Author Topic: The Chicago Discography  (Read 61884 times)

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Online Orbert

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #420 on: June 11, 2018, 07:20:12 AM »
I've always felt that to truly understand a band, and if you have the means and opportunity, you listen to the catalog in chronological order.  With some bands, a "mix tape" might be a better choice, but then you're always getting someone else's idea of what a sampler of their music should be.

Also, road trips to me are the best time to listen to entire albums all the way through.  I don't get much listening time these days, but my car is my listening room.

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #421 on: June 12, 2018, 08:15:41 AM »
Chicago: VI Decades Live



Four CDs plus a DVD.  Also, a nice photo booklet with lots of notes.  The first two CDs are the complete performance at the Isle of Wight Festival, August 28, 1970.  CDs 3 and 4 are live recordings taken over the years, chronologically, from 1969 to 2014, spanning six decades, hence the name of the box set.  The DVD contains a complete concert broadcast from the German television show "Rockpalast".  It was recorded February 12, 1977 during the tour of Chicago X ("the chocolate album").  It also contains a bonus video of the band playing "What's This World Coming To?" live in the studio.

First, the concert DVD.  Not only because I personally watched it first before listening to the CDs, but because for me this is the gold mine.

Anyway You Want
Saturday In The Park
Skin Tight
Just You 'N' Me
Hope For Love
You Are On My Mind
Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?
Ballet For A Girl In Buchannon
Beginnings
Scrapbook
A Hit By Varese
Call On Me
Takin' It On Uptown
If You Leave Me Now
Once Or Twice
(I've Been) Searchin' So Long
25 Or 6 To 4
Got To Get You Into My Life
I'm A Man
What's This World Comin' To (bonus track)

I was pleasantly surprised that they still ventured off into extended jams sometimes, something I'd assumed (for some reason) that they'd stopped doing by the time they had enough hits to just play an entire show of hits.  No.  They still played concerts of songs that they wanted to play, songs that showed off their versatility and musicianship.  I'm reminded now of that part of the CNN documentary where Lamm is reminiscing on a conversation he had with Terry about maybe playing a "greatest hits tour".  Other bands do it, why not Chicago?  Terry scoffed and called him a "fucking sellout".  So obviously they never did that while Terry was around, which I find reassuring.

It starts off innocently enough, with "Anyway You Want", the opener from Chicago VIII and kept around for this tour as well.  Then of course into a hit, "Saturday in the Park" to get the crowd really going.  "Skin Tight" from the current album gets an interesting response.  It's not well-known, but it does have a killer horn break.  It's one of my personal faves from Chicago X despite the cheesy, blatant lyrics.  Then another hit, which Lamm introduces as his favorite Jimmy Pankow song, "Just You 'N' Me".

I know that Terry was in many ways the heart and soul of the band, and some of his songs are my favorites, but "Hope For Love" is the weepy, sappy side of Terry that I just never got into.  All the momentum drops out at this point.  But it's Terry's first real moment, so there you go.  "You Are On My Mind", another from Chicago X, follows, and again it's IMO one of the better songs from that album.  Also, we get the first extended jam of the evening at the end.

"Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?" is awesome, as always, then the first set concludes with the "Ballet For A Girl In Buchannon".  It's awesome how they kept changing things, adding little bits here and there, but never distracting and never deviating from the original structure.  It's mostly a handful of times that make you go "hey, that was cool".  I mean, even at this point, they'd been playing this piece for six or seven years.  You can't just keep playing it the same way every night for that long (and of course they had no idea that they'd still be playing it another 40 years later).

"Beginnings" opens the second set, with the coda section rearranged a bit, which they seemed to do every couple of tours.  "Scrapbook" from the new album follows, again one of the stronger tunes.  It's short, but packs a lot, including some great horn work, into three minutes.

Then it's time to get weird.  The opener from Chicago V, my personal favorite, "A Hit By Varese" is only slightly psycho on the album, but here, they go for it.  This is the avant-garde jazz side of the band that I've missed, and I was thrilled to find that they were still at it as recently as this tour.  When I saw them on the next tour, Terry's last, I don't remember them playing it.  Anyway, most of the song proceeds as on the album, but the jam at the end somehow goes off into another dimension, and hangs out there for a while.  I'm trying to remember now if they bring it back, or just leave you out there.  A truly mind-blowing performance of a song that's a little weird to start with.  I literally had to take a break for a while after this song was over.

"Call On Me" brings things back to normal.  Loughnane's first composition was a hit, and features a great horn break.  An early version of "Takin' It On Uptown" (eventually released on Chicago XI) follows.  They had to play "If You Leave Me Now" sometime, so here it is.  I'd always thought that it was French horns on the record, but the Chicago horns sound amazing here.  Lee pulls out a flugelhorn for that rich, mellow sound, and the inversions are deceptive.  Pretty sure the trombone is on top.  Pankow is a genious at arranging three horns to sound like six.

