Chicago Transit Authority (band)
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Chicago is an American
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...
band formed in
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
, Illinois, in 1967. Self-described as a "
rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...
band with
horns Horns or The Horns may refer to: * Plural of Horn (anatomy) * Plural of Horn (instrument), a group of musical instruments all with a horn-shaped bells * The Horns (Colorado), a summit on Cheyenne Mountain * Horns (novel), ''Horns'' (novel), a dar ...
," their songs often also combine elements of
classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...
,
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
, R&B, and
pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom.S. Frith, W. Straw, and J. Street, eds, ''iarchive:cambridgecompani00frit, The Cambridge Companion to Pop ...
. Growing out of several bands from the Chicago area in the late 1960s, the original line-up consisted of
Peter Cetera Peter Paul Cetera Jr. ( ; born September 13, 1944) is a retired American musician best known for being a frontman, vocalist, and bassist for the American rock band Chicago from 1967 until his departure in 1985. His career as a recording artist ...
on bass,
Terry Kath Terry Alan Kath (January 31, 1946 – January 23, 1978) was an American guitarist and singer who is best known as a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He played lead guitar and sang lead vocals on many of the band's early hit singl ...
on guitar,
Robert Lamm Robert William Lamm (born October 13, 1944) is an American musician and a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He is best known for his songwriting, vocals, and keyboard melodies, most significantly on the band's debut studio album, ''Chic ...
on keyboards,
Lee Loughnane Lee David Loughnane (pronounced LOCK-nain; born October 21, 1946) is an American trumpeter, flugelhorn player, vocalist, and songwriter who is a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He is best known for being one-third of Chicago's brass/wo ...
on trumpet,
James Pankow James Carter Pankow (born August 20, 1947) is an American trombone player, songwriter, and brass instrument arranger who is a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He is best known for his brass arrangements, and for being one-third of Chi ...
on trombone,
Walter Parazaider Walter Parazaider (born March 14, 1945) is an American woodwind musician who is a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He is best known for being one-third of Chicago's brass/woodwind section alongside Lee Loughnane and James Pankow. Para ...
on
woodwinds Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and re ...
, and
Danny Seraphine Daniel Peter Seraphine (born August 28, 1948) is an American drummer, record producer, theatrical producer, and film producer. He is best known as the original drummer and a founding member of the rock band Chicago, a tenure which lasted from ...
on drums. Cetera, Kath, and Lamm shared lead vocal duties. The group initially called themselves the Big Thing, then changed to the Chicago Transit Authority in 1968, and finally shortened the name to Chicago in 1969.
Laudir de Oliveira Laudir Soares de Oliveira (6 January 1940 – 17 September 2017) was a Brazilian musician and producer mostly renowned for his time as percussionist with the band Chicago. Career Oliveira grew up in Rio de Janeiro, and started working profession ...
joined the band as a percussionist and second drummer in 1974. Kath died in 1978 and was replaced by several guitarists in succession.
Bill Champlin William Bradford Champlin (born May 21, 1947) is an American singer, keyboardist, guitarist and songwriter. He formed the band Sons of Champlin in 1965, which still performs today, and was a member of the rock band Chicago (band), Chicago from 1 ...
joined in 1981, providing vocals, keyboards, and rhythm guitar. Cetera left the band in 1985 and was replaced by
Jason Scheff Jason Randolph Scheff (born April 16, 1962) is an American bassist, singer, and songwriter who was a frontman for the American rock band Chicago (band), Chicago from 1985 to 2016. Replacing former lead vocalist Peter Cetera, Scheff was the longe ...
. Seraphine left in 1990 and was replaced by
Tris Imboden Gregory Tristan "Tris" Imboden (born July 27, 1951) is an American rock and jazz drummer. As a performer, he has been in studio sessions and on tour with some of the most notable and highest-selling musicians of all time. He was the drummer fo ...
. Although the band's lineup has been more fluid since 2009, Lamm, Loughnane, and Pankow have remained constant members. Parazaider "officially retired" in 2017. In 2021, he revealed he had been diagnosed with
Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...
. In September 2008, ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
'' ranked Chicago at number thirteen in a list of the top 100 artists of all time for
Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), o ...
singles chart success, and ranked them at number fifteen on that same list in October 2015. ''Billboard'' also ranked Chicago ninth on the list of the 100 greatest artists of all time in terms of ''Billboard'' 200 album chart success in October 2015. Chicago is one of the longest-running and most successful rock groups, and one of the world's best-selling groups of all time, having sold more than 100 million records. In 1971, Chicago was the first rock act to sell out
Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...
for a week. Chicago is also considered a pioneer in rock music marketing, featuring a recognizable logo on album covers, and sequentially naming their albums using Roman numerals. In terms of chart success, Chicago is one of the most successful American bands in
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA) and ''Billboard'' history (second only to
the Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their f ...
), and are one of the most successful
popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fun ...
acts of all time. To date, Chicago has sold over 40 million units in the U.S., with 23
gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...
, 18
platinum Platinum is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a density, dense, malleable, ductility, ductile, highly unreactive, precious metal, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name origina ...
, and eight multi-platinum albums. They had five consecutive number-one albums on the ''Billboard'' 200, 20 top-ten singles on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and in 1974 the group had seven albums, its entire catalog at the time, on the ''Billboard'' 200 simultaneously. The group has received ten
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
nominations, winning one for the song " If You Leave Me Now". The group's first album, ''
Chicago Transit Authority The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) is the operator of public transport, mass transit in Chicago, Illinois, United States, and some of its suburbs, including the trains of the Chicago "L" and List of Chicago Transit Authority bus routes, CTA bu ...
'', released in 1969, was inducted into the
Grammy Hall of Fame The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...
in 2014. The original line-up of Chicago was inducted into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...
in 2016. In 2017, Cetera, Lamm, and Pankow were elected to the
Songwriters Hall of Fame The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work represent and maintain the heri ...
. Chicago received a
Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award The Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award is a special Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achiev ...
on October 16, 2020.


Group history


The Big Thing

The group now known as Chicago began on February 15, 1967, at a meeting involving saxophonist
Walter Parazaider Walter Parazaider (born March 14, 1945) is an American woodwind musician who is a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He is best known for being one-third of Chicago's brass/woodwind section alongside Lee Loughnane and James Pankow. Para ...
, guitarist
Terry Kath Terry Alan Kath (January 31, 1946 – January 23, 1978) was an American guitarist and singer who is best known as a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He played lead guitar and sang lead vocals on many of the band's early hit singl ...
, drummer
Danny Seraphine Daniel Peter Seraphine (born August 28, 1948) is an American drummer, record producer, theatrical producer, and film producer. He is best known as the original drummer and a founding member of the rock band Chicago, a tenure which lasted from ...
, trombonist
James Pankow James Carter Pankow (born August 20, 1947) is an American trombone player, songwriter, and brass instrument arranger who is a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He is best known for his brass arrangements, and for being one-third of Chi ...
, trumpet player
Lee Loughnane Lee David Loughnane (pronounced LOCK-nain; born October 21, 1946) is an American trumpeter, flugelhorn player, vocalist, and songwriter who is a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He is best known for being one-third of Chicago's brass/wo ...
, and keyboardist/singer
Robert Lamm Robert William Lamm (born October 13, 1944) is an American musician and a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He is best known for his songwriting, vocals, and keyboard melodies, most significantly on the band's debut studio album, ''Chic ...
. Kath, Parazaider, and Seraphine had played together previously in two other groups—Jimmy Ford and the Executives, and the Missing Links. Parazaider had met Pankow and Loughnane when they were all students at
DePaul University DePaul University is a private university, private Catholic higher education, Catholic research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded by the Congregation of the Mission, Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from ...
. Lamm, a student at
Roosevelt University Roosevelt University is a private university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1945, the university was named in honor of United States President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. The university enrolls arou ...
, was recruited from his group, Bobby Charles and the Wanderers. The group of six called themselves the Big Thing, and like most other groups playing in Chicago nightclubs, played Top 40 hits. Realizing the need for both a
tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...
to complement
baritone A baritone is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the bass (voice type), bass and the tenor voice type, voice-types. It is the most common male voice. The term originates from the ...
s Lamm and Kath, and a bass player because Lamm's use of organ bass pedals did not provide "adequate bass sound", local tenor and bassist
Peter Cetera Peter Paul Cetera Jr. ( ; born September 13, 1944) is a retired American musician best known for being a frontman, vocalist, and bassist for the American rock band Chicago from 1967 until his departure in 1985. His career as a recording artist ...
was invited to join the Big Thing in late 1967.


Chicago Transit Authority and early success

While gaining some success as a cover band, the group began working on original songs. In June 1968, at manager
James William Guercio James William Guercio (born July 18, 1945) is an American music producer, musician, songwriter and director. He is best known for his work as the producer of Chicago's first eleven studio albums. He also produced the early recordings of The Buckin ...
's request, the Big Thing moved to
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
,
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
, where they signed with
Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...
and changed their name to Chicago Transit Authority. While performing on a regular basis at the
Whisky a Go Go The Whisky a Go Go (informally nicknamed The Whisky) is a historic nightclub in West Hollywood, California, United States. It is located at 8901 Sunset Boulevard on the Sunset Strip, corner North Clark Street, opposite North San Vicente Boulev ...
nightclub in
West Hollywood West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. History Most historical writings about West Hollywood be ...
, the band got exposure to more famous musical artists of the time, subsequently opening for
Janis Joplin Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) was an American singer and songwriter. One of the most iconic and successful Rock music, rock performers of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals and her "electric" ...
and
Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...
. Group biographer William James Ruhlmann recorded Walt Parazaider as saying that Jimi Hendrix once told him: Jeez, your horn players are like one set of lungs and your guitar player is better than me. Their first record (April 1969), ''
Chicago Transit Authority The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) is the operator of public transport, mass transit in Chicago, Illinois, United States, and some of its suburbs, including the trains of the Chicago "L" and List of Chicago Transit Authority bus routes, CTA bu ...
'', is a double album, a rarity for a band's initial studio release. The album made it to No. 17 on the ''Billboard'' 200 album chart, sold over one million copies by 1970, and was awarded a
platinum disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...
. The album included a number of pop-rock songs – " Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?", "
Beginnings Beginnings may refer to: Literature * ''Beginnings'' (collection), a 1988 collection of short stories and poems by Gordon R. Dickson * ''Beginnings'' (Honorverse), a 2013 collection of short stories in the Worlds of Honor series * ''Beginnings ...
", "
Questions 67 and 68 "Questions 67 and 68" is a 1969 song written by Robert Lamm for the rock band Chicago (then known as Chicago Transit Authority) and recorded for their debut album ''Chicago Transit Authority''. It was their first single release. Peter Cetera is th ...
", and " I'm a Man" – which were later released as singles. For this inaugural recording effort the group was nominated for a
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
for 1969 Best New Artist of the Year. In 2025, the Library of Congress selected ''Chicago Transit Authority'' for inclusion as an album in the National Recording Registry. According to Cetera, the band was booked to perform at
Woodstock The Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held from August 15 to 18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. Billed as "a ...
in 1969, but promoter Bill Graham, with whom they had a contract, exercised his right to reschedule them to play at the
Fillmore West The Fillmore West was a historic rock and roll music venue in San Francisco, California, US which became famous under the direction of concert promoter Bill Graham from 1968 to 1971. Named after The Fillmore at the intersection of Fillmore ...
on a date of his choosing, and he scheduled them for the Woodstock dates.
Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer * Sailboat designs by W. D. Schock Corp ** Santana 20 ** Santan ...
, which Graham also managed, took Chicago's place at Woodstock, and that performance is considered to be Santana's "breakthrough" gig. A year later, when he needed to replace headliner Joe Cocker, and then Cocker's intended replacement, Jimi Hendrix, Graham booked Chicago to perform at
Tanglewood Tanglewood is a music venue and Music festival, festival in the towns of Lenox, Massachusetts, Lenox and Stockbridge, Massachusetts, Stockbridge in the Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts. It has been the summer home of the Boston Symphony ...
, which has been called a "pinnacle" performance by Concert Vault. After the release of their first album, the band's name was shortened to Chicago to avoid legal action being threatened by the actual mass-transit company of the same name.


