Customer Reviews

Chicago: Chicago II

5 star:		(50)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Along with Chicago Transit Authority, Chicago (the "official" name of this CD is Chicago, not Chicago II,) represents early Chicago at its very best, seven very good musicians playing a jazzy mix of horn-influenced rock and roll. In later years Chicago became known for producing popular "power ballads," but early Chicago, with Terry Kath's driving guitar, was very much a rock and roll band. On this CD, Chicago flexes its musical muscle in such suites as "Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon," which feature the hits "Make Me Smile," and "Colour My World," as well as "25 or 6 to 4." Another suite "It Better End Soon," is a protest movement and ends with the simple, but very effective "Where Do We Go From Here." "In the Country," features the great Terry Kath, one of rock and roll's most under-rated guitarist of all time. Every song is good, and the CD as a whole represents some remarkable work by a very talented group.
Rhino is in the process of remastering Chicago's catalogue, and on this issue, they have included two bonus tracks, the single versions of "Make Me Smile," and "25 or 6 to 4." They also did a very nice job with the packaging, adding a 16-page booklet with commentary by the band and some rare photos. Highly recommended.

As a huge fan of Chicago's blistering acid jazz rock from 1969-1972 (Chicago Transit Authority through V), it is hard to select a favorite from this incredibly creative peak, although this 1970 album always seems to come up.

I think that all of the albums from this period had distinct personalities and this one seemed to me to be the most classically influenced. Of course, this was big band style jazz rock (with an emphasis on the rock), punctuated by Terry Kath's searing guitar work, and blasts from the horns, so using terms like classical to describe this music might be a bit of a stretch. However, some of the pieces have classical overtones - the intro to Poem for the People and the obvious choice Prelude/AM Mourning/PM Mourning, which is a classical piece through and through (that borders on modern classical at points). There is also the presence of very sophisticated and lengthy multi-movement suites (Ballet for a Girl in Buchanan; It Better End Soon). In fact, upon reading through the liner notes, it became clear to me that the guys were very interested in writing "serious" pieces that followed in the style of the famous classical composers - for example, Walter Pankow had been listening to Bach's Brandenburg Concertos, which inspired his beautiful piece Colour My World. Certainly, efforts like these were being undertaken in England by a number of rock groups, yet with much different results.

All of the guys in Chicago were incredible musicians and the ensemble work on the album Chicago (I am resisting the impulse to call this Chicago II, although that is what I used to think of it as) is just phenomenal. The guys knew how to really COMPOSE a proper piece of music. Counterpoint, melodies, harmonies, and the use of sophisticated meters are all used very well and make this album an extremely interesting listening experience. The guys were great vocalists too and they used the differences in the texture of their voices very well - for example, Terry sang the heavier pieces, while Peter sang the "sweeter", more melodic songs etc. The dynamic range is fairly broad too and ranges from the delicate acoustic textures of Prelude/AM Mourning/PM Mourning, through the spacey Hammond organ intro of Fancy Colours, to the blazing rock piece 25 or 6 to 4. Then there is the use of instrumentation: great horn arrangements, searing electric guitar, Peter's fantastic bass playing (he is criminally underrated); Danny Seraphines great drumming...whew, this is great stuff.

The remastering job by Rhino is fantastic and there are now a ton of liner notes and photos to go along with the original album art. Although I do miss my old vinyl version of Chicago...II, this remastered version is of very high quality and has fantastic sound quality.

All in all, this is an incredible album that contains music written by Chicago during their creative peak. Very highly recommended along with Chicago Transit Authority (1969); Chicago III (1971); the live Chicago IV (1971); and Chicago V (1972).

On the inside liner notes to the album, the band writes, "With this album, we dedicate ourselves, our futures and our energies to the people of the revolution ... And the revolution in all its forms." (I think the band changed its original name from Chicago Transit Authority to Chicago because the real Chicago Transit Authority, which actually operated trains and busses, didn't want their name attached to such a radical band!) From there on out, Chicago slowly drifted into assaulting us with lighter pop music. Such is life!