"Once Or Twice", the other Terry Kath song from Chicago X, is next.  I like this one.  The "chocolate album" opens and closes with Kath songs, and this is the opener, a barn-burner at such a high tempo that even with three verses and a double-verse saxophone solo, it's over and done in three minutes.

"(I've Been) Searchin' So Long" starts the big medley, going into "Mongonucleosis", the drums/percussion jam, and eventually "25 Or 6 To 4".  The first encore is The Beatles' "Got To Get You Into My Life", which is said to be what gave Robert Lamm the idea of forming a pop band with horns.  They finish with "I'm A Man", another cover, but for some reason the song which they've done as the final encore for many, many years. A good song, though never really a fave, and a bit odd to do two covers for the encore, but thus ends the concert.

"What's This World Comin' To" is, as mentioned above, a live studio performance of a song from Chicago VI.  I'm honestly not sure why they included it here, but they probably just found it somewhere, it's a video, so they put it on the DVD.  It's a slightly more "live" version of the song than on the album, but still very tight of course, and overall a great performance of one of my favorite songs from Chicago VI, so certainly a worthwhile addition.

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Okay, this is taking long than I thought it would.  Silly me.  I'll be back later to go over the CDs.

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #422 on: June 12, 2018, 08:56:03 AM »
Oh i need to buy that.
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Online Orbert

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #423 on: June 12, 2018, 12:38:20 PM »
Chicago: VI Decades Live (continued)

Disc 1 - Isle of Wight Festival 8/28/70
  1. Introduction
  2. South California Purples
  3. Beginnings
  4. In The Country
  5. Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is? (Free Form Intro)
  6. Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?
  7. Mother

Disc 2 - Isle of Wight Festival 8/28/70 (conclusion)
  1. It Better End Soon
  2. Ballet For A Girl In Buchannon
  3. 25 Or 6 To 4
  4. I'm A Man

There are live recordings which put you there, in that venue, in the audience, and you are listening to it live just as it happened and it's amazing.  Then there are live recordings which sound pretty good, and there are things about the performance that are great, but also a number of times where it kinda strikes you how it's tighter on the studio version and you kinda miss that.  Or the mix is okay but not great.  Or technical difficulties cause issues that are really no one's fault, but they affect the recording and thus your enjoyment of the recording anyway.

Despite being very aware of the significance of this live recording, and the significance of Chicago even playing The Isle of Wight Festival in 1970 (it's a British festival featuring British acts, at least at that time), I found this concert a bit disappointing.  It's certainly interesting to hear earlier live versions of songs I know so well from Chicago at Carnegie Hall.  And Terry Kath's guitar solos were always ad-libbed, every one of them, every night, so yeah, it's yet another version of "25 or 6 to 4" but I'll always stick around to hear the solo.  That kind of thing.  But there's a weird kind of vibe to the performance that's hard to nail down.  It's almost like, we're pop stars now, and this is live, and when you play live things can get loose and funky and kinda crazy, so they intentionally play things a bit looser and funkier and crazier.  The band never did learn the words to "I'm a Man", so they make up words that sound kinda like the real lyrics sometimes, but otherwise just babble and mumble their way through the song.  That's how they do this song.  It's like that on the studio version and every live version I've ever heard.  But it's okay because it's only rock and roll and who gives a shit?

I love Terry Kath's enthusiasm and course his guitar playing, but I found myself wishing he'd reined it in a bit with the "oh yeah"s.  YMMV.

Don't get me wrong.  This is a good recording, and well worth listening to.  I just feel like I won't be going back to it very often.  I'm sure there are folks for whom this concert was the holy grail, not the live DVD.

Disc: 3
  1. Poem For The People (Paris, France 12/8/69)
  2. 25 Or 6 To 4 (Paris, France 12/8/69)
  3. Liberation (Paris, France 12/8/69)
  4. Goodbye (The John F. Kennedy Center for The Performing Arts, Washington D.C. 9/16/71)
  5. Now That You've Gone (Hordern Pavilion, Sydney, Australia, 6/26/72)
  6. A Hit By Varèse (Chicago Stadium, Chicago, IL 8/13/73)
  7. If You Leave Me Now (Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, CA 12/1/77)
  8. Takin' It On Uptown (Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, CA 12/1/77)