1970s: ''Chicago''

In 1970, less than a year after its first album, the band released a second album, titled ''
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
'' (retroactively known as ''Chicago II''), which is another double-LP. The album's centerpiece track is a seven-part, 13-minute suite composed by Pankow called "
Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon "Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon" , also known as "The Ballet" and "Make Me Smile Medley", is a nearly thirteen-minute mini-rock opera/song cycle/suite from Chicago's 1970 album ''Chicago'' (also called ''Chicago II''). It was the group's first atte ...
". The suite yielded two top ten hits: " Make Me Smile" (No. 9 U.S.) and " Colour My World", both sung by Kath. Among the other tracks on the album: Lamm's dynamic but cryptic " 25 or 6 to 4" (Chicago's first Top 5 hit), which is a reference to a songwriter trying to write at 25 or 26 minutes before 4 o'clock in the morning, and was sung by Cetera with
Terry Kath Terry Alan Kath (January 31, 1946 – January 23, 1978) was an American guitarist and singer who is best known as a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He played lead guitar and sang lead vocals on many of the band's early hit singl ...
on guitar; the lengthy war-protest song "It Better End Soon"; and, at the end, Cetera's 1969 Moon landing-inspired " Where Do We Go from Here?" The double-LP album's inner cover includes the playlist, the entire lyrics to "It Better End Soon", and two declarations: "This endeavor should be experienced sequentially", and, "With this album, we dedicate ourselves, our futures and our energies to the people of the revolution. And the revolution in all of its forms." The album was a commercial success, rising to number four on the ''Billboard'' 200, and was certified gold by the
Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
in 1970, and platinum in 1991. The band was nominated for two Grammy Awards as a result of this album, Album of the Year and Best Contemporary Vocal Performance by a Duo, Group or Chorus. '' Chicago III'', another double LP, was released in 1971 and charted at No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' 200. Two singles were released from it: " Free" from Lamm's "Travel Suite", which charted at No. 20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100; and " Lowdown", written by Cetera and Seraphine, which made it to No. 35. The album was certified gold by the RIAA in February 1971, and platinum in November 1986. The band released LPs at a rate of at least one album per year from their third album in 1971 on through the 1970s. During this period, the group's album titles primarily consisted of the band's name followed by a
Roman numeral Roman numerals are a numeral system that originated in ancient Rome and remained the usual way of writing numbers throughout Europe well into the Late Middle Ages. Numbers are written with combinations of letters from the Latin alphabet, ea ...
, indicating the album's sequence in their canon. The exceptions to this scheme were the band's fourth album, a live
boxed set A boxed set or (its US name) box set is a set of items (for example, a compilation of books, musical recordings, films or television programs) traditionally packaged in a box, hence 'boxed', and offered for sale as a single unit. Music Artists ...
entitled ''
Chicago at Carnegie Hall ''Chicago at Carnegie Hall'' (also known as ''Chicago IV'') is the first live album, and fourth album overall, by American band Chicago. It was initially released on October 25, 1971 by Columbia Records as a four- LP vinyl box set, and was also ...
'', their twelfth album '' Hot Streets'', and the Arabic-numbered '' Chicago 13''. While the live album itself did not bear a number, the four discs within the set were numbered Volumes I through IV. In 1971, the band released ''
Chicago at Carnegie Hall ''Chicago at Carnegie Hall'' (also known as ''Chicago IV'') is the first live album, and fourth album overall, by American band Chicago. It was initially released on October 25, 1971 by Columbia Records as a four- LP vinyl box set, and was also ...
Volumes I, II, III, and IV'', a quadruple LP, consisting of live performances, mostly of music from their first three albums, from a week-long run at
Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...
. Chicago was the first rock act to sell out a week at Carnegie Hall and the live recording was made to chronicle that milestone. Along with the four vinyl discs, the packaging contained some strident political messaging about how "We outhcan change the System", including wall posters and voter registration information. The album went gold "out of the box" and on to multi-platinum status. William James Ruhlmann says ''Chicago at Carnegie Hall'' was "perhaps" the best-selling box set by a rock act and held that record for 15 years. In recognition of setting Carnegie Hall records and the ensuing four-LP live recordings, the group was awarded a ''Billboard'' 1972 Trendsetter Award. Drummer Danny Seraphine attributes the fact that none of Chicago's first four albums were issued on single LPs to the productive creativity of this period and the length of the jazz-rock pieces. In 1972, the band released its first single-disc release, ''
Chicago V ''Chicago V'' is the fourth studio album by the American rock band Chicago. It was released on July 10, 1972, by Columbia Records. It is the group's first single album release, after having released three consecutive double albums and a four-d ...
'', which reached No. 1 on both the ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
'' pop and jazz album charts. It features " Saturday in the Park", written by Robert Lamm, which mixes everyday life and political yearning in a more subtle way. It peaked at No. 3 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in early 1972. The second single released from the album was the Lamm-composed " Dialogue (Part I & II)", which featured a musical "debate" between a political activist (sung by Kath) and a blasé college student (sung by Cetera). It peaked at No. 24 on the Hot 100 chart. Other albums and singles followed in each of the succeeding years. 1973's '' Chicago VI'' was the first of several albums to include Brazilian jazz percussionist
Laudir de Oliveira Laudir Soares de Oliveira (6 January 1940 – 17 September 2017) was a Brazilian musician and producer mostly renowned for his time as percussionist with the band Chicago. Career Oliveira grew up in Rio de Janeiro, and started working profession ...
and saw Cetera emerge as the main lead singer. According to William James Ruhlmann, de Oliveira was a "sideman" on ''Chicago VI'' and became an official member of the group in 1974. ''Chicago VI'' featured two top ten singles, "
Just You 'n' Me "Just You 'n' Me" is a song written by James Pankow for the group Chicago (band), Chicago and recorded for their fifth studio album ''Chicago VI'' (1973). The lead vocals are sung by bassist Peter Cetera. Background The second single released fr ...
", written by Pankow, and " Feelin' Stronger Every Day", written by Pankow and Cetera. ''
Chicago VII ''Chicago VII'' is the sixth studio album by American Rock music, rock band Chicago (band), Chicago. It was released on March 11, 1974 by Columbia Records. It is notable for being their first double album of new material since 1971's ''Chicago ...
'' was the band's double-disc 1974 release. Three singles were released from this album: " (I've Been) Searchin' So Long", written by Pankow, and " Call On Me", written by Loughnane, which both made it into the top ten; and
the Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their f ...
-infused "
Wishing You Were Here "Wishing You Were Here" is a song written by Peter Cetera for the group Chicago (band), Chicago and recorded for their album ''Chicago VII'' (1974), with lead vocals by Terry Kath (uncredited on the original album package), while Cetera sang the ...
", written by Cetera, which peaked at number eleven. Writing for ''Billboard'' magazine,
Joel Whitburn Joel Carver Whitburn (November 29, 1939 – June 14, 2022) was an American author and music historian, responsible for setting up the Record Research, Inc. series of books on record chart placings. Early life Joel Carver Whitburn was born in W ...
reported in October 1974 that the group had seven albums, its entire catalog at the time, on the ''Billboard'' 200 simultaneously, placing them seventh in a list of artists in that category. Their 1975 release, '' Chicago VIII'', featured the political allegory "
Harry Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. As the 34th vice president in 1945, he assumed the presidency upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt that year. Subsequen ...
" (No. 13, Top 100 chart) and the nostalgic Pankow-composed " Old Days" (No. 5, Top 100 chart). That summer also saw a joint tour across America with the Beach Boys, with the two acts performing separately, then coming together for a finale. ''Chicago VI'', ''VII'', and ''VIII'' all made it to No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' 200, all were certified gold the years they were released, and all have since been certified platinum. ''Chicago VI'' was certified two times multi-platinum in 1986. '' Chicago IX: Chicago's Greatest Hits'' was released in 1975 and became the band's fifth consecutive No. 1 album on the ''Billboard'' 200''.'' 1976's '' Chicago X'' features Cetera's ballad " If You Leave Me Now", which held the top spot in the U.S. charts for two weeks and the UK charts for three weeks. It was the group's first No. 1 single, and won Chicago their only
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
to date, the 1976 Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo, Group or Chorus, at the
19th Annual Grammy Awards The 19th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 19, 1977, and were broadcast live on American television (CBS). It was the seventh and final year Andy Williams hosted the telecast. The ceremony recognized accomplishments by musicians from th ...
held on February 19, 1977. The single was certified gold by the RIAA the same year of its release. The song almost did not make the cut for the album. "If You Leave Me Now" was recorded at the last minute. The success of the song, according to William James Ruhlmann, foreshadowed a later reliance on ballads. The album reached No. 3 on the ''Billboard'' 200, was certified both gold and platinum by the RIAA the same year of its release and two times multi-platinum since, and was also nominated for the
Grammy Award for Album of the Year The Grammy Award for Album of the Year is an award presented by the The Recording Academy, National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the r ...
. 1976 was the first year that albums were certified platinum by the RIAA. In honor of the group's platinum album achievement, Columbia Records that year awarded the group a 25-pound bar of pure platinum, made by Cartier. (''Billboard'' magazine reported it as a 30-pound bar.) At the 4th Annual American Music Awards, a fan-voted awards show, held January 31, 1977, Chicago won the award for Favorite Pop/Rock Band/Duo/Group, the group's first of two American Music Awards they have received. The group's 1977 release, '' Chicago XI'', includes Cetera's ballad " Baby, What a Big Surprise", a No. 4 U.S. hit which became the group's last top 10 hit of the decade. ''Chicago XI'' performed well commercially, peaking at No. 6 on the ''Billboard'' 200, and reaching platinum status during the year of its release. On October 17, 1977, during the intermission of an
Emerson, Lake & Palmer Emerson, Lake & Palmer (informally known as ELP) were an English progressive rock Supergroup (music), supergroup formed in London in 1970. The band consisted of Keith Emerson (keyboards) of The Nice, Greg Lake (vocals, bass, guitars, producer) ...
concert,
Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...
announced its new Gold Ticket Award, to be given to performers who had brought the venue over 100,000 in unit ticket sales. Because the arena has a seating capacity of about 20,000, this would require a minimum of five sold-out shows there. Chicago was one of at least eleven other acts that were eligible for the award, and weeks later, at its October 28, 1977, Madison Square Garden concert, Chicago was one of the first acts to receive the award for drawing over 180,000 people to the venue in nine sold-out appearances there over the years. ''Cashbox'' reviewer Ken Terry said of the 1977 Madison Square Garden concert, "Chicago ultimately presents itself in the best light with AM-oriented, good-time music. Its fans are not looking for complicated, introverted songs; they want music to drive to, dance to and work to." Besides recording and touring, during the busy 1970s, Chicago also made time for a movie appearance and several television appearances of note. In 1972, Guercio produced and directed '' Electra Glide in Blue'', a film about an
Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...
motorcycle policeman. Released in 1973, the film stars Robert Blake and features Cetera, Kath, Loughnane, and Parazaider in supporting roles. The group also appears prominently on the film's
soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...
. Chicago made its "television variety debut" in February 1973 when they were the only rock musicians invited to appear on a television special honoring
Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous Big band, jazz orchestra from 1924 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D ...
, ''Duke Ellington... We Love You Madly'', which aired on
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
. They performed the Ellington composition, "Jump for Joy". In July 1973, the group starred in a half-hour television special produced by
Dick Clark Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American television and radio personality and television producer who hosted ''American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 1989. He also hosted five incarnations of the Pyramid (game show), ...
, ''Chicago in the Rockies'', which aired in
prime time Prime time, or peak time, is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for television shows. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...
on
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
. The show was filmed on location at
Caribou Ranch Caribou Ranch was a recording studio built by producer James William Guercio in 1972 in a converted barn on ranch property in the Rocky Mountains near Nederland, Colorado, on the road that leads to the ghost town of Caribou. The studio was in op ...
, the 3,000-acre ranch-turned-recording studio located outside of
Boulder, Colorado Boulder is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city in Boulder County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 108,250 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the most ...
, owned by Chicago's producer, James William Guercio. The only musical guest on the show was
Al Green Albert Leornes Greene (born April 13, 1946), known professionally as Al Green, is an American singer, songwriter, pastor and record producer. He is best known for recording a series of soul hit singles in the early 1970s, including " Tired of ...
, who was rated the number-one male vocalist of 1972, and whom ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'' magazine named "Rock and Roll Star of the Year". That special was followed by a second hour-long special the next year, ''Chicago ... Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch'', which aired in prime time on ABC in August 1974. ''Chicago ... Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch'' was again shot on location at Caribou Ranch and was again produced by Dick Clark. Singer
Anne Murray Morna Anne Murray (born June 20, 1945) is a retired Canadian country, pop and adult contemporary music singer who has sold over 55 million album copies worldwide during her over 40-year career. Murray has won four Grammys including the Grammy ...
and country music star
Charlie Rich Charles Allan Rich (December 14, 1932July 25, 1995) was an American country singer. His eclectic style of music also blended influences from rockabilly, jazz, blues, soul, and gospel. In the later part of his life, Rich acquired the nickname t ...
were guests on the show. Clark produced a third television special starring Chicago, '' Chicago's New Year's Rockin' Eve 1975'', which aired on ABC on December 31, 1974. Musical guests on the -hour-long show included
the Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their f ...
,
the Doobie Brothers The Doobie Brothers are an American rock band formed in San Jose, California in 1970. Known for their flexibility in performing across numerous genres and their vocal harmonies, the band has been active for over five decades, with their greate ...
,
Olivia Newton-John Dame Olivia Newton-John (26 September 1948 – 8 August 2022) was a British and Australian singer and actress. With over 100 million records sold, Newton-John was one of the List of best-selling music artists#100 million to 119 million record ...
, and
Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz musician, bandleader, and composer. He started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. Hancock soon joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he helped to redefine the role of ...
. It was the third ''Rockin' Eve'' Clark had produced, and it competed with
Guy Lombardo Gaetano Alberto "Guy" Lombardo (June 19, 1902 – November 5, 1977) was a Canadian and American bandleader, violinist, and hydroplane racing, hydroplane racer whose unique "sweet jazz" style remained popular with audiences for nearly five decade ...
's traditional
New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve refers to the evening, or commonly the entire day, of the last day of the year, 31 December, also known as Old Year's Day. In many countries, New Year's Eve is celebrated with dancing, eating, drinkin ...
television show which aired on a different network and was in its 45th consecutive year of broadcast. Clark hoped the ''Rockin' Eve'' format would become an "annual TV custom".


