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Chicago Transit Authority [Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered]

ChicagoAudio CD
4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (187 customer reviews)

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MP3 Music, 12 Songs, 2002 $9.49  
Audio CD, Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered, 2002 $6.99  
Vinyl, 2009 $27.44  
Audio Cassette, Original recording reissued, 1995 --  

Listen to Samples and Buy MP3s

Songs from this album are available to purchase as MP3s. Click on "Buy MP3" or view the MP3 Album.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Samples
Song Title Time Price
listen  1. Introduction (Remastered) 6:35$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen  2. Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is? (Remastered) 4:35$1.29  Buy MP3 
listen  3. Beginnings (Remastered) 7:54$1.29  Buy MP3 
listen  4. Question 67 And 68 (Remastered) 5:01$1.29  Buy MP3 
listen  5. Listen 3:24$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen  6. Poem 58 (Remastered) 8:35$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen  7. Free Form Guitar 6:49$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen  8. Southern California Purples 6:28$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen  9. I'm A Man 7:42$1.29  Buy MP3 
listen10. Prologue, August 29, 1968 (Remastered)0:57$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen11. Someday (August 29, 1968) (Remastered) 4:10$0.99  Buy MP3 
listen12. Liberation (Remastered)14:36Album Only


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According to Billboard chart statistics, Chicago is second only to the Beach Boys as the most successful American rock band of all time, in terms of both albums and singles. Judged by album sales alone, as certified by the R.I.A.A., the band does not rank quite so high, but it is still among the Top Ten best-selling U.S. groups ever. If such statements of fact surprise, that's because ... Read more in Amazon's Chicago Store

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Frequently Bought Together

Chicago Transit Authority + Chicago II (Repackaged) + Chicago III (Remastered & Expanded)
Price for all three: $28.97

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Product Details

  • Audio CD (July 16, 2002)
  • Original Release Date: 1969
  • Number of Discs: 1
  • Format: Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered
  • Label: Rhino
  • ASIN: B000069KGM
  • Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (187 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,151 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Having morphed--some would argue devolved--into a predictable ballad machine by the '80s, it's good to be reminded of Chicago's original artistic ethos and vibrant promise. And what better place to start than their spectacular 1969 debut? This digitally remastered edition compiles the double album on a single disc that retains the original LP artwork and features a 16-page booklet with a retrospective essay (based on new band member interviews) by David Wild. Chicago weren't yet the '70s hit-singles factory they would shortly become, and CTA showcases a band whose muscular musicianship and creative restlessness fostered two LPs worth of music that was as aggressive and far-ranging as its singles were friendly and inviting. Tellingly, the hits showcased here--"Does Anybody Know What Time It Is?" "Beginnings," "Questions 67 and 68," and their rhythmically pumped cover of the Spencer Davis Group's "I'm a Man"--were often edited down from the original collection's suite-heavy structure. But those familiar cuts belie the downright progressive and angular nature of much of the rest, which fuses Terry Kath's neo-psychedelic guitar (which careens to noisy, feedback-laden Hendrixesque extremes on "Free Form Guitar") to one of rock's pioneering horn sections with enough experimentalism ("Poem 58") that it frequently overwhelms their undeniable genius with a pop song. Chicago would seldom sound so adventurous after this, one of rock's greatest debut albums. --Jerry McCulley

Product Description

Their audacious debut double album from 1969 featured the hits Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?; Questions 67 & 68 , and I'm a Man .

Customer Reviews

This album remains the band's best work. The Footpath Cowboy  |  29 reviewers made a similar statement
That gave them a unique sound combining Jazz/Pop/Rock/Funk/Soul with glorious musical skills. Kim Fletcher  |  29 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
90 of 97 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A phenomenon worthy of the name "Chicago" April 15, 2003
Format:Audio CD
Few bands in history have produced a greater quantity of banal pop music than Chicago, so it's always a shock to play this album and remember just how cutting edge they were, how confident, brash and aggressive they sounded, in their first release. Few albums can boast as many outstanding performances as "Chicago Transit Authority", or "CTA", and with the exception of the Beatles, no band I know of ever boasted three lead singers as fine as Terry Kath, Robert Lamm and Peter Cetera.