Disc: 4
  1. Hot Streets (Greek Theater, Los Angeles, CA 8/11/78)
  2. Little One (Greek Theater, Los Angeles, CA 8/11/78)
  3. Forever (Pensacola Civic Center, Pensacola, FL 3/21/87)
  4. Medley: In The Midnight Hour, Knock On Wood, I'm A Man, Get Away (Pensacola Civic Center, Pensacola,
  5. You're Not Alone (Starplex Amphitheatre, Dallas, TX 5/30/92)
  6. The Pull (Caesar's Palace, Las Vegas, NV 3/20/94)
  7. In The Mood (Caesar's Palace, Atlantic City, NJ 7/28/94)
  8. Don't Get Around Much Anymore (Caesar's Palace, Atlantic City, NJ 7/28/94)
  9. Look Away (Acoustic) [A&E Network, Live by Request 9/5/02]
  10. America (WHYY, The Grand, Wilmington, DE 5/7/14)

The other two discs vary in quality from pretty good soundboard recordings to pretty bad bootleg quality audience recordings.  The performances themselves are fine.  Chicago eventually got over the "live ego" thing and learned how to just put on a good live show despite being huge pop stars.

Here's the thing.  I can usually listen to less-than-perfect live recordings.  I've suffered through some genuinely crappy quality bootlegs when the performances were good enough to keep my attention.  After a few songs, my ears seem to adjust, and the sound quality doesn't bother me and I can just listen to the music.  But here, since it's only one or two songs from all different recordings in widely varying quality, your ears never get a chance to adjust.  At least mine don't.  By time I've adjusted, the song is over and the next one sounds different because it's from a different time and place.

The early version of "Poem for the People" is interesting, with the original piano intro (played on that horrible Hohner Pianet that Lamm had) and without Terry's countermelodies throughout as on the studio version.  "25 or 6 to 4" and "Liberation" are always a treat because of Terry's solos.  "Goodbye" is fine.  Most Chicago tunes, because of the tightly arranged horns and vocals, don't leave much room for improv, so it often just comes down to the solos or if they do something different with the arrangement.  Of the three horn players, Lee Loughnane always seemed the weakest soloist to me.  He'll occasionally stumble upon some cool licks, but his 7/4 solo in "Goodbye" has always felt awkward and this one's no exception.  "Now That You've Gone" isn't a great mix, but I like the song so it's okay.  Unfortunately, this is another great song that's great because of its arrangement, so it's basically the same as the studio version, only not as tight and not as cleanly recorded.

"A Hit By Varèse" is probably the worst offender of the bunch.  Such a great tune, but it sounds like it was recorded on a portable tape recorder somewhere about 1/4 mile from the stage.  Abyssmal sound quality, and worst of all, they cut off the amazing avant-garde jam at the end.  They catch most of it, but it trails off.  "If You Leave Me Now" sounds just like the album, which is both good and bad (Sorry, I just don't like the song), while "Uptown" is extra-funky.  This is from the same tour as the DVD concert, so the song still had not yet reached its final form, but it's still very good, just extra loose in that Kath way that you either like or you don't.  I go back and forth.

Disc 4 is all post-Kath material, and in my case, that unfortunately means I'll visit this one even less often than the others.  I like the horns on "Hot Streets".  "Little One" (with both orchestral prequels, just not listed here) to me is mostly pointless without Terry singing it.  I sort of latched onto "Forever" from the later catalog because Lamm writes and sings fewer and fewer songs, and he was always my favorite.  But this song is a bit of a snoozer for me.

The blues medley (ha, apparently the track info ran up against Amazon's length limit, and I'm too lazy to dig it up from the book) is interesting.  I'm glad the band took some chances, did some different things.  I'm just not a fan of "In The Midnight Hour", and I've never heard of "Knock On Wood" though it's obviously another blues classic.  Then they work into yet another version of "I'm a Man" and finally "Get Away" which is the highlight for me.  Also known as the seemingly out-of-place coda from "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" (from Chicago XIII) they play it twice, just because it was originally so short that even though it totally cooks, you feel a bit cheated when it ends so soon.  So they play it twice.

"You're Not Alone" from Chicago 19 is a Bill Champlain song that I could honestly take or leave.  "The Pull" is a bit better, as it has some actual emotion to it.  The two big band songs aren't too bad, but having played in a jazz/swing band and played the original charts, these "poppified" versions feel a bit weak to me.

"Look Away" isn't bad, an acoustic version of a mellow song, and a nice closer to the set.  Except that they instead leap forward 12 years and include a live version of "America", presumably because it was released as a single and there's no official live version anywhere else.  Nice vocal harmonies.  Sorry, another pretty weak song IMO.  I get what they were going for here, and I'm glad Chicago still doesn't shy away from the political, but other than that... snooze. 