Death of Terry Kath and transition

The year 1978 began with a split with Guercio. Chicago had recorded its last five studio albums ''Chicago VI'', ''VII'', ''VIII'', ''X'', and ''XI,'' and had made two television specials at Guercio's Caribou Ranch. In later years, band members cited Guercio's purchase of Caribou Ranch, more particularly their realization that Guercio had enough money to purchase Caribou Ranch, as a contributing factor to their disillusionment with him as a producer. They felt he had taken advantage of them financially. Then on January 23 of that same year, Kath died of an accidental, self-inflicted gunshot wound from a gun he thought was unloaded.
Doc Severinsen Carl Hilding "Doc" Severinsen (born July 7, 1927) is an American retired jazz trumpeter who led the NBC Orchestra on ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson''. Early life Severinsen was born in Arlington, Oregon, to Minnie Mae (1897–1998) ...
, who was the bandleader for ''
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show was the third installment of ''The Tonight Show''. Hosted by Johnny Carson, it aired from October 1, 1962 to May 22, 1992, replacing ''T ...
'' at the time and a friend of the group, visited them after Kath's funeral and encouraged them to continue. According to writer Jim Jerome, the visit "snapped them back" and helped them make the decision to carry on.Jerome, Jim (October 16, 1978)
"Chicago's 'Alive Again
. ''
People Weekly ''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''People'' had the la ...
''. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
After auditioning over 30 potential replacements for Kath, Chicago decided upon guitarist and singer-songwriter
Donnie Dacus James O. "Donnie" Dacus (born October 12, 1951) is an American guitarist, vocalist, actor, songwriter, and producer. He has been a member of the rock bands Chicago and Badfinger. Early life Dacus grew up in Cleburne, Texas. By the age of 14, he ...
. While filming for the musical ''
Hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and ...
'', he joined the band in April 1978 just in time to record the '' Hot Streets'' album. Its energetic lead-off single, " Alive Again", brought Chicago back to the Top 15; Pankow wrote it "originally as a love song but ultimately as recognition of Kath's guiding spirit shining down from above". The 1978 album ''Hot Streets'' was produced by
Phil Ramone Philip Rabinowitz (January 5, 1934March 30, 2013), better known as Phil Ramone, was a South African-born American recording engineer, record producer, violinist and composer, and co-founder of A & R recording studio. Its success led to expansion ...
. It was Chicago's first album with a title rather than a number; and was the band's first LP to have a picture of the band (shot by photographer
Norman Seeff Norman Seeff (born 5 March 1939) is a South African photographer and filmmaker. Since moving to the United States in 1969, his work has been focused on the exploration of human creativity and the inner dynamics of the creative process. Early l ...
) featured prominently on the cover (with the ubiquitous logo downsized). These two moves were seen by many as indications that the band had changed following Kath's death. To a degree, the band returned to the old naming scheme on its subsequent releases, although most titles now bore
Arabic numerals The ten Arabic numerals (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9) are the most commonly used symbols for writing numbers. The term often also implies a positional notation number with a decimal base, in particular when contrasted with Roman numera ...
rather than Roman numerals. ''Hot Streets'', the band's 12th album, peaked at No. 12 on the ''Billboard'' charts; it was Chicago's first release since their debut to fail to make the Top 10. According to Jeff Giles, "Although Chicago quickly soldiered on fter Kath's death releasing their ''Hot Streets'' album with new guitarist Donnie Dacus that October, it was impossible not to notice the loss of momentum." The release also marked a move somewhat away from the jazz-rock direction favored by Kath and towards more pop songs and ballads. Dacus stayed with the band through the 1979 album '' Chicago 13'', and is also featured in a promotional video on the DVD included in the
Rhino Records A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant taxon, extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family (biology), famil ...
Chicago box set from 2003. Again produced by Ramone, it was the group's first studio album not to contain a Top 40 hit. Dacus departed from the band following the conclusion of the concert tour in support of ''Chicago 13'', in 1980.


