weary to follow them up, and the resulting album has none of the tight orchestration that reigns in their more ridiculous tendencies. ---Bradley Torreano, AllMusic Review

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Chicago – Chicago XI (1977)

2011-08-09T11:49:56Z

Chicago – Chicago XI (1977)


01. Mississippi Delta City Blues (Terry Kath) – 4:37		     play
02. Baby, What A Big Surprise (Peter Cetera) – 3:03
03. Till The End Of Time (James Pankow) – 4:46
04. Policeman (Robert Lamm) – 4:00
05. Take Me Back To Chicago (Danny Seraphine/David Wolinski) – 5:13
06. Vote For Me (Robert Lamm) – 3:43
07. Takin' It On Uptown (Fred Kagan/Terry Kath) – 4:41
08. This Time (Lee Loughnane) – 4:43
09. The Inner Struggles Of A Man (Dominic Frontiere) - 2:43		play
10. Prelude (Little One) (Danny Seraphine/David Wolinski) - 0:52
11. Little One (Danny Seraphine/David Wolinski) - 5:39
Bonuses:
12. Wish I Could Fly (rehearsal) (James Pankow) – 3:44
13. Paris (rehearsal) (Robert Lamm) - 3:54

Personnel:
- Robert Lamm – keyboards, percussion, lead vocals (04,05,06,13), Steinway (11), clavinet (12)
- Terry Kath – guitars, percussion, lead vocals (01,07,10,11)
- Peter Cetera – bass, lead vocals (02)
- Danny Seraphine – drums, percussion
- Laudir de Oliveira – percussion
- Lee Loughnane – trumpet, lead vocals (08)
- James Pankow – trombone, keyboards (12), percussion, lead vocals (03), Steinway (03), brass arrangements
- Walter Parazaider – woodwinds, baritone saxophone (06)
+
- David "Hawk" Wolinski – ARP synthesizer (05), Fender Rhodes (11)
- James William Guercio – acoustic guitars & bass (02)
- Tim Cetera, Carl Wilson – backing vocals (02)
- Chaka Khan – backing vocals & incredible preach (05)
- Dominic Frontiere – orchestral conception & orchestration (02), orchestration (09), string & orchestral arrangements (11)
- The Voices of Inspiration – choir (06)
- James William Guercio – producer

Chicago XI (1977) was the final studio effort to feature the original septet, who by this time had been performing and recording for nearly a decade. In late January 1978, founding member Terry Kath (guitar/vocals) accidentally and fatally shot himself, forever altering the band's sound and indeed much of the combo's tenacious rock & roll heart. It is somewhat fitting that their ninth studio release (11th overall) contains two Kath compositions as well as a pair of additional lead vocals. The funky, up-tempo "Mississippi Delta Blues" opens the album with a showcase of his writing and performance skills. The more aggressive "Takin' It On Uptown" is a gritty rocker that further demonstrates Kath's unparalleled fret board prowess. These tougher tracks are counterbalanced by another round of light pop balladry from the usual suspects of Peter Cetera (bass/vocals), whose "Baby, What a Big Surprise" was the perfect Top Ten follow-up to his chart-topping and two-time Grammy-winning "If You Leave Me Now" from Chicago X (1976). Although undeniably successful, the group had become somewhat predictable as well. This, along with the increasingly schizophrenic popular music trend toward both disco and punk, simultaneously stifled the album's other lightweight fare, such as Daniel Seraphine's "Take Me Back to Chicago" or his slightly darker and more heavily orchestrated "Little One," featuring a truly emotive lead vocal from Kath. Speaking of orchestration, Chicago XI also includes a full-blown mini symphony courtesy of noted West Coast arranger Dominic Frontiere, whose résumé includes contributions to artists as far afield as Booker T. & the M.G.'s and Dan Fogelberg to Eartha Kitt or Bing Crosby.

On this album, he not only adds well-placed strings to the hit "Baby, What a Big Surprise," but also the more inclusive instrumental "The Inner Struggles of a Man" and the "Prelude" to "Little One." Also worth mentioning are James Pankow's soulful pop ballad "Till the End of Time," which is pulled off with a sonic finesse reminiscent of "Big" Al Anderson during his NRBQ days. Adding to the hauntingly familiar refrain are some sweet vocal inflections and a brassy horn section, who supply a laid-back and understated bed not unlike that of the Q's Whole Wheat Horns. Another blow was dealt to the band's internal structure by way of their somewhat acrimonious split with producer and (at least in the beginning) musical mentor James William Guercio -- under whose direction Chicago had been "discovered." Long-existing struggles between the band and management included the predicable and arguable overuse of the distinct Cola-Cola-inspired "Chicago" logo and Roman numeral cataloging -- both of which had prominently graced the cover of every single band release thus far. Additional and much less visible conflicts also existed between bandmembers and their producer as well. Fortunately, the spirit of Chicago would re-emerge under the direction of famed soundsmith Phil Ramone for their next effort, Hot Streets (1978). ---Lindsay Planer, AllMusic Review

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Chicago – Frankfurt 1971

2009-10-10T16:27:18Z

Chicago – Frankfurt 1971


01-Intro 
02-Lowdown 
03-Beginnings 
04-? 
05-It better end Soon #1/cut 
It better end soon#2 
06-Time (piano solo)/ 
07-Does anyone really know what Time it is 
08-25 or 64#1/cut 
09-25 or 64#2/cut 
10-short Anouncement 0.26 (speed probs) 
11-/small Fragment 0.13 (speed probs) 
12-/? 
13-Crowd 
Encores: 
14-I´m a Man/drums 
15-Free 

1971-06-02-Frankfurt, Kongresshalle 

Lineup: 
Terry Kath: g, voc. 
Peter Cetera:b, voc 
Robert Lamm:keyb, voc 
Lee Loughnane:trumpet,backround voc,g 
Walter Parazaider:woodwinds, perc,backround voc 
James Pankow:Trombone, perc. 
Danny Seraphine: dr

download (mp3 @VBR kbs):

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