----------

And there you have it.  To be honest, I can see myself pulling out the concert DVD once in a while because it's freaking amazing.  And I'll get around to ripping the CDs because I'm a completist and this is Chicago we're talking about, but I'll end up hitting the Skip button a lot, and eventually I'll just remove a lot of them from my iPod, because there's no point to keeping anything on there that I literally skip every time.

The price continues to come down on this set, and it's currently less than $50 on Amazon.  For me, it's all about the live concert DVD, though $50 for a concert vid is pretty steep.  The Isle of Wight CDs will probably get some play as well, at least on my iPod, but I was mostly curious about the other two live CDs, and what's here didn't really surprise me that much, other than the widely varying sound quality.  I have to assume that this is the best quality they could find as they dug around for material, and this is the best they could make it sound after cleaning it all up.  And if that's true, then that's really a shame because Chicago live is really pretty amazing.  I saw the original band back in the 70's, and a later lineup in the 90's, and both were great shows.  Chicago has always played hundreds of gigs per year, even long after they could have retired and sat back.  But this is what they do.

Offline ytserush

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #424 on: June 13, 2018, 07:33:41 PM »
My fascination with Chicago ends around 1980. I pretty much love everything they did to that point. Never checked out much after that other than what got airplay and I wasn't all that impressed with it.

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #425 on: June 15, 2018, 01:02:50 AM »
Awesome reviews, although that's the absolute first time ever I've heard 'in the midnight hour' and  'knock on wood' referred to as 'Blues' classics. They're soul (or 'R & B')songs to me. 
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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #426 on: June 15, 2018, 07:18:49 AM »
Yeah, R & B would've been more accurate.  Maybe even Motown.

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #427 on: June 15, 2018, 08:53:56 AM »
No, it's Atlantic Soul to be precise.  ;)
From the ocean comes the notion that the realise lies in rhythm. The rhythm of vision is dancer, and when you dance you´re always on the one. From the looking comes to see, wondrous realise real eyes....

Offline DragonAttack

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #428 on: June 15, 2018, 04:05:47 PM »
Been so busy (and lazy) lately.....

Next to Led Zeppelin, Chicago had the strongest first four studio offerings IMO.  Just had to mention that.

Along with having a community yard sale last weekend. 

I got rid of almost 800 of my vinyls (sniff).  My asking price was  3/$1.00  (33 1/3 cents a piece......get it? ;) )

A handful or so I sold for $2-10.....including Carnegie Hall.  Put a $5 sticker on it, and it went without a hassle.  I think back to my frat days, and sharing a two story house with my best friend out in the country, with a music room and that poster (amongst others) up on the walls.

I recall listening to those four pieces of vinyl when Orbert posted about this LP about sixteen months ago.  Thanks for the memories and this thread.
« Last Edit: June 15, 2018, 06:15:58 PM by DragonAttack »
...going along with Dragon Attack's Queen thread has been like taking a free class in Queen knowledge. Where else are you gonna find info like that?!

Online Orbert

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #429 on: June 15, 2018, 04:25:15 PM »
Awesome!  $5 is exactly what I paid for Chicago at Carnegie Hall, all those years ago...

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #430 on: August 06, 2018, 05:58:58 AM »
If you enjoy some very faithful renditions of Chicago classics then check out a Russian group called Leonid & Friends

Just search "Leonid Chicago" on Youtube.


Some examples

Beginnings: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kQ1llzPiB4

25 or 6 to 4 : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_torOTK5qc

If You Leave Me Now:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQ_j4Ytecgg


Website (which has the lot ):  https://www.leonidandf.com/
« Last Edit: August 06, 2018, 06:06:34 AM by bl5150 »
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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #431 on: November 24, 2018, 12:41:26 PM »
Been so busy (and lazy) lately.....

Next to Led Zeppelin, Chicago had the strongest first four studio offerings IMO.  Just had to mention that.

Along with having a community yard sale last weekend. 

I got rid of almost 800 of my vinyls (sniff).  My asking price was  3/$1.00  (33 1/3 cents a piece......get it? ;) )

A handful or so I sold for $2-10.....including Carnegie Hall.  Put a $5 sticker on it, and it went without a hassle.  I think back to my frat days, and sharing a two story house with my best friend out in the country, with a music room and that poster (amongst others) up on the walls.

Yes, the first 4 albums are pretty fantastic.  I got rid of a big bunch of albums 15 years ago (about 300).  I'm not sure it's the best move I have ever made but what is done is done.  Saw Chicago in september for the first time ever.  Simply perfect rendition of the 2nd album played completely from 1st to last song.  I wish I have a time capsule to go back 45 years back and see Terry Kath.