But Chicago I (actually "Chicago Transit Authority") and Chicago II (actually named just "Chicago") are both rock masterpieces, blending rock and horn driven jazz into a perfect union. "CTA" is a pure rock album, with a dominating base line, somewhat distorted guitar, some really great drum work, with the horns being used for ambience like a synthesizer or for punctuation.

With Chicago II, the band shows amazing growth as composers and musicians. The horns and woodwinds are allowed to take the lead, the music is easier listening, and the band braves soft rock classis such as "Colour My World" and "Wake Up Sunshine," and the jazzy "Fancy Colours." But, the album also contains some great rock, including the FM/AOR staple "25 Or 6 To 4."

Unlike many albums, this album is not simply a collection of singles, and contains three extended suites, including two with titles, "Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon" and "It Better End Soon," and one group of songs including "Prelude," "AM Mourning," "PM Mourning," and Memories of Love." Each is in a very different style. The "Ballet" is the best known section, containing mostly soft rock ballads of the type which would become Chicago's forte in later albums. "It Better End Soon" contains some hard core jazz, while the "Mourning" suite is virtually a classical piece of music. It does take an eclectic and varied taste in music to enjoy the entire album.

Why Buy the DVD-Audio? When the CD format was released, it was marketed as being perfectly true to the original master tapes. No skips, no record noise, no wow and flutter, and perfectly flat from the lowest notes to the highest notes a human can hear. What we got was 20 years of music which was synthesized, mechanical, cold, brittle, dry and fatigue inducing. CDs simply don't contain enough data to get the sound right. DVD-Audio (and SACDs which go back to the master tape) fix this problem. In addition, instead of two tracks, this DVD contains 5.1 channels of Dolby Digital music which can be played on all DVD players as well as higher resolution stereo and surround tracks for a DVD Audio player. You get to sit in the middle of the band. And the sound is marvelous. An A/B comparison with the CD reveals a midrange which is cleaned up immeasurably. This album contains real live horns and woodwinds. The brass sounds like brass instead of tin, and the vocals sound human instead of like a clock radio. Well worth the price of admission.

After "Chicago Transit Authority" announced to the world the existence of this wonderful rock group, the question was whether the follow-up album would be as good as their debut. The follow-up is not as good, it is better.

In some ways this album shows a dichotomy in musical styles. Portions of the album are constructed as progressive rock. Other portions are pop or rock and jazz combinations. Some are nearly classical. Some reviews of the album hint at this dichotomy by noting what the reviewers consider to be unlistenable portions of the album. It is interesting to note that depending on the style of music the reviewer prefers, the portions considered unlistenable by different reviewers may be exactly opposite from each other.

The CD pulls together the two albums that originally made Chicago II. Additionally, the singles versions of "Make Me Smile" and "24 or 6 to 4" are added as bonus tracks. There are two groupings of tracks that make suites. Tracks 6 through 12 are part of "Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon", and tracks 19 through 23 make up "It Better End Soon". There are five additional tracks leading up to the first suite, and six tracks between the two suites.

The five introductory tracks are blues-flavored rock. The fourth track, "In the Country", may remind some listeners of Three Dog Night. The other tracks in this group have the brass-flavored sound of "Chicago Transit Authority", but muted somewhat in comparison to the former album.

The first suite is a concept album, or side from the days of vinyl. Out of this suite came two singles, "Make Me Smile", which peaked at #9, and "Colour My World", for which I do not have a peak chart position. There is a lot of instrumental music in this grouping of tracks, and you can almost imagine these relatively short songs actually being one extended track, in the manner of progressive rock.

In the group of six songs between the two suites, several are noteworthy. "Fancy Colours" has a blues-jazz opening, but about a minute and a half into the song it transitions to a lighter, nearly pop sounding and faster song than the opening. The contrast is startling and makes you think the opening is a completely separate song from that after the transition. "25 or 6 to 4" was written by Robert Lamm when he was bleary-eyed and had stayed up too late. Knowing the origin of the song, the title nearly makes sense as you realize his brain wasn't working well when he tried to see what time it was. The next three instrumentals seem to form a mini-suite: "Prelude", "A.M. Mourning", and "P.M. Mourning". Given the style of the next song, "Memories of Love", you could possibly include that with the previous four selections. All four are mellow and heavily orchestral as opposed to rock.

