Having sold over one hundred million records worldwide, Chicago remains one of the most successful and longest running bands of all time. Their success is second only to The Beach Boys in terms of sales, and Billboard hits.
Let's rewind a moment.
Chicago Transit Authority came out of the gate swinging with their 1969 self-titled debut, reaching platinum certification. From there, they shortened their name to Chicago, and this sales success followed for the subsequent eleven albums, through 1978's Hot Streets, a rare album in the band's catalog to not have a number in the title, though technically number twelve.
However, things weren't jiving for the band at this point in time. While the band was still living paycheck to paycheck, producer, James William Guercio, was buying places like Caribou Ranch, a historic, private 1,600-acre mountain property near Nederland, Colorado. It was at this point that the band realized he was taking advantage of them financially. They realized his contract allowed for him to take fifty-one percent of profits and accused him of keeping their royalties. The 1977 dissolvement of their partnership was far from amicable.
The following year, guitarist Terry Kath was found dead from an accidental self-inflicted gunshot wound. At his funeral, it would be Doc Severinsen, band leader of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, who would encourage the remaining members to continue on. After thirty (plus) auditions, Donnie Dacus, would land the job.
Phil Ramone would step in to take over the role of producer, releasing the aforementioned Hot Streets, and 1979's Chicago 13. However, when it came time for 1980's Chicago XIV, new producer Tom Dowd was brought in. Through him, the sound of the band started to change. Specifically, he relegated the once prominent horns to the background of numerous tracks. I already talked about the spectacular failure that was this album, and ultimately how Columbia bought out the band's contract, and dropped them after its release.
Full Moon / Warner Bros. would sign them, and release Chicago 16 in 1982. New producer, David Foster would step in to guide the band, and at the risk of getting too far ahead, continued to work with them through Chicago 18. Lineup changes also occurred, with the departure of Laudir de Oliveira and Marty Grebb, and the addition of Bill Champlin.
Much like the previous Phil Ramone produced albums, less emphasis was placed on the horns, replacing them instead with synthesizers and power ballads. Additionally, Foster would bring in outsiders to assist with writing, and session musicians to record the music, which included several members of Toto.
This more mainstream sounding Chicago resulted in a return to the charts, led by the number one Peter Cetera penned hit, Hard to Say I'm Sorry / Get Away. The tune would also garner them a Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal. The album, as a whole, shot up to platinum status, and peaked at number nine on the Billboard 200. Chicago was back, and ready for the 80's, or in my case, ready to be discovered by a new generation.
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Sixteen definitely showcases the potential of things to come with the next Chicago album. However, without that retrospective history, it's relatively weak. Hard To Say I'm Sorry / Get Away and Love Me Tomorrow are definitely solid hits and are the reason I bought it. A nice hidden gem emerged in, Rescue You.
Mind you, at this point, it was the second to last track, which would be followed by Love Me Tomorrow. So, basically, by this point I'd given up completely on hearing anything else that stood out. It was a pleasant surprise, for sure.
Was it enough to make me a fan of the band? No, not necessarily. I mean, I like their hits, and that's pretty much enough for me. May that will change as I go through their remaining 80's albums, and I'd be all for it if that did happen. I definitely prefer their more mainstream synth sound to that of their earlier horn driven stuff, so there's potential.
Chicago catapulted into mainstream success with their follow-up album, 1984's Chicago 17, an album I've already talked about in a previous Retro Spin. Led by hit singles, Hard Habit To Break, Stay The Night, Along Comes A Woman, and You're The Inspiration, the album would reach six times platinum certification, becoming their biggest selling album of all time. While they wouldn't win, they would receive two Grammy Award nominations for Record of the Year and Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.
They were at the peak of their popularity, and unfortunately, the only way to go from there was down. The decline was swift, relatively overnight. 1986's Chicago 18 would drastically underperform, and from there, things only further declined. But that's where we pick up tomorrow.
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