1980s: changing sound

''
Chicago XIV ''Chicago XIV'' is the twelfth studio album by American rock band Chicago, released on July 21, 1980. Recorded at a time of waning interest in the band, ''Chicago XIV'' remains one of Chicago's poorest-selling albums, failing to reach Gold certi ...
'' (1980), produced by
Tom Dowd Thomas John Dowd (October 20, 1925 – October 27, 2002) was an American recording engineer and producer for Atlantic Records. He was credited with innovating the multitrack recording method. Dowd worked on a veritable "who's who" of recordings ...
, relegated the horn section to the background on a number of tracks, and the album's two singles failed to make the Top 40.
Chris Pinnick Chris Pinnick (born July 23, 1953) is an American guitarist and songwriter, probably best known for his work with the band Chicago from 1980 to 1985. Pinnick was born on July 23, 1953, in Van Nuys, California, and took up the guitar at the age ...
joined the band to play guitar and remained through 1985, and the band were also augmented by saxophone player
Marty Grebb Martin Joseph Grebb (September 2, 1945 – January 1, 2020) was an American keyboardist, guitarist, and saxophonist. A member of The Buckinghams in the late 1960s, Grebb was also a record producer and an arranger, who worked with musicians inc ...
on the subsequent tour. Marty Grebb had formerly been with
the Buckinghams The Buckinghams are an American pop band from Chicago. They formed in 1966 and went on to become one of the top-selling acts of 1967, charting their only five top 40 hits in the U.S. that year. The band dissolved in 1970, but re-formed in 1980 ...
, and before that had been Cetera's bandmate in a local Chicago area cover band called the Exceptions. The album peaked at No. 71 on the ''Billboard'' 200, and failed to reach gold certification by the RIAA. Believing the band to no longer be commercially viable, Columbia Records dropped them from its roster in 1981 and released a second greatest hits volume (counted as ''Chicago XV'' in the album chronology) later that year to fulfill its contractual obligation. In late 1981, the band had new management, a new producer (
David Foster David Walter Foster (born November 1, 1949) is a Canadian record producer, composer, arranger, and musician. He has won 16 Grammy Awards from 47 nominations. His career began as a keyboardist for the pop group Skylark in the early 1970s befor ...
), a new label (
Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (known as Warner Bros. Records Inc. until 2019) is an American record label. A subsidiary of Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division ...
), and the addition of keyboardist, guitarist, and singer
Bill Champlin William Bradford Champlin (born May 21, 1947) is an American singer, keyboardist, guitarist and songwriter. He formed the band Sons of Champlin in 1965, which still performs today, and was a member of the rock band Chicago (band), Chicago from 1 ...
( Sons of Champlin). Percussionist Laudir de Oliveira and Marty Grebb departed from the band. During Foster's stewardship, less of an emphasis was placed on the band's horn-based sound, being replaced by lush
power ballads A sentimental ballad is an emotional style of music that often deals with romantic and intimate relationships, and to a lesser extent, loneliness, death, war, drug abuse, politics and religion, usually in a poignant but solemn manner. Ballad ...
, which became Chicago's style during the 1980s. The new sound brought more singles success to the band. For the 1982 album ''
Chicago 16 ''Chicago 16'' is the thirteenth studio album, sixteenth overall by the American rock music, rock band Chicago (band), Chicago, released on June 7, 1982. It is considered their "comeback" album because it was their first album to go platinum si ...
'', the band worked with composers from outside the group for the first time, and Foster brought in studio musicians for some tracks (including the core members of Toto), and used new technology (such as synthesizers) to "update" and streamline the sound, further pushing back the horn section, and in some cases not even using them at all. The band did return to the charts with the Cetera-sung ballad " Hard to Say I'm Sorry/Get Away", which is featured in the soundtrack of the
Daryl Hannah Daryl Hannah (born December 3, 1960) is an American actress and environmental activist. She made her film debut in Brian De Palma's supernatural horror film ''The Fury (1978 film), The Fury'' (1978). She has starred in various films across the ...
film ''
Summer Lovers ''Summer Lovers'' is a 1982 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Randal Kleiser and starring Peter Gallagher, Daryl Hannah, and Valerie Quennessen. It was filmed on location on the island of Santorini, Greece. The or ...
''. Co-written by Cetera and David Foster, "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" was the group's second single to reach No. 1 on the Hot 100 chart and gave them a nomination for the
Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal The Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as t ...
. ''Chicago 16'' reached both gold and platinum status during the year of its release, and went to No. 9 on the ''Billboard'' 200 album chart. 1984's ''
Chicago 17 ''Chicago 17'' is the fourteenth studio album, seventeenth overall by American rock band Chicago, released on May 14, 1984. It was the group's second release for Full Moon/Warner Bros. Records, their second album to be produced by David Foster ...
'' became the biggest selling album in the band's history, certified by the RIAA in 1997 as six times multi-platinum. The album produced two more Top Ten (both No. 3) singles, "
You're the Inspiration "You're the Inspiration" is a song written by Peter Cetera and David Foster for the group Chicago and recorded for their fourteenth studio album '' Chicago 17'' (1984), with Cetera singing lead vocals. The third single released from that album, i ...
", written by Cetera and David Foster, and " Hard Habit to Break", written by 
Steve Kipner Stephen Alan Kipner (born 1950) is an Australian songwriter and record producer. He has produced a number of international hit songs such as Olivia Newton-John's "Physical (Olivia Newton-John song), Physical", Natasha Bedingfield's "These Words ...
 and John Lewis Parker. The single, "Hard Habit to Break", brought two more Grammy Award nominations for the band, for
Record of the Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without re ...
and Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. The album included two other singles: " Stay the Night" (No. 16), another composition by Cetera and Foster; and " Along Comes a Woman" (No. 14), written by Cetera and Mark Goldenberg. Peter's brother, Kenny Cetera, who had provided background vocals on the ''Chicago 17'' album, was brought into the group for the ''17'' tour to add percussion and high harmony vocals. By 1985, the band was embracing the newest medium, the music video channel
MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
, by releasing music videos for four songs. They featured a track titled "Good for Nothing" on the 1985 global activist album, ''
We Are the World "We Are the World" is a charity single recorded by the supergroup USA for Africa in 1985. It was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and produced by Quincy Jones for the album '' We Are the World''. With sales in excess of 20 milli ...
''. As contributors to the album, along with all other artists who were on the album, the band received its last nomination for a Grammy Award, for Album of the Year. At the 13th Annual American Music Awards, held January 27, 1986, Chicago won the award for Favorite Pop/Rock Band/Duo/Group for the second time. It is the last American Music Award the band has received.


Peter Cetera departure and continued success

Concurrently with Chicago's existing career, vocalist Peter Cetera had begun a solo career. He proposed an arrangement with the band where they would take hiatuses after tours to let him focus on solo work (mirroring that of
Phil Collins Philip David Charles Collins (born 30 January 1951) is an English musician, songwriter, record producer and actor. He was the drummer and later became the lead singer of the rock band Genesis (band), Genesis and had a successful solo career, ac ...
and
Genesis Genesis may refer to: Religion * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of humankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Bo ...
), but the band declined. Cetera ultimately left Chicago in the summer of 1985. He soon topped the charts with " Glory of Love" (the theme song of the film ''
The Karate Kid Part II ''The Karate Kid Part II'' is a 1986 American martial arts drama film written by Robert Mark Kamen and directed by John G. Avildsen. It is the second installment in the '' Karate Kid'' franchise and the sequel to the 1984 film ''The Karate Kid' ...
''), and with " The Next Time I Fall" (a duet with
Amy Grant Amy Lee Grant (born November 25, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She began her music career in contemporary Christian music (CCM) before crossing over to pop music in the mid-1980s. Grant has been referred to as "Honorific ...
). Two more songs reached the top ten: a 1988 solo hit called " One Good Woman" (No. 4 U.S.), and a 1989 duet with
Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...
called " After All" (No. 6 U.S.). In 1992, Cetera released his fourth studio album, '' World Falling Down'', which earned him three hits on the Adult Contemporary charts, including the single "Restless Heart". Cetera's former position was filled by bassist and singer-songwriter
Jason Scheff Jason Randolph Scheff (born April 16, 1962) is an American bassist, singer, and songwriter who was a frontman for the American rock band Chicago (band), Chicago from 1985 to 2016. Replacing former lead vocalist Peter Cetera, Scheff was the longe ...
, son of
Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...
's bassist
Jerry Scheff Jerry Obern Scheff (born January 31, 1941) is an American bassist, best known for his work with Elvis Presley from 1969 to 1977 as a member of his TCB Band and on the Doors' '' L.A. Woman''. Biography Scheff grew up in Vallejo, California. After ...
. Guitarist Chris Pinnick also left the group in 1985, prior to the recording of the band's next album. For the final Foster-produced album, '' Chicago 18'', the band filled Pinnick's spot with several session guitarists, none of whom became band members. The album was released on September 29, 1986, and included the No. 3 single " Will You Still Love Me?", and top 20 single " If She Would Have Been Faithful...", in addition to an updated version of " 25 or 6 to 4" with a video that got airplay on MTV. The video won an award for Best Cinematography for Bobby Byrne at the American Video Awards. Soon after the album was recorded, the band hired guitarist
Dawayne Bailey Dawayne Bailey is an American guitarist who has toured and recorded with Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band, Véronique Sanson, and Chicago. Bailey was born and raised in Manhattan, Kansas. While still attending Manhattan High School in Kansas ...
, formerly of
Bob Seger Robert Clark Seger ( ; born May 6, 1945) is a retired American singer, songwriter, and musician. As a locally successful Detroit-area artist, he performed and recorded with the groups Bob Seger and the Last Heard and the Bob Seger System throu ...
'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. For the 1988 release '' Chicago 19'', the band had replaced producer Foster with co-producers
Ron Nevison Ron Nevison is an American record producer and audio engineer. He started his career in the early 1970s as an engineer on '' Quadrophenia'' by the Who and Bad Company's debut album. He eventually became a producer, working with artists includi ...
, who had recently produced two albums for
Heart The heart is a muscular Organ (biology), organ found in humans and other animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels. The heart and blood vessels together make the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrie ...
, and Chas Sanford, who had worked with
Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British singer and songwriter. Known for his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists of all time, having sold ...
and
Stevie Nicks Stephanie Lynn Nicks (born May 26, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter, known for her work with the band Fleetwood Mac and as a solo artist. After starting her career as a duo with her then-boyfriend Lindsey Buckingham, releasing the album ...
. They topped the charts again with the
Diane Warren Diane Eve Warren (born September 7, 1956) is an American songwriter. She has won an Academy Honorary Award, Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, two Golden Globe Awards and three consecutive ''Billboard'' Music Awards for Songwriter of the Year from 19 ...
-composed single " Look Away". It was the third and last Chicago single to reach No. 1 on the Hot 100 chart. The song ultimately was named as the "''Billboard'' Hot 100 No. 1 Song of the Year" for 1989. The album also yielded two more top 10 hits, "
I Don't Wanna Live Without Your Love "I Don't Wanna Live Without Your Love" is a hit song written by Diane Warren and Albert Hammond for the group Chicago (band), Chicago and recorded for their album ''Chicago 19'' (1988), with Bill Champlin singing lead vocals. It is the first Chica ...
" and " You're Not Alone", both with Champlin singing lead vocals, and the Scheff-sung No. 55 single, "We Can Last Forever", in addition to including the original version of a top 5 single titled " What Kind of Man Would I Be?". The latter, also sung by Scheff, was remixed for inclusion on the band's forthcoming greatest hits record (and 20th album), ''
Greatest Hits 1982–1989 ''Greatest Hits 1982–1989'' is the third greatest hits album by the American band Chicago, released by Full Moon/Reprise Records on November 21, 1989. It became one of Chicago's biggest selling albums, having been certified five times plati ...
'', and it was this version that became a hit.


1990s: more changes and ''Stone of Sisyphus''

