CHICAGO X

Having suffered from collective exhaustion during the recording of "Chicago VIII", the band took their time in returning to the studio to record their next album. To retain the public's attention, a greatest hits album was released in the meanwhile, being given the sub- title "Chicago IX" in the numeric discography. In retrospect, this proved to be a classic case of bad timing, as the band's biggest singles success and first ever number one was to appear on "Chicago X".

It was spring 1976 before Chicago got around to recording "Chicago X", the group once again retiring to deepest Colorado (USA) for the sessions. By now, any remaining hints of the jazz rock band which recorded their innovative early albums had been firmly cast aside, in the studio at least. The longest track on this album runs to under 4 minutes, the tracks being simple, commercially orientated pop affairs. Despite this, the song which sealed the band's destiny, the Grammy award winning "If you leave me now", was actually a last minute addition.

Peter Cetera had presented "If you leave me now" to the band who, while impressed with the results of the recording, felt that it was not a Chicago song. Producer James Guercio however was struggling to find a guaranteed hit single on the album, and over- ruled any misgivings the band had about its inclusion. The song will be familiar to virtually everyone, being one of radio's most played songs over the years. It may be a smooth, romantic ballad, awash with strings, but it touched a chord with the record buying public and the rest is history. Despite the fact that by this time the band had been all but forgotten outside their native USA, the single found success throughout the world, reminding us at least what a fine band Chicago once were.

It should not therefore be assumed that "If you leave me now" is representative of the album as a whole, it is not. The opening "Once or twice" is a thunderous slice of boogie rock, Terry Kath's gruff vocal being reminiscent of fellow traveller David Clayton Thomas (BS&T). As a committed non-singer in the band, James Pankow traditionally "auditioned" the band's singers before deciding who should sing his compositions. When it came to "You are on my mind" though, he found that none of the singers captured the song the way he envisioned. The result is that he makes his vocal début here, and does a decent job of it too. It is fair to say the hustle nature of the composition is hardly vocally testing, but the arrangement is one of the more interesting on the album.

Pankow allows Peter Cetera to deliver "Skin tight", a song which, despite a good horn arrangement, is one of the worst recorded by the band up to this point. Lee Loughnane's "Together again" continues the pop rock, although the incorporation of time changes in the song does at least offer something a little more challenging. Robert Lamm's "Another rainy day in New York City", sung once again by Cetera, was also plucked from the album as a successful single release. The song has a bit of a reggae/calypso rhythm, clearly designed to attract pop buyers.

Cetera's domination of the album continues with his self composed "Mama mama", a mid- paced piece of smooth pop saved by a good horn arrangement. Robert Lamm's three compositions on the album are played back to back, Lamm taking lead vocals on two, while the band collectively sing the third. "Scrapbook" is a funky reminiscence of various artists the band have toured with over the years (Zappa, Hendrix, the Beach Boys and The Mothers all get a name check). "Gently I'll wake you" is inevitably a soft ballad, Lamm's multi-tracked vocals being decidedly un-Chicago like. "You get it up" is little more than a piece of collective buffoonery. The album closes with Terry Kath's "Hope for love", a pleasing ballad featuring mellotron (played by David Wolinski), Kath's soulful vocals being perfectly suited to his song.

While the band may have returned to the studio invigorated after their break, it seems their collective yearning for commercial success was winning the battle against their artistic integrity. While the brass section is still here, it is firmly relegated to a supporting role throughout, the emphasis being repeatedly placed on finding a hit single. The fact that the album spawned what for many is now the band's signature song is something of a double edged sword. It may have vindicated their efforts to find chart success, but it drew the band into territories already well served by many other pop acts, while depriving the jazz rock world of one of its finest ambassadors.

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