The second suite starts off with a faster rock beat. In the second movement a flute is prominent and though the bass and piano keep the beat moving, the instrumental has a strong jazz flavor. The third movement has a vocal part, with a strong blues flavor and a heavy beat. The fourth movement has a rock feel to it leading into the final song of the suite, "Where Do We Go from Here", which was released as a B-side single.

This album is amazing. The musical styles include jazz, blues, neo-classical, and rock. The combinations are broad enough and unusual enough to allow this music to be classified in a variety of genres. However, I choose to consider this album progressive rock because of the extended length of the suites and the unusual combination of styles. When considering the other groups considered progressive from this era, King Crimson, The Moody Blues, and Yes, it seems less of a stretch to consider this album progressive rock.

I have to address the one other issue brought up by some other reviewers regarding the sound of this CD. I was unaware that the masters had been destroyed at a fire. Regardless of what happened to the masters, this CD is an improvement over my vinyl album. I admit that perhaps in places the ranges, particularly the lower ranges, are not as well represented as they could or should have been. However, I would rather have this awesome work of art in its current form than not at all. Perhaps at some time in the future we will have the technology to take the recordings we do have and perform an even more advanced digital re-mastering. Until that time, I will enjoy this CD as it is. 5 stars for a phenomenally experimental and beautiful CD.

This was one of my favourite records growing up as a kid and I wore my father's vinyl out. Needless to say that I know the album inside and out and I was so excited when Rhino started reissuing the entire Chicago catalogue. II was the one of the last albums I bought as I had already picked up the DVD Audio version of the disc which is flat out INCREDIBLE. Much to my dismay did I then discover that the same care taken to remaster the other Chicago albums was not bestowed upon the CD release of II. I had always thought that, compared to the rest of the band's catalogue, II was not recorded as well or as clearly. The mix always seemed a bit muddy and details would get lost. This was rememdied in the DVD Audio version I purchased wherein I was able to hear things in the recording I had never heard before. I assumed that this remastering process had originated with the CD remaster but this is not the case. If you want to really listen to this album, by all means pick up the DVD Audio version. I even recommend transferring that version down into a CD if you so desire because even though the packaging is as smart as usual the audio does not hold up.

"Chicago II" is Chicago's masterpiece, and it is as vibrant today as when it was first released. The horns are solid, the songs are dynamic, and the vocals are unbelievable. Every song is so tight, so well constructed, that it is nearly an emotional experience listening to it. Actually, it is.

"Movin' In," with Terry Kath on vocals, is an upbeat proclamation of Chicago's intents on the album. "Poem For The People" carries Robert Lamm's social messages from "Transit Authority" a bit further, and his vocals are extraordinary. "The Road," and "In The Country" add to make "side one" memorable. "Wake Up Sunshine" is one of the best ballads Lamm ever came up with, and it is a great lead-in to James Pankow's "Ballet For A Girl In Buchannon," which includes "Make Me Smile" and "Colour My World." What more can be said about this? Kath at his vocal best, and just fantastic song-writing.

"Fancy Colours" and the classic "25 or 6 to 4" lead off the "third side," both of which are Lamm compositions, showing him at his song-writing best. Kath's guitar work on "25 or 6 to 4" is legendary and well deserved so. The surprise is Kath's "AM Mourning" and "PM Mourning," which lead into his soulful "Memories of Love." The strings and horns in these insturmentals are so finely designed that they can bring one close to tears. Outstanding.

The album closes with the opus "It Better End Soon," and Peter Cetera's first composition, "Where Do We Go From Here." "It Better End Soon" is Chicago at its finest. Again, Kath on vocals, and tight horns, building up and punching the listener to and fro... it never got any better than this. Cetera's song is a mite weak, but it is acceptable because it ties the fury of "It Better End Soon" into a hopeful prayer.

This album, in my opinion, stands up to the scrutiny of time just as the best Beatles' albums do. The only down factor of listening to it is knowing what the original Chicago seven was capable of... and how sad it was that it all culminated into sappy pop ballads, and Bill Champlin. Listen to "Chicago II," and you're swept back into the magic of the best of the early 70s.