The beginning of the 1990s brought yet another departure. Original drummer Danny Seraphine was dismissed from the band in May 1990. Seraphine was succeeded by
Tris Imboden Gregory Tristan "Tris" Imboden (born July 27, 1951) is an American rock and jazz drummer. As a performer, he has been in studio sessions and on tour with some of the most notable and highest-selling musicians of all time. He was the drummer fo ...
, a longtime drummer with
Kenny Loggins Kenneth Clark "Kenny" Loggins (born January 7, 1948) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. His early songs were recorded with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in 1970, which led to seven albums recorded with Jim Messina (musician), Jim Mess ...
and former session drummer with
Peter Cetera Peter Paul Cetera Jr. ( ; born September 13, 1944) is a retired American musician best known for being a frontman, vocalist, and bassist for the American rock band Chicago from 1967 until his departure in 1985. His career as a recording artist ...
. Imboden made his first appearance on the 1991 album ''
Twenty 1 ''Twenty 1'' is the seventeenth studio album (and twenty-first overall) by the American band Chicago. Released on January 29, 1991, it was their first album of the 1990s. ''Twenty 1'' spent eleven weeks on the American ''Billboard'' 200, peaking ...
'' with a fragment of band's logo, which yielded an eleven-week stretch on the ''Billboard'' 200, a peak at No. 66, and the song "Chasin' the Wind" which peaked at No. 39. ''Twenty 1'' would be their last released album of original music for fifteen years. The band was recognized with a star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...
on July 23, 1992. In 1993, Chicago wrote and recorded their 22nd album ''
Stone of Sisyphus ''Chicago XXXII: Stone of Sisyphus'' is the twenty-first studio album, and thirty-second overall, by Chicago (band), Chicago. Often referred to as their "lost" album, it was recorded in 1993 and originally intended to be released as ''Stone of Sis ...
''. This album was to have marked their return to their traditional composition of the 1970s, emphasizing major horn accompaniment. However, following a reorganization of the record company, the new executives at
Reprise Records Reprise Records is an American record label founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operates through Warner Records, one of its flagship labels. Artists currently signed to Reprise Records include Green Day, En ...
(now part of the newly formed
Warner Music Group Warner Music Group Corp., commonly abbreviated as WMG, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational entertainment and record label Conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It is one of the "Record label#M ...
) rejected the completed album. It remained unpublished for fifteen years, aside from bootleg tapes and Internet files. This contributed to the parting of the band from the record label. The band was dismayed by the failure of the label. Upset with the shelving of the album,
Dawayne Bailey Dawayne Bailey is an American guitarist who has toured and recorded with Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band, Véronique Sanson, and Chicago. Bailey was born and raised in Manhattan, Kansas. While still attending Manhattan High School in Kansas ...
voiced his objections and his annual contract was not renewed by the band in late 1994. And in the years that followed there were many debates and conjecture about the events surrounding the recordings. It was also suggested some years later that the band's management was negotiating with the label regarding a licensing of the extensive Chicago back catalog, and when those talks stalled, the label apparently retaliated by scrapping the project. The album eventually saw an expanded release on Rhino Records in June 2008, and made it to No. 122 on the album charts. After finishing their 1994 tour, and after signing with the Warner Bros. Records imprint label Giant Records, they released their 1995 album '' Night & Day: Big Band'', consisting of covers of songs originally recorded by
Sarah Vaughan Sarah Lois Vaughan (, March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer and pianist. Nicknamed "Sassy" and "List of nicknames of jazz musicians, The Divine One", she won two Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, ...
,
Glenn Miller Alton Glen "Glenn" Miller (March 1, 1904 – December 15, 1944) was an American big band conductor, arranger, composer, trombonist, and recording artist before and during World War II, when he was an officer in the United States Army Air Forces ...
, and
Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous Big band, jazz orchestra from 1924 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D ...
. Guitarist
Bruce Gaitsch Bruce R. Gaitsch (; born February 7, 1953) is an American guitarist, composer, and producer. He is best known for working with notable bands and musicians such as Chicago, Peter Cetera, Madonna, and Agnetha Fältskog as a session musician and son ...
stepped in and joined the band to handle the album's guitar work. The album featured guest appearances by
Paul Shaffer Paul Allen Wood Shaffer (born November 28, 1949) is a Canadian musician, actor, and comedian who served as David Letterman's musical director, bandleader, and sidekick on ''Late Night with David Letterman'' (1982–1993) and ''Late Show with D ...
of ''
Late Show with David Letterman ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by Letterman's production com ...
'' fame,
Aerosmith Aerosmith is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of lead vocalist Steven Tyler, bassist Tom Hamilton (musician), Tom Hamilton, drummer Joey Kramer, and guitarists Joe Perry (musician), Joe Perry and B ...
guitarist Joe Perry, and the Gipsy Kings. Parazaider cited the group's participation in the 1973 television special honoring Duke Ellington, ''Duke Ellington... We Love You Madly'', as key in their decision to record this album. After this big band album, Chicago acquired the rights to their Columbia recordings and reissued them on their own imprint. In early 1995,
Keith Howland Keith Howland (born August 14, 1964) is an American guitarist. He was the lead guitarist for the veteran pop-rock band Chicago from 1995 to 2021. Biography Howland started playing the guitar at the age of seven, and he played in a number of ban ...
, who had been a studio musician and stage hand based in Los Angeles, was recruited as Chicago's new permanent guitarist. In 1998, Chicago released '' Chicago XXV: The Christmas Album'' and a live album in 1999, '' Chicago XXVI'' on their own imprint.


2000s

In 2002, the band licensed their entire recorded output to
Rhino Records A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant taxon, extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family (biology), famil ...
, after having recorded it at Columbia Records and Warner Bros. Records. In 2002, Rhino released a two-disc compilation, '' The Very Best of: Only the Beginning'', which spanned the band's career. The compilation made the
Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is a list of the 40 currently most popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "To ...
and sold over 2 million copies in the U.S. Rhino also began releasing remastered versions of all of the band's Columbia-era albums. The following year, the band released their most comprehensive compilation to date in the form of a box set, simply titled '' The Box''. In October 2003, Rhino reissued ''Chicago XXV: The Christmas Album'', along with six new recordings, as ''What's It Gonna Be, Santa?''. The American cable music channel
VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism for Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network that launched on January 1, 1985, and is currently owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global's networks division based in New Y ...
featured the band in an episode of its ''
Behind the Music ''Behind the Music'' is an American documentary television series that initially aired on VH1 from 1997 to 2014. Each episode profiles and interviews a popular musical artist or group, examining career beginnings, roads to success and any resul ...
'' series, "Chicago: Behind the Music", season 1, episode 133. The episode first aired on October 15, 2000. In 2004, 2005, and 2009, Chicago toured with Earth, Wind & Fire. On March 21, 2006, their first all-new studio album since ''Twenty 1'' arrived with '' Chicago XXX''. It was produced by
Jay DeMarcus Jay DeMarcus (born Stanley Wayne DeMarcus Jr.; on April 26, 1971) is an American musician, vocalist, record producer and songwriter. He is a member of the country music band Rascal Flatts. Early life DeMarcus was born in Columbus, Ohio. He grad ...
, bassist/vocalist with the country trio
Rascal Flatts Rascal Flatts is an American Country music, country music band formed in 1999 in Nashville, Tennessee. The band consists of Gary LeVox (lead vocals), Jay DeMarcus (bass guitar, background vocals), and Joe Don Rooney (lead guitar, background voc ...
, who was a long-time fan of Chicago and had cited the group as an influence on him as a musician in a previous fan letter to Jason Scheff. It also marked the first time the band's music was available as a digital download. The album peaked at No. 41 in the U.S., spawning two minor adult contemporary hits: "Feel" and "Love Will Come Back". Two songs from this album, "Feel" and "Caroline", were performed live during Chicago's fall 2005 tour. Chicago made multi-week appearances at the
MGM Grand Las Vegas The MGM Grand Las Vegas is a hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. It is owned by Vici Properties and operated by MGM Resorts International. The resort was developed by Kirk Kerkorian through his company, MGM Grand ...
in March, May and October 2006. In July 2006, the band made a series of U.S. appearances with
Huey Lewis and the News Huey Lewis and the News (formerly known as Huey Lewis & The American Express) are an American rock band based in San Francisco, California. They had a run of hit singles during the 1980s and early 1990s, eventually achieving 19 top ten singl ...
. On October 2, 2007, Rhino Records released the two-disc '' The Best of Chicago: 40th Anniversary Edition'' (''Chicago XXXI''), a new greatest hits compilation spanning their entire forty years, similar to '' The Very Best of: Only the Beginning'', released five years earlier. In 2008, ''Stone of Sisyphus'' – once known as the aborted ''Chicago XXII'', now listed officially as ''Chicago XXXII'' – was released with an expanded format.
Drew Hester Drew Hester (born August 26, 1969) is a drummer, percussionist, and record producer, winning two Grammy Awards with Foo Fighters. He has played with Joe Walsh (1999—2016) on drums, Stevie Nicks (2017–present) on drums, Beck (2014) on drums/pe ...
, who was the percussionist and drummer for the
Foo Fighters The Foo Fighters are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Initially founded as a one-man project by former Nirvana (band), Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl, the band comprises vocalist/guitarist Grohl, bassist Nate Mendel, gu ...
, joined the band in January 2009 to temporarily fill in for an ill Imboden, and continued with the band as a percussionist upon Imboden's return later in the year. In August 2009, Champlin was fired from the band. He was replaced by Grammy-nominated keyboardist
Lou Pardini Lou Pardini (born June 5, 1952) is an American Grammy-nominated keyboardist, songwriter and vocalist who is now best known as a former member of the rock band Chicago. He is known for his work with notable musicians such as Stevie Wonder, Santana, ...
, who had worked with
Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...
and
Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer * Sailboat designs by W. D. Schock Corp ** Santana 20 ** Santan ...
.