"Beginnings" features a great vocal by Robert, lots of 7th chords, a gradually emerging latin beat, and fantastic trombone and trumpet solos. "South California Purples", uses long fade-in, fade-out brass notes, laid down on top of the power blues bass. "Poem 58" is a guitar tour de force by Terry morphing into a rousing, sexy, blues love song. Check out the intro by Terry, joined by Peter's bass rising into the fray, my favorite moment on the album. "I'm a Man" features all three singers strutting their stuff in succession to a jumpy, twitchy layer of percussion, putting even the fine version sung by Steve Winwood and the Spencer Davis Group into the dustbin of history. "Questions 67 and 68" is perfect power-pop. These are just my favorites, but there isn't a bad cut on here.

In 1969 Blood Sweat and Tears had the hit singles and the grammys, but this was the horn band with the most guts and impact, and was the true musical and spiritual descendent of the original Al Kooper-led BST of 1967. Much, but not all of it still sounds youthful and fresh 34 years after its release. By 1972 Chicago had hit rock bottom (of musical significance, not the charts), but in this original recording, they earned the right to appropriate the name of the city that was their home.

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45 of 49 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars CHICAGO WAS BUILT ON A TOUGH, ROCK-SOLID FOUNDATION! April 17, 2006
Format:Audio CD
AND HERE IT IS - ONE OF THE GREATEST ALBUMS AN AMERICAN BAND HAS EVER CREATED (in my opinion). Listen (yes there is a song on here by that name) to Terry Kath's ferocious guitar work throughout. This dude would have gone into spontaneous combustion without that outlet I think! He can sing too, and with so much soul...what an asset to the band. And he had better be with Daniel Seraphine's whirlwind power drumming and Peter Cetera on bass, this combo moved musical mountains by force of will (all could sing well, but Cetera was the harmony master it seems, check out the synergistic energy these young dudes could pull together, WOW). I guess Robert Lamm was often in the lead vocalist spot along with keyboard duties, but they all shared the spotlight nicely, his voice and songwriting are classic early Chicago. What would Chicago be without the signature horn section dynamics (fade in/outs, precision staccato explosions of sound, harmonic counterpoint), they do it all with such power and style. This recording had an inordinate influence on the music world, and rock world especially. There is a very progressive influence here, American style. The whole big band type of horn section mixed with acid rock was ground-breaking, and many tried to do their thing with it later to less success generally. Worth mentioning are the intense contemplative lyrics on many topics, metaphysical and otherwise, that (from the story I remember) got the real transit authority to request a distancing name change. This band was pretty revolutionary in every way. Jimi Hendrix even allegedly stated that Kath was better than him (somewhat modestly, I'm sure Kath would humbly disagree). If you are looking for a new classic album to absorb, you can't go wrong with this one - IT ROCKS BIG TIME! All other readers familiar with this (who like harder rock albums) won't need any convincing, this is the foundation from which Chicago built an empire. And this remaster of the original double album is very nicely done with a nice long essay, good track notes, many pictures and original artwork (about 77 minutes). You've got to love it! I always go back to this masterpiece when I want inspiration on many levels, 5 stars barely does it justice. Peace (often the message of this political statement from the vietnam era)!
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33 of 36 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Chicago's First is Still Their Best!! February 18, 2005
Format:Audio CD
When most people think of Chicago nowadays, the first thing that usually comes to mind is those lovely Peter Cetera-sung ballads and catchy upbeat pop tunes. However, before the ballads and before the big hits, Chicago was a giant seven-headed monster brewing with new innovative musical ideas with a solid 'jam-band' sensibility.