One of Chicago's greatest efforts. I still love the album today from an artistic standpoint. However, ever since 1970 I've wondered why this album has such a incredibly distant, super-compressed, mid-range sound with absolutely no bass or dynamic range? Was it intentional?

Their first album "Chicago Transit Authority", may have put them on the musical map, but Chicago's second album shows this legendary band defining their rock-jazz style. "CTA" was a groundbreaker in so many ways: Terry Kath's dominant hard rock guitar work, the blazing horns weaving into the mix of each song in a way that had never been heard before, elements of rock, jazz, and R&B blended so uniquely and three distinctly different and talented lead vocalists creating an electrifying listening experience.
"Chicago II" just doesn't expand on this approach or even take it one step further, with this album, Chicago seemed to go light years into new musical ground.
"Movin' In" opens the disc with a powerhouse Big Band style that grabs the listener and the band never let's go. Terry Kath, though less prominant than on "CTA" carries out some of his best guitar work with the classic "25 or 6 to 4" , "It better End Soon" suite, and "In the Country". The "Ballet for a Girl In Buchanan" suite highlights two top ten classics: "Make Me Smile" (more amazing solo guitar work by Kath) and "Colour My World" both sung by Terry with his trademark R&B baritone. Sinfully melodic songs such as "Wake Up Sunshine" and "Fancy Colours" stick to your ear long after the disc ends. Chicago explores a bit of orchestral style with "AM/PM Mourning" with intense strings and some Big band ballad textures.
The CD closes with Peter Cetera's first written song for Chicago "Where Do We Go From Here?". A simple tune in style and arrangement that foreshadows Peter's incredibly melodic writing contributions to this amazing band for years to come.
In a nutshell, the horn and vocal arrangements on this CD display Chicago at their best and the songwriting is incredibly strong and diverse.
If you are looking to explore the eclectic musical catalogue that Chicago has amassed over several decades, this is the CD is a must as it evidences their defining moment.

"Oh wow, man!"

Any baby-boomer who remembers the role that rock played in the social conscience of young America in the late 60's/early 70's should invest in this CD, and perhaps the Chicago recordings on either side of it as well. Having not listened to the complete recording of Chicago II in over three decades, the emotions invoked by the vigor and poignancy of the melodies and lyrics was an immediate trip back to that era, complete with its optimism and hope for social change. Others have undoubtedly already broken this album down far better than I could, so I'll pass on that aspect, other than to say that it was the beginning of infusing brass into rock, and in its early years, Chicago did it as well as anyone. It was a great time for horns, with Blood, Sweat and Tears, Ides of March, Tower of Power, and more. Most importantly, Chicago really captured the spirit of that era. Many songs have delved into social commentary in greater depth and with more clarity, but Chicago was about capturing the essence, which IMHO makes it a more lasting message. In dealing with the topic of social injustice, how do you top the conciseness of the lyric "Gotta end soon, my friend!"?

The throw-in singles tracks at the end of the CD are just that, and add little. As much as I loved those two particular tunes from that recording, they simply lose something heard out of the context of the flow of the entire recording.

At the risk of being over the top, I spent an enthralled hour listening to this CD, amid a swirl of emotions not felt in decades. It was worth every penny if I never listened to it again. But of course I already have. Many times...

Like most kid's in England during 1960's we were really spoiled when it came to great music. I however have to conceded that America produced so many groups who defined new genres. Thus it was with Chicago who intially were described as a "jazz rock" outfit. However this was only one of their styles. Listen to the album and you will hear jazz/rock/avant guard and yes political stuff as well. I remember hearing the single, "Does anybody know what time it is?" on UK Radio programme called Emperor Roscoes round table and noting that the reviewers just did not know what to make of it. They thought it was two separate tracks !! when the piano introduction suddenly switched to the main tune. Essentially this album is a tour de force of musical styles. Intellectual and Political/Experimental/Pop/Jazz/Beatles Homage etc. My favourites are Beginnings, Introduction and Does anybody know what time it is?,I'm a man,Listen. This album is up there with Pet Sounds and any of the Beatles best, possible the best for creativity and energy. I was lucky I listened to it when I was only 16 years old and free of musical prejudice. Buy it before your ears fail you..