2010s

In 2010 (just as they had already done in 1999 and 2008), Chicago toured with
the Doobie Brothers The Doobie Brothers are an American rock band formed in San Jose, California in 1970. Known for their flexibility in performing across numerous genres and their vocal harmonies, the band has been active for over five decades, with their greate ...
(and would do so again in 2017). A 2011 performance in
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
became a video for the
HDNet AXS TV () is an American specialty television, cable television channel majority-owned by Canadian broadcaster Anthem Sports & Entertainment. It is devoted primarily to Music television, music-related programming (such as concert films, Document ...
cable channel that featured the Doobie Brothers joining Chicago for three encore tunes. The band also appeared on the season nine finale of ''
American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American Music competition, singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle (company), Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It a ...
''. On July 24, 2011, the band performed at
Red Rocks Red Rocks Amphitheatre (also known colloquially as simply Red Rocks) is an open-air amphitheater in the western United States near Morrison, Colorado, approximately southwest of Denver. It is owned and operated by the city of Denver. In addi ...
in Colorado, accompanied by the
Colorado Symphony Orchestra The Colorado Symphony is an American symphony orchestra located in Denver, Colorado. Established in 1989 as the successor to the Denver Symphony Orchestra, the Colorado Symphony performs in Boettcher Concert Hall, located in the Denver Perfor ...
. With '' Chicago XXXIII: O Christmas Three,'' the band re-teamed with producer Ramone (he had previously released the new tracks for the expanded Christmas re-release ''What's It Gonna Be, Santa?'') to record a new Christmas album.
Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, actress, and philanthropist, known primarily as a country music, country musician. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton's debut album ...
was a guest artist on the album, which was released in October 2011. In the meantime, Rhino released '' Chicago XXXIV: Live in '75'', a two-disc set containing two hours of previously unreleased performances recorded June 24–26, 1975 at the Capital Centre in
Largo, Maryland Largo () is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Prince George's County, Maryland, Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The population was 11,605 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Largo is located just ...
, featuring the original members of Chicago performing some of their greatest hits up to that point. In 2012, Chicago and the Doobie Brothers held another joint tour. That same year, Hester left the group shortly before the tour, and was succeeded at first by percussionist Daniel de los Reyes, then by Daniel's brother and former long-term
Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer * Sailboat designs by W. D. Schock Corp ** Santana 20 ** Santan ...
member, Walfredo Reyes Jr. In 2013, Lamm, Loughnane, Pankow, and Parazaider appeared in the
HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...
film ''
Clear History ''Clear History'' is a 2013 American comedy television film directed by Greg Mottola, written by Larry David, Alec Berg, David Mandel and Jeff Schaffer, and starring David, Kate Hudson, Danny McBride, Philip Baker Hall, Jon Hamm, Michael Keaton, ...
'' as the band Chicago."Clear History"
IMDB
In late 2013, the band began releasing singles for a new album, starting with "Somethin' Comin', I Know" in August, "America" in September, "Crazy Happy" in December 2013, and "Naked in the Garden of Allah" in January 2014. The album, titled '' Chicago XXXVI: Now'', was released on July 4, 2014. The group's debut album, ''
Chicago Transit Authority The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) is the operator of public transport, mass transit in Chicago, Illinois, United States, and some of its suburbs, including the trains of the Chicago "L" and List of Chicago Transit Authority bus routes, CTA bu ...
'', released in 1969, was inducted into the
Grammy Hall of Fame The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...
in 2014. On January 25 and 28, 2014 Chicago performed two concerts with the
Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891, the ensemble has been based in the Symphony Center since 1904 and plays a summer season at the Ravinia F ...
. In February 2015, Chicago released a two-disc live album, ''Chicago at Symphony Hall'', of their performances with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. In 2015, Chicago was listed among the nominees for induction into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...
. The original lineup – Cetera, Kath, Lamm, Loughnane, Pankow, Parazaider, and Seraphine – was inducted at the 31st annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony on April 8, 2016, along with
N.W.A N.W.A (an abbreviation for Niggaz Wit Attitudes) was an American hip-hop group formed in Compton, California in 1987. Among the earliest and most significant figures of the gangsta rap subgenre, the group is widely considered one of the great ...
.,
Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock, although their musical style has varied throughout their career. Originally for ...
, Steve Miller, and
Cheap Trick Cheap Trick is an American rock band formed in Rockford, Illinois in 1970 by guitarist Rick Nielsen, bassist Tom Petersson, lead vocalist Robin Zander and drummer Bun E. Carlos. Their work bridged elements of '60s pop rock, guitar pop, '70s har ...
. In February 2016, it was announced that original drummer Danny Seraphine would join the current lineup of Chicago for the first time in over 25 years for the Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. Peter Cetera chose not to attend. Terry Kath's daughter Michelle accepted her father's award. Chicago and Earth, Wind & Fire embarked on another tour together in 2015 and 2016. In July 2016, Chicago performed on ABC's ''
Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be creat ...
''. On September 23, 2016, a documentary called ''The Terry Kath Experience'' was released. The documentary featured most of the members of Chicago talking about Kath's life (most notably Kath's second wife Camelia Kath and original Chicago bassist Peter Cetera). It was directed by Kath's daughter, Michelle Kath Sinclair. After taking a temporary leave in May 2016, citing "family health reasons", it was announced on October 25, 2016, that Jason Scheff had left Chicago after 31 years. Bassist/vocalist Jeff Coffey, who had been filling in for Scheff during his absence, was promoted to a full-time member. Saxophonist Ray Herrmann, who had previously filled in for Parazaider on various tour dates since 2005, also became an official member at this time after Parazaider retired permanently from the road. Although Parazaider retired from regular touring, he remained a band member. In January 2017,
CNN Films Cable News Network Films (known as CNN Films) is a motion picture division of CNN under Warner Bros. Pictures, originally launched in 2012. Its first film, ''Girl Rising'' premiered in spring 2013 in the United States. History On October 8, 201 ...
aired a two-hour biographical documentary film on the group titled ''Now More Than Ever: The History of Chicago.'' The film was directed and edited by Peter Pardini, nephew of band member Lou Pardini, and produced by the band. The film's premiere was the highest-rated program in the 25–54 demographic. The film won the 2016 "Best of the Fest" Audience Choice Award at the
Sedona International Film Festival The Sedona International Film Festival (SIFF) is an annual, eight-day film festival in Sedona, Arizona. The festival was founded in 1994. History In 2023, the festival was listed on ''MovieMakers "20 Great Film Festivals in Vacation Destinat ...
. At the 10th Annual Fort Myers Beach Film Festival in 2016, it won the "People's Choice" award and Peter Pardini won the "Rising Star Award" as director and filmmaker. On February 22, 2017, it was announced that Cetera, Lamm, and Pankow were among the 2017
Songwriters Hall of Fame The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work represent and maintain the heri ...
inductees for their songwriting efforts as members of Chicago. The induction event was held Thursday, June 15 at the
Marriott Marquis Marriott Marquis is a hotel brand owned by Marriott International and denotes flagship, large-format hotels similar to Hyatt's Hyatt Regency brand. Notable hotels using this branding include: United States * New York Marriott Marquis in Times Squar ...
Hotel in New York City. Chicago's website stated that in 2017, the band was working on a new album, ''Chicago XXXVII''. On September 17, 2017, former percussionist Laudir de Oliveira died of a heart attack while performing onstage in his native
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...
. Chicago began their 2018 touring schedule on Saturday, January 13 by performing the grand opening concert at the new Xcite Center at Parx Casino in
Bensalem, Pennsylvania Bensalem Township is a township in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The township borders the northeastern section of Philadelphia and includes the communities of Andalusia, Bensalem, Bridgewater, Cornwells Heights, Eddington, Flush ...
. On Wednesday, January 17, 2018, drummer Tris Imboden announced he was leaving the band after 27 years to spend more time with his family. On Friday, January 19, 2018, bassist and vocalist Jeff Coffey announced on his
Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...
page that he was also departing from the band due to its heavy touring schedule. Chicago announced that percussionist Walfredo Reyes Jr. was moving over to drums, replacing Imboden. Vocalist Neil Donell, of Chicago tribute band Brass Transit, was chosen as the band's new lead singer and session musician Brett Simons also joined the band as their new bassist. Daniel de los Reyes' return to the percussion position was announced, filling the vacancy left by his brother's move to the drumset. On April 6, 2018, Chicago released ''Chicago: VI Decades Live (This is What We Do)'', a box set chronicling the band's live performances throughout their history. In May 2018, it was revealed that percussionist Daniel de los Reyes was departing Chicago to go back to his other group, the Zac Brown Band. On Thursday, May 17, 2018, Chicago announced on their official Facebook page and on their
Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
account that "Ray" Ramon Yslas had joined the band on percussion. On June 29, 2018, Chicago released the album ''Chicago II: Live on Soundstage'', a live performance from November 2017 of the then current band lineup performing the entire second album. In July 2018 the band updated its official web site, and no longer listed Parazaider as a member of the band. Instead he is included on the band's "Tribute to Founding Members". Parazaider had retired from touring previously. On October 26, 2018, Chicago released the album ''Chicago: Greatest Hits Live'', a live performance from 2017 for the
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
series ''
Soundstage A sound stage (also written soundstage) is a large, soundproof structure, building or room with large doors and high ceilings, used for the production of theatrical film-making and television productions, usually located on a secured movie or te ...
''. On August 16, 2019, the band announced on their website that they would be releasing their fourth Christmas album, titled '' Chicago XXXVII: Chicago Christmas'', on October 4, 2019. The album has a greater emphasis on original Christmas songs written by the group than their previous holiday albums.


2020s

Chicago received a
Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award The Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award is a special Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achiev ...
on October 16, 2020. On April 19, 2021, Walter Parazaider released a statement that he has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. During their 2021 summer tour, Lou Pardini was out for part of August and most of September, with
Who The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and has 6 regional offices and 15 ...
keyboardist
Loren Gold Loren Gold is an American keyboardist, vocalist, music director, and songwriter. Gold is a keyboardist and vocalist for the Who and Chicago (band), Chicago. In addition, Gold has been the touring keyboardist and backup vocalist for Roger Daltrey ...
filling in until Pardini was able to return. On November 15, 2021, Howland broke his arm in an accident and took a leave of absence from the band, with guitarist Tony Obrohta filling in for him at shows. On December 1, 2021, Howland announced he was leaving Chicago after over 26 years, citing the recent accident and lengthy recovery period as bringing about the next phase of his life. The band confirmed Howland's departure, and removed his name from band lineup page on their website. Tony Obrohta officially joined the group to replace Howland in December 2021. In November 2021, Chicago and
Brian Wilson Brian Douglas Wilson (June 20, 1942 – June 11, 2025) was an American musician, songwriter, singer and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often Brian Wilson is a genius, called a genius for his novel approaches to pop compositio ...
of the
Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their friend Al Jardine. Distinguished by thei ...
announced they will co-headline a 25 date tour in the summer of 2022. On January 21, 2022, Lou Pardini announced he was departing the band. Loren Gold (vocals, keyboards) appeared with the group on tour filling the role vacated by Pardini starting in January 2022, and on March 2, 2022, Chicago updated their website to list Gold as a band member. On Friday, May 6, 2022, Chicago announced on their website that Brett Simons had departed the band and Eric Baines (bass, vocals) had joined the group. The group also announced plans to release a new album in the summer of 2022. Chicago released the single "If This Is Goodbye" on May 20, 2022. On July 15, 2022, Chicago released '' Chicago XXXVIII: Born for This Moment''. Chicago and Earth, Wind & Fire toured together on the 2024 Heart and Soul joint tour. On March 2, 2025, Carlos Murguia joined the band on keyboards and vocals.


Approaches to music


Style

During his discussion of the formation of the band, original drummer Danny Seraphine says he wanted to form a group of talented, skilled musicians, with a horn section, "that could play an inventive mix of rock and jazz." Walter Parazaider told writer, Paul Elliott, "My idea was to make horns an integral part of a rock band." According to James Pankow, Chicago set out to be "basically" a rock and roll band with a horn section. Robert Lamm credits Walter Parazaider and Terry Kath for having the vision of "a rock band with expanded instrumentation." Peter Robb wrote, "The guys had all been influenced by show bands that would come into Chicago playing a variety of music. Those bands always had tenor sax, trumpet and trombone, Loughnane said." On the occasion of the band's 50th anniversary, Bobby Olivier, writing for ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
'', described its style as "chameleonic... shifting from esoteric jazz-rock, funk and soul to ... adult contemporary...". In a piece for ''
Ultimate Classic Rock Townsquare Media, Inc. (formerly Regent Communications until 2010) is an American radio network and media company based in Purchase, New York. The company started in radio and expanded into digital media toward the end of the 2000s, starting wit ...
'', writer Jeff Giles details the band's journey from being a "progressive-leaning rock band with horns" in its earlier years to "an adult contemporary act" by the end of the 1980s "in order to stay commercially relevant." In a 2021 interview published in '' Prog'', Robert Lamm asserts that Chicago is and always has been a progressive rock band and that they were particularly influenced by
Yes Yes or YES may refer to: * An affirmative particle in the English language; see yes and no Education * YES Prep Public Schools, Houston, Texas, US * Young Eisner Scholars, in Los Angeles, New York City, Chicago, and Appalachia, US * Young Ep ...
and
King Crimson King Crimson were an English progressive rock band formed in London in 1968 by Robert Fripp, Michael Giles, Greg Lake, Ian McDonald (musician), Ian McDonald and Peter Sinfield. Guitarist Fripp remained the only constant member throughout the ...
to write and record their lengthier tracks. In his view, the hit songs on their albums satisfied the record companies and allowed the band more freedom on the rest of the recorded material. As musicians, the group has always "felt blessed enough to try anything at any time." Chicago was deeply influenced by jazz, which culminated on their seventh album. Trumpeter Lee Loughnane holds that the term "jazz rock" was invented because of Chicago's music. When asked why the band didn't continue in its "jazzy improv" direction, Loughnane voiced his opinion that how the songwriters wrote was "materially affected" by changes in payment of royalties by the record companies and by the relatively short airplay time allowed for a song on the radio.