I recall listening to those four pieces of vinyl when Orbert posted about this LP about sixteen months ago.  Thanks for the memories and this thread.
With all respect, sincerely yours

Offline red barchetta

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #432 on: November 24, 2018, 12:45:01 PM »
Yes, the first 4 albums are pretty much fantastic.  Saw Chicago for the first time in september and it was great.  Played a perfect rendition of the complete 2nd album but I wish I have a time capsule to go back 45 years and see Terry Kath.  I got rid of a big chunk of albums (about 300) 15 years ago but I'm not sure I did the best move.  But what is done is done.
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Offline red barchetta

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #433 on: November 24, 2018, 12:47:08 PM »
sorry about the reproduction of Dragonattack's quote.  Been too long out of the forum and forgot about the way to reply.
With all respect, sincerely yours

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Chicago XXXVIII: Born For This Moment (2022)
« Reply #434 on: November 08, 2022, 08:23:40 AM »
Discography Thread Resurrection!!

Because they went and released a new album, again.



Chicago XXXVIII: Born For This Moment (2022)



Robert Lamm - Keyboards, Guitar, Bass, Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Programming
Lee Loughnane - Trumpet, Guitar, Synthesizer Bass, Backing Vocals, Brass Arrangements
James Pankow - Trombone, Keyboards, Brass Arrangements
Walfredo Reyes Jr. - Drums
Ray Herrmann - Saxophone
Neil Donell - Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals
Ramon "Ray" Yslas - Percussion
Loren Gold - Piano

----------

Born for This Moment  4:50
If This Is Goodbye  3:49
Firecracker  3:50
Someone Needed Me the Most  5:17
Our New York Time  4:16
Safer Harbours  4:53
Crazy Ideas  3:17
Make a Man Outta Me  4:14
She's Right  3:46
The Mermaid (Sereia Do Mar)  3:34
You've Got to Believe  3:12
For the Love  4:02
If This Isn't Love  4:38
House on the Hill  3:48

----------

Eight years later, they release another album.  I'm not sure what's more amazing, the fact that Chicago released a new album after eight years, or that I went to update the discography and saw that the 2014 update ("Now" Chicago XXXVI) was already a thread resurrection at the time, and that Chicago's last album before that was Chicago XXX from 2006, another eight years before that (not counting Chicago XXXII: Stone of Sisyphus, released in 2008 but recorded in 1993).

Also, they officially don't know what to do about album titles anymore.  They want the albums to have actual titles, but they feel obliged to continue the trend with the Roman numerals.  So it says Chicago Born For This Moment on the cover, and Chicago XXXVIII on the spine.  Wikipedia has it as Chicago XXXVIII: Born For This Moment which seems a pretty good compromise, so that's what I've gone with.

If I were on discussion boards like DTF and some crazy guy obsessed with the band Chicago picked up the new album, my first question would be "How do the horns sound?"  The answer is: They sound great, and are all over this album.  Every song, and most with their own breaks.  Not as long or as adventurous as on earlier albums, but they're here, and there's no question that these are the Chicago horns.

The second question might be "Who's still in the band?"  Meaning of course "What original members are still in the band?"  Three.  Only Robert Lamm, Lee Loughnane, and James Pankow (keyboards, trumpet, trombone).  Original woodwind player Walt Parazaider was only on a few tracks from the last album and has officially retired now, citing health issues (Alzheimer's :().  This is reflected (kinda) in the credits I've given above, which for the first time are in the order given in liner notes, with original members first, then everyone else in some order I can't figure out.  Not alphabetical; possibly based on how many tracks each one plays on, because there are 34 persons listed under "Additional Personnel".  That includes eight string players and seven backing vocalists, but also 12 guitarists including the great Keith Howland, who was an official band member on the last album.  The liner notes give individual credits for every song, and after glancing at the band roster I was bummed to not see Keith Howland, but then I heard a solo that sounded like him, and sure enough, that was him.  Even co-wrote the song with Pankow.  And don't get the wrong impression; Lamm and Loughnane are both credited with playing guitar on this album, but that's just for completeness; with 12 other guys there is apparently no official guitarist.  Next year, they'll go on tour again and someone will be picked to play guitar and he'll be the official guitarist for Chicago at that point.

I could spend several more paragraphs on the credits, but I've gone on long enough.  Things are very different in Chicago these days.  Loughnane continues to contribute some horn arrangements, which is good, though presumably Pankow does the majority as that's always been his primary role.  Lamm has always been the de facto leader of the band, and that would appear to still be the case.  In the "Thank You" section of the liner notes, only Lamm, Loughnane, and Pankow get to give their thank-yous.