Released in 1969, Chicago's self-titled debut album, "Chicago Transit Authority" (the band's original name) displays the band on-fire with a number of extended musical numbers. Tracks such as "Introduction", "Poem 58", "South California Purples", the cover of Spencer Davis's "I'm A Man" and the closing 15-minute instrumental "Liberation" all showcase solid group interplay with the band's three-piece horn section and Terry Kath's stinging lead guitar taking center stage most of the time.

Although the album initially didn't generate any hit singles at the time of its release, several years later, many of the songs did get released as singles and have since become Chicago classics. The swinging "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?" (presented here in its full version complete with a two minute solo piano improvisation) and the band's now-signature tune "Beginnings" (also presented in full here, clocking in at 8-minutes) are tracks that long-time fans associate with Chicago and are still standards that the band performs live today. "Questions 67 and 68" was also a minor hit from the album and introduced Peter Cetera's high soaring vocals to the world.

"Chicago Transit Authority" is a solid group effort from start to finish and all seven band members get a chance to shine with plently of space here. However, if there is one musician from the band that truly stands out among the rest here, it would have to be guitarist/singer Terry Kath. On no other Chicago album does Kath let loose with some groundbreaking guitar work than on this one. His extended soloing in "Poem 58's" long intro as well as "Liberation" are up there with anything played from Clapton or Hendrix. "Free Form Guitar" is a seven-minute showcase performed by Kath in which he produces a plethora of sounds and feedback effects from his Stratocaster and amplifiers - a true buried treasure in the history of electric guitar playing. Terry's contributions to the music world were sadly overlooked by many and his untimely death in 1978 did nothing to errect him into 'legendary' status. However, Kath's work on this album is ample proof that he was indeed a guitar hero worthy of merit. One listen to this album is pure evidence of this.

Indeed, "Chicago Transit Authority" is still one of the band's very best efforts. After this, the band would begin to have greater success with hits such as "Make Me Smile" and "Colour My World" (from their second album) and eventually would find a niche in crafting out romatic ballads with Peter Cetera taking centerstage. However, this is where it all began.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Great CD !!!
This CD isn't just for hard core Chicago fans it's for everyone. I personaly love it and listen to it lots !!!
Published 15 hours ago by Ballsy
5.0 out of 5 stars Chicago-nuff said
The sound and clarity are fantastic. It`s my boys, I`ve been a fan since 1967.
I play it on my Bose and the music rocks the house. Yeah baby!
Published 1 day ago by Dave Tremaglio
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic
This album amazing, their first release and a concept double album, extremely well crafted, not all radio hits, but all genuine treasures. Read more
Published 14 days ago by John D
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Greatest Classic Rock Albums of All Time!!!!!!
This is one great classic rock album by The Chicago Transit Authority, they later changed their name to just Chicago. Read more
Published 24 days ago by Gary Covington
5.0 out of 5 stars Chicago opens with a winner
When you consider the competition at the time - Beatles, Stones, Pink Floyd, Zeppelin, etc - Chicago didn't stand a chance as being one of the premiere rock bands of all time. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Cinemabon
5.0 out of 5 stars Not 'If you leave me now'
Most people around the age of 30 only know Chicago from the Peter Cetera-lead love songs and power ballads era that they went through but this album is full of good, tight playing... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Joshua Anderson
5.0 out of 5 stars Chicago Transit Authority
It's so great to have all the music on one cd rather than having to turn a record over for side 2 then change records and then have to flip that disc over for side 4. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Craig D. Hamilton
5.0 out of 5 stars Their Best
Great CD.. I bought this after hearing "California Purples" on the radio while driving recently in California.. All of their best songs seem to be on this gem..
Published 3 months ago by Daniel Friedlander
5.0 out of 5 stars What real music sounds like
Chicago's first and best recordings! Terry Kath and co playing out of their minds on this one.When the band Chicago was real and werent the least afraid to take chances. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Mystikeye
4.0 out of 5 stars Great albumn from the 60's
The digital version works just fine for me. I am pissed however because I cannot send it over to itunes. Send help. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Thomas K. Ellenberger
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