Songwriting

James Pankow has described the group's songwriting process as "organic", where one person comes up with a song and the other members come up with ideas for their parts. Pankow, one of the songwriters for the group, also has typically been arranger for the horn section. Robert Lamm, another of the group's songwriters, sees the group members' contributions to individual songs more as arranging than co-writing, and says his songs were "enhanced" in the process.


Horn section

According to the '' Daily Press'', Chicago's horn section was "the foundation of the sound that launched the band to stardom in the 1970s." Horns arranger James Pankow, speaking in 2017, said that when the band was being formed, they discussed how to make the horns a "main character in a song". He said the horns are a big part of the band's "signature" and that he "took a melodic lead-voice approach to our horns, where the horn section becomes another lead vocal and interweaves in and around the actual vocals and becomes a part of the story of the song." In a separate interview that same year, Lee Loughnane echoed Pankow's remarks.


Philanthropy

Chicago has supported numerous charitable causes throughout the years. In the 2010s the group had an ongoing partnership with the American Cancer Society. Fans were given the opportunity to bid to sing their song "If You Leave Me Now" with them on stage during their live performances. The proceeds went to the American Cancer Society to fund the Society's efforts to fight breast cancer. The group gave a benefit performance for Musicians on Call, on Sunday April 23, 2023, held at the
Hard Rock Cafe Hard Rock Cafe, Inc. is a chain of theme restaurant, theme bar-restaurants, memorabilia shops, casinos, hotels and museums founded in 1971 by Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton in London. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and roll ...
in
Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and Neighborhoods in New York City, neighborhood in the Midtown Manhattan section of New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway (Manhattan), ...
in New York City. Musicians on Call is a nonprofit organization that brings live and recorded music to the bedsides of patients, families and caregivers in healthcare settings. The group donated an autographed guitar to the event's live auction and the $6,000 winning bid was made by singer
Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick ( ; born Marie Dionne Warrick; December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. During her career, Warwick has won many awards, including six Grammy Awards. She has been inducted into the Hollywood Wa ...
. Chicago also did benefit performances for Musicians on Call in 2011, 2012, and 2022.


Legacy

Chicago's music has been used in the soundtracks of movies, television programs and commercials. Cetera's composition from the 1976 album '' Chicago X'', "If You Leave Me Now", has appeared in the movies, ''
Three Kings In Christianity, the Biblical Magi ( or ; singular: ), also known as the Three Wise Men, Three Kings, and Three Magi, are distinguished foreigners who visit Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh in homage to hi ...
'' (1999), ''
Shaun of the Dead ''Shaun of the Dead'' is a 2004 zombie comedy film directed by Edgar Wright and written by Wright and Simon Pegg. Pegg stars as Shaun, a downtrodden London salesman who is caught alongside his loved ones in a zombie apocalypse. It also star ...
'' (2004), '' A Lot like Love'' (2005), ''
Happy Feet ''Happy Feet'' is a 2006 animated jukebox musical comedy film directed and produced by George Miller and written by Miller, John Collee, Judy Morris and Warren Coleman. It stars the voices of Elijah Wood, Robin Williams, Brittany Murphy, Hug ...
'' (2006), and ''
Daddy's Home 2 ''Daddy's Home 2'' (titled on screen as ''Daddy's Home Two'') is a 2017 American Christmas buddy comedy film directed by Sean Anders and written by Anders and John Morris. A sequel to '' Daddy's Home'' (2015), it stars Will Ferrell, Mark Wahl ...
'' (2017); the television series ''
Sex and the City ''Sex and the City'' is an American romantic comedy, romantic comedy-drama television series created by Darren Star for HBO, based on Sex and the City (newspaper column), the newspaper column and 1996 book by Candace Bushnell. It premiered in th ...
'' and ''
South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boysStan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand the ...
'';  and a television commercial that aired during the 2000 Super Bowl. Robert Lamm's song from the 1970 album ''
Chicago II ''Chicago'' (retroactively known as ''Chicago II'') is the second studio album by the American rock band Chicago, released on January 26, 1970, by Columbia Records. Like their debut album, ''Chicago Transit Authority'' (1969), it is a double album ...
'', " 25 or 6 to 4", was used in the 2017 film ''
I, Tonya ''I, Tonya'' is a 2017 American biographical sports film directed by Craig Gillespie and written by Steven Rogers. It follows the life and career of American figure skater Tonya Harding and her connection to the 1994 assault on her rival Nan ...
'', and on the animated TV series ''
King of the Hill ''King of the Hill'' is an American animated sitcom created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels that initially aired on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox from January 12, 1997, to September 13, 2009, with four more episodes airing in First-run syndicati ...
''. "
You're the Inspiration "You're the Inspiration" is a song written by Peter Cetera and David Foster for the group Chicago and recorded for their fourteenth studio album '' Chicago 17'' (1984), with Cetera singing lead vocals. The third single released from that album, i ...
" was used for the soundtracks of the movies, '' A Hologram for the King'' (2016), and ''
Deadpool Deadpool is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Fabian Nicieza and Rob Liefeld, the character first appeared in ''New Mutants'' #98 (December 1990). In his comic book appearances, Deadpool is ...
'' (2016); a 2017 Super Bowl commercial;  and the television series, ''
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'', also known colloquially simply as ''Always Sunny'', is an American sitcom created by Rob McElhenney and co-developed by Glenn Howerton for FX. It premiered on August 4, 2005, and stars Charlie Day, Howert ...
'' and ''
Criminal Minds ''Criminal Minds'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series created by Jeff Davis that premiered on CBS on September 22, 2005. It follows a group of criminal profilers who work for the FBI as members of its Behavioral ...
.'' The song "Hearts In Trouble" was on the soundtrack to the 1990 film ''
Days of Thunder ''Days of Thunder'' is a 1990 American sports action drama film produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Tony Scott. The film stars Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Robert Duvall, Randy Quaid, Cary Elwes, Caroline Williams, a ...
''. Other recording artists have covered Chicago's music. According to the website ''SecondHandSongs'', "If You Leave Me Now" has been covered by over 90 recording artists from around the world, "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" by over 30, "Colour My World" by over 24, and "You're the Inspiration" by over 18. In 2019, a reimagined hip-hop version of " 25 or 6 to 4" by indie rapper realnamejames was featured in recruitment for the U.S. Army's "What's Your Warrior" marketing campaign. Chicago's music has long been a staple of marching bands in the
U.S. The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...
"25 or 6 to 4" was named as the number one marching band song by Kevin Coffey of the ''
Omaha World-Herald The ''Omaha World-Herald'' is a daily newspaper in the midwestern United States, the primary newspaper of the Omaha-Council Bluffs metropolitan area. It was locally owned from its founding in 1885 until 2020, when it was sold to the newspaper ...
,'' and as performed by the
Jackson State University Jackson State University (Jackson State or JSU) is a Public university, public Historically Black colleges and universities, historically black research university in Jackson, Mississippi. It is a member of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and ...
marching band, ranked number seven of the "Top 20 Cover Songs of 2018 by HBCU Bands". The band performed "Saturday in the Park" and "25 or 6 to 4" with the Notre Dame Marching Band on the football field during halftime on October 21, 2017. They performed again at a game against
Bowling Green State University Bowling Green State University (BGSU) is a Public university, public research university in Bowling Green, Ohio, United States. The main academic and residential campus is south of Toledo, Ohio. The university has nationally recognized progr ...
on October 5, 2019.


Graphics

Upon being renamed from Chicago Transit Authority to Chicago, the band sported a new logo. Its inspiration was found in the design of the
Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a cola soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. In 2013, Coke products were sold in over 200 countries and territories worldwide, with consumers drinking more than 1.8 billion company beverage servings ...
logo, in the attitude of the city of
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
itself, and in the desire to visually transcend the individual identities of the band's members. It was designed by the art director of Columbia/CBS Records, John Berg, with each album's graphic art work being done by Nick Fasciano. Berg said, "The Chicago logo...was fashioned for me by Nick Fasciano from my sketch." The logo would serve as the band's chief visual icon from ''
Chicago II ''Chicago'' (retroactively known as ''Chicago II'') is the second studio album by the American rock band Chicago, released on January 26, 1970, by Columbia Records. Like their debut album, ''Chicago Transit Authority'' (1969), it is a double album ...
'' onward. In various artistic forms and visual similes, it has been the subject of every subsequent album cover, except the fifteenth album, '' Greatest Hits, Volume II''. For example, it appeared as an American flag on '' III'', a piece of wood on '' V'', a U.S. dollar bill on '' VI'', a leather relief on '' VII'', an embroidered patch on '' VIII'', a chocolate bar on '' X'', a map on '' XI'', a building on '' 13'', a fingerprint on '' XIV'', a computer silicon chip on '' 16'', a parcel on '' 17'', a mosaic on '' 18'', and an
aquarelle Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin 'water'), is a painting method"Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to the S ...
on '' 19''. ''Chicago IX'''s incarnation was a caricature of the band itself, in the shape of the logo. The album cover series has endured as a cataloged work of art in its own right, described by Paul Nini of the
American Institute of Graphic Arts The American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA) is a professional organization for design. Its members practice all forms of communication design, including graphic design, typography, interaction design, user experience, branding and identity. The ...
as a "real landmark in record cover design". In 2013, the iconic status of Chicago's album art was featured in a
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
art museum exhibit, which centered upon ninety-five album covers completely selected from John Berg's career portfolio of hundreds. Having overseen the design of approximately fourteen Chicago album covers across more than twenty years, Berg stated that this artistic success resulted from the combination of Chicago's "unique situation" and his position in "the best possible job at the best possible time to have that job, at the center of the graphic universe". Berg won the 1976 Grammy Award for Best Album Package for ''Chicago X'', one of four Grammy Awards he won in his lifetime. The book titled ''Type and Image: The Language of Graphic Design'' described the logo as "a warm vernacular form, executed in thick script letters with Victorian swashes in the tradition of sports teams and orange crate labels". The book mentions the cultural and material background of the city of Chicago as inspiration for the logo; for example, describing the leather embossing of ''
Chicago VII ''Chicago VII'' is the sixth studio album by American Rock music, rock band Chicago (band), Chicago. It was released on March 11, 1974 by Columbia Records. It is notable for being their first double album of new material since 1971's ''Chicago ...
'' as representative of the great fire and the stockades. The author connects the album art to the atmosphere of the band's namesake city, quoting the band's original manager,
James William Guercio James William Guercio (born July 18, 1945) is an American music producer, musician, songwriter and director. He is best known for his work as the producer of Chicago's first eleven studio albums. He also produced the early recordings of The Buckin ...
: "The printed word can never aspire to document a truly musical experience, so if you must call them something, speak of the city where all save one were born; where all of them were schooled and bred, and where all of this incredible music went down barely noticed; call them CHICAGO."


Personnel

As of July 2018, the three remaining active original members of Chicago are Lamm, Loughnane, and Pankow. Parazaider has retired from regular touring but is still considered as a band member, and has appeared with the group during certain events.