The songs.  Sigh.  I was hoping you wouldn't ask about them, because overall I have to say I'm disappointed.  While the previous album pleasantly surprised me with how much Chicago can still rock, and still pull out some weird/unusual tunes, this album is very firmly in the "light rock" genre.  If you were on a cruise ship, having dinner in one of the fancier lounges, and there was a live band playing, they would sound like this.  Great sound, great horn section and some great arrangements, great vocal harmonies, all sounding great.  But not exactly rock and roll.  Moments of rock and roll, moments where the horns or electric guitar take off for a while, give you a glimpse of what they can do, but then they step back and the nice vocal harmonies are back.  Short songs, they all sound great, but very few outstanding moments.

Robert Lamm and fellow Chicagoan Jim Peterik have been hanging out.  A couple of songs were co-written by them, and you can hear Peterik's guitar on them.  Peterik was with The Ides of March and wrote their most well-known song "Vehicle" and some may also know that he co-wrote "Eye of the Tiger" (theme from Rocky III).  But really, if you care about that, you're a bigger geek than me, and that's just scary.

Neil Donell is the new lead singer.  He's been an official member of the band for years now, having taken over from Jeff Coffey in 2018.  Wait, Jeff Coffey?  Who is that?  He's the guy who took over from Jason Scheff in 2016 when they finally (in my mind) got tired of his whiney voice and butchering Peter Cetera's melodies.  But Coffey only lasted a few years, and Neil has been the Cetera clone since then.  All this happened since the last studio album, but remember that Chicago still tours every year so they have to keep a full roster.  Anyway, Neil Donell is another Cetera clone, but he's not as wimpy/whiney as Jason Scheff, and from the few videos I've seen, he sticks closer to the original melodies when they do the classic stuff.

The rest of the guys, who really cares?  I doubt most of you will ever hear this album, and I'm including this writeup for completeness sake, because I'm the official Chicago geek of DTF and will not be out-geeked.  I've played the album probably five or six times now.  The nice, smooth sounds with a slightly Latin flavor sometimes because of the percussion, the nice vocal harmonies, and those great horns.  At this point, I'm only in it for the horns, and I get to hear them and be happy.  They are definitely the high point of the album for me, though I realize that that's probably not worth the price of admission for most.
« Last Edit: November 11, 2022, 10:36:05 PM by Orbert »

Offline DragonAttack

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Re: The Chicago Discography: Chicago XXXVIII (2022)
« Reply #435 on: November 11, 2022, 03:02:10 PM »
^
Some of us official geeks of bands on DTF appreciate your efforts. ;) :tup

Must have been osmosis....I didn't listen to this, but I did have my 'best of Chicago(with the wife somewhat in mind)' disc playing in the car on our trip this week (it ended with 'If You Leave Me Now'). 

I listened to some of '38' today.  Yeah, there's lots of 'old fogey' syrup in this, but the horns did sound good.

Signed
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« Last Edit: November 12, 2022, 05:40:47 AM by DragonAttack »
...going along with Dragon Attack's Queen thread has been like taking a free class in Queen knowledge. Where else are you gonna find info like that?!

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Re: The Chicago Discography: Chicago XXXVIII (2022)
« Reply #436 on: November 11, 2022, 06:21:11 PM »
:tup

Offline Nel

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Re: The Chicago Discography: Chicago XXXVIII (2022)
« Reply #437 on: November 11, 2022, 09:58:55 PM »
Man, even their ugliest album covers do *something* with incorporating the logo into it. This one's just the logo on black. The only thing that stands out is it having a title.

Anyway, I bought it. I was happy to get anything after they did yet ANOTHER Christmas album back in 2019, but yeah. This one didn't do much for me. "Chicago XXXVI: Now" had a bit more interesting stuff going on 8 years ago.
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Re: The Chicago Discography: Chicago XXXVIII (2022)
« Reply #438 on: November 11, 2022, 10:37:20 PM »
Yep, agreed on all counts.

Offline KevShmev

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Re: The Chicago Discography: Chicago XXXVIII (2022)
« Reply #439 on: November 12, 2022, 08:35:30 PM »
I don't think I've heard a Chicago song since the 80s, but I'd be open to checking out a few newer tunes. I don't think I have it in me to power through a full Chicago album that isn't from the 70s, so gimme 3-5 good songs from the 90s till now, and I will check 'em out.

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Re: The Chicago Discography: Chicago XXXVIII (2022)
« Reply #440 on: November 13, 2022, 07:13:34 AM »
That's a pretty tough call.  I have trouble even thinking of their post-90's output in terms of good or bad.  Almost none of it is stuff I would normally listen to, mostly because of the lead vocals, so it's down to how interesting I find the song itself.  If they do something different with the arrangement, or how cool the horn arrangement is and/or they get a chance to cook out.

