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Chicago is among the Top Ten best selling American rock bands of all time. Since their debut in 1969, the band has generated an excessive amount of hits with their trademark use of horns. Despite the lack of appreciation by rock music critics, the band’s loyal fans have carried their existence to the modern era.

The band formed in 1967 when three friends from DePaul University, Walter Parazaider (saxophone), James Pankow (trombone), and Lee Loughane (trumpet) were performing at a club and met guitarist Terry Kath and drummer Danny Seraphine. Parazaider, eager to s Continued...

tart a band, held a meeting inviting organist and vocalist Robert Lamm to join the project. Bassist Peter Cetera became a member shortly afterward officially forming professional cover band The Big Thing. Performing hits by James Brown and Wilson Pickett, the band felt the need to create original material in order to further their career. Friend James William Guercio, a staff producer at Columbia Records, soon became their manager and encouraged them to move to Los Angeles, California where they eventually signed a record contract.

Guercio proved to have a great influence on the band urging them to change their name to Chicago Transit Authority. Their debut self-titled double album was released in April 1969, while the band immediately embarked on a national tour. Within a few months, the album head become an underground sensation as it was receiving heavy airplay on FM rock radio stations. By the end of the year the album had sold more than two million albums. In the meantime, Guercio was contacted by the actual Chicago Transit Authority who demanded that the group alter their name. From that point onwards the band was to be known simply as Chicago. Their follow-up, Chicago (also known as Chicago II), was issued a year later and was also a double album. This breakthrough record featured the thirteen minute suite “Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon” which generated the first Top Ten hit “Make Me Smile”. The single “25 or 6 to 4” followed, also becoming a Top Ten success. While the album was on its way to attaining platinum status, the single “Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?” off of their debut was released becoming their third successive Top Ten.

Their third double album, Chicago III was released in 1971 yet its singles failed to reach the Top Ten causing Columbia to issue “Beginnings” from the first album and the second half of the suite derived from the second album, “Colour My World” which sparked a hit. Their premier live album Chicago at Carnegie Hall, which consisted of four volumes of live performances, became the best selling box set by a rock band for fifteen years. Chicago V followed in 1972, becoming a number one hit both on the Billboard Pop and Jazz album charts owing some of its success to the hit favorite “Saturday in the Park”. The band continued to produce Top Ten singles and albums consecutively for several years. Noteworthy tracks include “Feelin’ Stronger Every Day” and “Just You ‘n’ Me” (Chicago VI), “Wishing You Were Here” from Chicago” and “(I’ve Been) Searchin’ So Long” (Chicago VII), and “Old Days” (Chicago VIII).

Chicago IX: Chicago’s Greatest Hits proved to be a profitable pursuit as it peaked at number one and remained on the charts for 72 weeks. Chicago X was released shortly afterward in 1976. Despite its low charting presence, the album received much praise due to the Grammy Award winning number one single “If You Leave Me Now”. The group continued to bask in their splendor as Chicago XI sold a million copies with its Top Five hit “Baby What a Big Surprise”.

The band faced serious impediments in 1978 beginning with the bitter split from their manager Guercio. Shortly afterward on January 23, 1978, singer and guitarist Terry Kath, a gun enthusiast, accidentally shot and killed himself. After spending a year to recuperate from the tragic incident, the group recorded Hot Streets with Donnie Dacus as Kath’s replacement. This album was the first without a Roman numeral and marked a significant change in the less acclaimed direction toward pop songs and ballads. Following the lackluster performance of Chicago 13 which failed to place in the Top 20, Dacus left the band and was replaced by Chris Pinnick. The albums, Chicago XIV and Greatest Hits, Vol 2 succeeded with great disappointment leading the band to depart from Columbia Records.

The first album with Warner Brothers, Chicago 16 in June 1982, proved to be quite the success as the hit single “Hard To Say I’m Sorry/Get Away” topped the charts. Chicago 17, released two years later, was certified 6x platinum becoming their biggest selling album. It featured the Top Ten singles “You’re The One Inspiration” and “Hard Habit To Break”. The album was also Cetera’s last as left the band in 1985 to focus on his solo career. Cetera was replaced by Jason Scheff and Chicago 18 was released a little while later. Despite the success of the single “Will You Still Love Me?”, the album only went gold. Things improved with Chicago 19 as it quickly went platinum with hits songs “I Don’t Want to Live Without Your Love”, “Look Away”, and “You’re Not Alone”. The single “What Kind of Man Would I Be?” was originally to be featured on Chicago 19, yet was later released on Greatest Hits 1982 – 1989.

The 1990s brought about several changes as drummer Tris Imboden replaced Danny Seraphine and Keith Howland replaced Dawayne Bailey. The album sales had significantly decreased, yet the band was able to maintain a devoted fan base while continuing to tour throughout the years. The band did not release any new studio material after Night & Day Big Band in 1995 until Chicago XXX in March 2006.