Band legal structure

The legal hierarchy of the band was illuminated in a July 2022 published interview with Robert Lamm, in which he, Pankow and Loughnane are identified as the "partners" and the rest of the members as "contracted players". According to Lamm, the three partners control what the band does. The decision to record the 2022 album, ''Born for This Moment'', depended largely on the consensus of the three partner members.


Status of Walter Parazaider

For several years, the exact status of Walter Parazaider as a current member or former member was unclear. A 2017 article said Parazaider retired due to a heart condition, but was still "technically" part of the group. Another 2017 article said that Ray Herrmann had become a full-time touring member, but that "Parazaider is still a band member and performs with the group for certain events." According to a 2018 article, Parazaider "officially retired" in 2017. By August 10, 2018, Ray Herrmann was shown as a member of the band, and Parazaider was not, on the group's official website. While Parazaider at times had been referred to as a non-touring member of the group, he did not appear on either of the studio albums released since his retirement, 2019's '' Chicago Christmas,'' and 2022's '' Born for This Moment''. In 2021, Parazaider revealed he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.


Current members


Original band partners

Source: *
Lee Loughnane Lee David Loughnane (pronounced LOCK-nain; born October 21, 1946) is an American trumpeter, flugelhorn player, vocalist, and songwriter who is a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He is best known for being one-third of Chicago's brass/wo ...
– trumpet, flugelhorn, backing vocals *
James Pankow James Carter Pankow (born August 20, 1947) is an American trombone player, songwriter, and brass instrument arranger who is a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He is best known for his brass arrangements, and for being one-third of Chi ...
– trombone, backing vocals *
Robert Lamm Robert William Lamm (born October 13, 1944) is an American musician and a founding member of the rock band Chicago. He is best known for his songwriting, vocals, and keyboard melodies, most significantly on the band's debut studio album, ''Chic ...
– keyboards, lead vocals


Contracted band members

Source: * Ray Herrmann – saxophones, flute, clarinet, backing vocals * Walfredo Reyes Jr. – drums ; percussion * Neil Donell – lead vocals, acoustic guitar *Ramon "Ray" Yslas – percussion *Tony Obrohta – guitar, backing vocals *
Loren Gold Loren Gold is an American keyboardist, vocalist, music director, and songwriter. Gold is a keyboardist and vocalist for the Who and Chicago (band), Chicago. In addition, Gold has been the touring keyboardist and backup vocalist for Roger Daltrey ...
– keyboards, vocals *Eric Baines – bass, vocals *Carlos Murguia - keyboards, vocals


Lineups


Discography


Studio albums

*''
Chicago Transit Authority The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) is the operator of public transport, mass transit in Chicago, Illinois, United States, and some of its suburbs, including the trains of the Chicago "L" and List of Chicago Transit Authority bus routes, CTA bu ...
'' (1969) *''
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
'' (1970) *'' Chicago III'' (1971) *''
Chicago V ''Chicago V'' is the fourth studio album by the American rock band Chicago. It was released on July 10, 1972, by Columbia Records. It is the group's first single album release, after having released three consecutive double albums and a four-d ...
'' (1972) *'' Chicago VI'' (1973) *''
Chicago VII ''Chicago VII'' is the sixth studio album by American Rock music, rock band Chicago (band), Chicago. It was released on March 11, 1974 by Columbia Records. It is notable for being their first double album of new material since 1971's ''Chicago ...
'' (1974) *'' Chicago VIII'' (1975) *'' Chicago X'' (1976) *'' Chicago XI'' (1977) *'' Hot Streets'' (1978) *'' Chicago 13'' (1979) *''
Chicago XIV ''Chicago XIV'' is the twelfth studio album by American rock band Chicago, released on July 21, 1980. Recorded at a time of waning interest in the band, ''Chicago XIV'' remains one of Chicago's poorest-selling albums, failing to reach Gold certi ...
'' (1980) *''
Chicago 16 ''Chicago 16'' is the thirteenth studio album, sixteenth overall by the American rock music, rock band Chicago (band), Chicago, released on June 7, 1982. It is considered their "comeback" album because it was their first album to go platinum si ...
'' (1982) *''
Chicago 17 ''Chicago 17'' is the fourteenth studio album, seventeenth overall by American rock band Chicago, released on May 14, 1984. It was the group's second release for Full Moon/Warner Bros. Records, their second album to be produced by David Foster ...
'' (1984) *'' Chicago 18'' (1986) *'' Chicago 19'' (1988) *''
Twenty 1 ''Twenty 1'' is the seventeenth studio album (and twenty-first overall) by the American band Chicago. Released on January 29, 1991, it was their first album of the 1990s. ''Twenty 1'' spent eleven weeks on the American ''Billboard'' 200, peaking ...
'' (1991) *'' Night & Day: Big Band'' (1995) *'' Chicago XXV: The Christmas Album'' (1998, reissued with six new tracks added as ''What's It Gonna Be, Santa?'' in 2003) *'' Chicago XXX'' (2006) *'' Chicago XXXII: Stone of Sisyphus'' (2008) *'' Chicago XXXIII: O Christmas Three'' (2011) *'' Chicago XXXV: The Nashville Sessions'' (2013) *'' Chicago XXXVI: Now'' (2014) *'' Chicago XXXVII: Chicago Christmas'' (2019) *'' Chicago XXXVIII: Born for This Moment'' (2022)


Live albums

*''
Chicago at Carnegie Hall ''Chicago at Carnegie Hall'' (also known as ''Chicago IV'') is the first live album, and fourth album overall, by American band Chicago. It was initially released on October 25, 1971 by Columbia Records as a four- LP vinyl box set, and was also ...
'' (1971) *'' Chicago XXVI: Live in Concert'' (1999) *'' Chicago XXXIV: Live in '75'' (2011)


Videography

*''Chicago: And the Band Played On'' (1992,
Warner Reprise Video Warner Music Vision (also known as Warner Vision and Warner Vision International) was a music video company formed in 1990 by Warner Music International to make music videos from artists and bands on Warner Bros. Records, Maverick Records, Sire Re ...
) *''Chicago: In Concert at the Greek Theater'' (1993, Warner Reprise Video) *''Soundstage Presents Chicago—Live in Concert'' (2004, Koch Vision) * ''Chicago and Earth, Wind & Fire Live at the Greek Theater'' (2004,
Image Entertainment RLJ Entertainment (formerly Image Entertainment) is an American film production company and home video distributor, distributing film and television productions in North America, with approximately 3,200 exclusive DVD titles and approximately 34 ...
) * Chicago & Friends: In Concert! (2024, Brian Lockwood)


Television and film


As major subject

*''Chicago in the Rockies'' (1973,
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
television special) *''Chicago... Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch'' (1974, ABC television special) *'' Chicago's New Year's Rockin' Eve 1975'' (December 31, 1974, ABC television special) *'' ABC In Concert'' (1992, two-part television special) *"Chicago: ''
Behind the Music ''Behind the Music'' is an American documentary television series that initially aired on VH1 from 1997 to 2014. Each episode profiles and interviews a popular musical artist or group, examining career beginnings, roads to success and any resul ...
'' #133" (2000,
VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism for Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network that launched on January 1, 1985, and is currently owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global's networks division based in New Y ...
documentary television episode) *''Now More Than Ever: The History of Chicago'' (2017, documentary film)


Other television and film appearances

*''
Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous Big band, jazz orchestra from 1924 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D ...
... We Love You Madly'' (1973,
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
television special) *'' Electra Glide in Blue'' (1973, film) *''
Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...
'' (1979,
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
) *''
Clear History ''Clear History'' is a 2013 American comedy television film directed by Greg Mottola, written by Larry David, Alec Berg, David Mandel and Jeff Schaffer, and starring David, Kate Hudson, Danny McBride, Philip Baker Hall, Jon Hamm, Michael Keaton, ...
'' (2013,
HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...
) *''The Terry Kath Experience'' (2015, documentary film)


Awards and honors

''Billboard'' awards *1971: Top Album Artist *1971: Top Album Group *1971: Trendsetter Award (for setting concert records at Carnegie Hall) ''Playboy'' awards *1971: All-Star Readers' Poll: Best Instrumental Combo, ''Playboy'' Jazz & Pop Poll available at
Bondi Data Viewer
, access-date=October 21, 2017
*1971: Best Small-Combo LP: ''Chicago'', ''Playboy'' Jazz & Pop Poll *1972: All-Star Readers' Poll: Best Instrumental Combo, ''Playboy'' Jazz & Pop Poll available at
Bondi Data Viewer
, access-date=October 21, 2017
*1973: All-Star Musicians' Poll: Best Instrumental Combo, ''Playboy'' Jazz & Pop Poll available at
Bondi Data Viewer
, access-date=October 20, 2017
*1973: All-Star Readers' Poll: Best Instrumental Combo, ''Playboy'' Jazz & Pop Poll *1973: Best Small-Combo LP: ''Chicago V'', ''Playboy'' Jazz & Pop Poll Other honors *1970: Best Album of 1970: ''Chicago'', ''
Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...
'' *1976: City of
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
Medal of Merit (city's highest civilian award) *1976: Awarded a Cartier 25-pound bar of pure
platinum Platinum is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a density, dense, malleable, ductility, ductile, highly unreactive, precious metal, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name origina ...
by
Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...
for platinum album achievement. *1977:
Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...
" Gold Ticket Award" for drawing over 100,000 people to the venue over the years. *1987: American Video Award, Best Cinematography, "25 or 6 to 4" (Bobby Byrne) *1992:
Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...
star for music contributions, located at 6400
Hollywood Boulevard Hollywood Boulevard is a major east–west street in Los Angeles, California. It runs through the Hollywood, East Hollywood, Little Armenia, Thai Town, and Los Feliz districts. Its western terminus is at Sunset Plaza Drive in the Hollyw ...
*2016:
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...
induction (original members: Cetera, Kath, Lamm, Loughnane, Pankow, Parazaider, Seraphine) *2017:
Songwriters Hall of Fame The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work represent and maintain the heri ...
: James Pankow and Robert Lamm (inducted), Peter Cetera (elected, not inducted)


See also

*
Best selling music artists The following list of best-selling music artists includes musical artists from the 20th century to the present with claims of 75 million or more record sales worldwide. The sales figures are calculated based on the formula detailed below. The ...
(worldwide)


Explanatory notes


References


External links

*
''A Chicago Story'', the band's official history
!-- preformatted reference for incorporation into this article -->
Chicago Awards on AllMusic.comChicago Charity Work, Events and Causes
* ttp://www.debbiekruger.com/writer/freelance/chicago_goldmine.html Debbie Kruger's words on Chicago, synthesizing those two interviews, for ''Goldmine Magazine'' in 1999br>Debbie Kruger's interview with Chicago for ''Performing Songwriter'' in July and August 2000
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chicago 1967 establishments in Illinois American jazz-rock groups American musical septets American musical octets American soft rock music groups Articles which contain graphical timelines Columbia Records artists Grammy Award winners Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners Musical groups established in 1967 Musical groups from Chicago Musical nonets Reprise Records artists Warner Records artists