Chicago XXX: Already Gone, Better.
Chicago XXXII (Stone of Sisyphus): The Pull.
Chicago XXXVI (Now): More Will Be Revealed, Free at Last.

From the new one, I'm not even there yet.  Pick any song at random; they all pretty much blur together.



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Re: The Chicago Discography: Chicago XXXVIII (2022)
« Reply #441 on: November 13, 2022, 10:55:03 AM »
Okay, thanks!

I will check those out and report back.  :tup :tup

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Re: The Chicago Discography: Chicago XXXVIII (2022)
« Reply #442 on: November 21, 2022, 12:48:27 PM »
I'll have a listen to that new album and thank you for bringing it.  This band is one of the greatest ever but to me it ended pretty much with Peter Cetera departure.  And back then, I did not like their music anymore.

Take all the albums with Terry Kath (especially the first 5-6 ones), that's their best stuff.  Epic songs by dozens.
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Chicago at Carnegie Hall Complete (2021)
« Reply #443 on: July 24, 2023, 10:11:55 PM »
Another thread resurrection by your resident Chicago geek!


Chicago at Carnegie Hall Complete (2021)





As I mentioned in the writeup for Chicago at Carnegie Hall, the album was originally four vinyl LPs and later three CDs, and the remastered/expanded version includes a fourth CD of additional material.  Four of the eight tracks on the bonus CD are alternate versions of songs already on the first three CDs, because they played all week at Carnegie Hall and recorded every show.  The alternate versions of "Sing a Mean Tune, Kid", "South California Purples", and "25 or 6 to 4" were specifically chosen because of Terry Kath's amazing extended guitar solos.

That was great, of course, getting to hear more live Chicago from back in their prime.  But somehow, rather than giving me more and making me feel satisfied, it just made me want more.  They played eight shows (Monday through Saturday, with matinee shows Friday and Saturday) and recorded them all.  I wanted to hear it all!  I wanted to hear all of Terry's solos.  I wanted to hear Robert's free form piano intros to "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?"  They played "Elegy" -- where is it?  Hearing how different the alternate versions were made me suddenly understand why Deadheads collect every show they can get their hands on.  With The Grateful Dead, improv was a huge part of the show, so every show was different.  I didn't expect this to be quite on that level, but I did want to hear the solos, and how different the songs were each time.

Well, be careful what you wish for.  Trumpeter Lee Loughnane sat with engineer Tim Jessup and went through all the tapes, cleaned everything up, and released it all.  Disc 1 is the first show, first set.  Disc 2 is the second set.  Discs 3 and 4 are the second show, first and second set.  And so on.  Eight shows; 16 sets on 16 discs.  A few reviews on Amazon talk about audio quality issues, and honestly I have no idea what they're talking about.  I think most of it sounds fucking fantastic, and there are multiple reviews saying that whoever says otherwise probably has defective discs or something, because most, like me, rave about the sound.  Other than the occassional issue that comes up with live recordings, it's amazing and revelatory.

Okay let's be honest.  I don't think anyone here at DTF is going to shell out $350 to buy this 16-disc box.  (I didn't.  I paid $90 for the VBR mp3 downloads.)  But we have five versions of "Sing a Mean Tune, Kid" and every one has the extended guitar solo, each one different.  Four versions of "South California Purples", same thing.  Eight versions of the "Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon", six versions of "It Better End Soon" (the guitar solo, flute solo, and "preach" were different every time), six versions of "25 or 6 to 4" each with mind-blowing solo.  You get the idea. Four versions of "Introduction" (trumpet, trombone, and guitar solos), four versions of "Mother" (the insane three-horn break!), seven versions of "Free" (that saxophone solo!)

I don't know; maybe I just talked most of you out of it, if anyone was even close to buying this.  Many would think there's no point to hearing all these different versions, all these different solos.  I guess it depends on how into live music, and 1971 Chicago, you are.  I'm on my third listen through the entire set, and still in absolute bliss.  I'm still baffled by people who say that the live versions are so similar to the studio versions that there's no point.  Those people must have even better drugs than me, because every version of every song has a different vibe, sometimes a vastly different vibe.  The amount of improv is crazy, and just them messing around with the arrangements is a marvel to hear.  Six versions of "A Song for Richard and His Friends", each one different.

Okay, I'll stop.  I really don't expect people to get this, but if you have the cash and you're a fan of original Chicago, this collection is absolutely worth it.
« Last Edit: July 27, 2023, 02:51:56 PM by Orbert »

Offline ytserush

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Re: The Chicago Discography: Chicago XXXVIII (2022)
« Reply #444 on: July 25, 2023, 07:55:08 PM »
Are you kidding me? I NEED this! Thanks for posting.

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #445 on: July 25, 2023, 08:36:51 PM »
That's the spirit! ♫♫!!

And you're welcome!

Online hefdaddy42

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #446 on: July 26, 2023, 02:59:20 PM »
It's also on Spotify.

14 hours 34 minutes.  Holy hell.

I bet it's awesome.
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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #447 on: July 26, 2023, 03:20:56 PM »
I own it on cd.  It's amazing. 
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Offline Lupton

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #448 on: July 27, 2023, 02:10:54 PM »
Yes! Thanks for the writeup Orbert. This one is so tempting that it may even get me to break my normal "no digital" purchase rule. All those versions of Purples and Mean Kid have got to be WAY different in all the jammy bits. But I can't confirm this suspicion without actually checking them all out!  So it makes this very tempting for sure.

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #449 on: July 27, 2023, 03:08:57 PM »
It's also on Spotify.

14 hours 34 minutes.  Holy hell.

I bet it's awesome.

Yeah, it's a lot.  I work from home two days a week, and play a lot on weekends, so I've been working my way through.  I'm still on my 3rd pass, because this week I've been editing tracks together.  Each version of "Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon" for example is seven separate tracks.  "It Better End Soon" is always five separate tracks.  The piano intro to "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?" is always separate from the song (probably because it was that way on the original release).  So I'm using Audacity to fix everything, but the tracks come with "dead air" at the beginning and end which is annoying as fuck because you can't just append the tracks; you have to edit out the 0.2-second gap each time.  Anyway, I'm halfway through.  The first four shows are done.  I need to finish by Friday night because I'm hitting the road Saturday for Michigan and need to have everything loaded on a USB drive for listening in the car.

I guess that would be one big advantage to buying the CDs.  They'll just play through without the stupid gaps.  I've seen ripping software that does entire discs at a time, and it would probably be easier to rip full discs and cut them into separate songs than splicing at the separate tracks together like I've been doing.  Oh well.  We makes our choices and we lives with them.  Now that I've shelled out for the mp3's, I'm not going to also buy the CDs, no matter how tempting all that glorious packaging is.  (They recreated the posters and picture book and included a new write-up in the booklet, but really, I can't justify over $200 for that and a little convenience.)

Offline ytserush

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #450 on: August 05, 2023, 03:41:04 PM »
It's also on Spotify.

14 hours 34 minutes.  Holy hell.

I bet it's awesome.

Yeah, it's a lot.  I work from home two days a week, and play a lot on weekends, so I've been working my way through.  I'm still on my 3rd pass, because this week I've been editing tracks together.  Each version of "Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon" for example is seven separate tracks.  "It Better End Soon" is always five separate tracks.  The piano intro to "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?" is always separate from the song (probably because it was that way on the original release).  So I'm using Audacity to fix everything, but the tracks come with "dead air" at the beginning and end which is annoying as fuck because you can't just append the tracks; you have to edit out the 0.2-second gap each time.  Anyway, I'm halfway through.  The first four shows are done.  I need to finish by Friday night because I'm hitting the road Saturday for Michigan and need to have everything loaded on a USB drive for listening in the car.

I guess that would be one big advantage to buying the CDs.  They'll just play through without the stupid gaps.  I've seen ripping software that does entire discs at a time, and it would probably be easier to rip full discs and cut them into separate songs than splicing at the separate tracks together like I've been doing.  Oh well.  We makes our choices and we lives with them.  Now that I've shelled out for the mp3's, I'm not going to also buy the CDs, no matter how tempting all that glorious packaging is.  (They recreated the posters and picture book and included a new write-up in the booklet, but really, I can't justify over $200 for that and a little convenience.)

Need to find a used copy. Didn't realize what these are going for. This is in King Crimson Deluxe territory. Total musical treasure.

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #451 on: August 06, 2023, 09:30:07 PM »
When it first came out, Rhino had it for like $120, about a third of what Amazon is currently charging for it ($350), but it's been out of stock forever.  I wasn't sure about getting the whole thing, and then by time reviews were coming in, Rhino was out of them and Amazon was the only way.  I wanted to trust Rhino, and in this case I should have, but I've heard stories.

Offline ytserush

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #452 on: August 19, 2023, 08:14:44 PM »
When it first came out, Rhino had it for like $120, about a third of what Amazon is currently charging for it ($350), but it's been out of stock forever.  I wasn't sure about getting the whole thing, and then by time reviews were coming in, Rhino was out of them and Amazon was the only way.  I wanted to trust Rhino, and in this case I should have, but I've heard stories.

I'd have no trouble dropping $120 on this. Maybe they'll reissue it one day.

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Re: The Chicago Discography
« Reply #453 on: August 19, 2023, 10:13:41 PM »
I should've just jumped on it when I had the chance.