Customer Reviews

Chicago VIII

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

After Chicago had cooled down a bit with albums VI and VII, they rock once again with VIII. "Anyway You Want", "Ain't It Blue", and "Hideaway" will all have you bopping in your seat. You have the catchy "Harry Truman", "Old Days", and "Long Time No See". "Brand New Love Affair" is beautiful and heartfelt in Part I, and then rocking and energetic in Part II. But to me, the true gems on this album are the Terry Kath tunes. "Oh, Thank You Great Spirit" takes the same route as "Love Affair", starting off mellow, and winding up ROCKING! But Kath's guitar solo to round this one off will knock your socks off. Finally, I saw another review that said "Til We Meet Again" belonged in the "men's room". I couldn't disagree more. The lyrics are romantic, and accompanied by only acoustic guitar, it is everything a ballad should be.

All in all, I would probably rank Chicago VIII #3 out of their whole catalog, only following "Transit Authority" and "II". A must-have for true fans, and a good album to start with for new listeners. But remember, the Chicago of the 80's is NOT what you should expect. Instead, get ready to rock a lot more.

As far as I'm concerned, this is the last rock album Chicago ever produced. By '73 the major emphasis was on hits and ballads, much to the chagrin of guitarist Terry Kath. While the money was good, his monster playing was taking a back seat to AM radio hit fodder. One listen to Kath on CHICAGO TRANSIT AUTHORITY I, CHICAGO II, CHICAGO AT CARNEGIE HALL, or LIVE IN JAPAN show his amazing ability. When the band rolled into Nederland, CO to record VIII, they were torn and frayed. It seems to me either Kath took control of these sessions or producer James William Guercio gave him control of them. Either way, the focus essentially became a rock band consisting of Kath's guitar, Peter Cetera's bass, Robert Lamm's piano, and Danny Seraphine's skins. There are a couple songs that don't have horns at all. Kath's guitar work on this album is stellar: "Anyway You Want It", "Hideaway" (my favorite), & "Oh, Thank You Great Spirit" are prime examples. Kath's vocal work is soulful as usual on stand outs like "Brand New Love Affair Part I" and "Ain't It Blue". The true essential four piece rock outfit of Chicago is evident on "Hideaway"; a song that in its day, should've found its way on the album oriented FM stations of the day. The obligatory hits are here as well: "Old Days" was a top 5 hit (a song Cetera absolutely hates and refused to sing in concert after the tour to support VIII); Lamm's ditty "Harry Truman" reached the top 20 and "Brand New Love Affair Part I & II" by Kath and Cetera hit #61. The worst song on the original album by far was Kath's "Till We Meet Again". The guitar work is decent but overall the song is poor. Lamm's written Cetera sung "Never Been In Love Before" showcases the band's background vocal ability.
The album was remastered and partially remixed recently and released on Rhino Records. This is a great improvement over the edition released by Columbia Records in the late 80's. The packaging was poor and sound quality sub par. The new version sounds wonderful and the difference can be heard on "Hideaway" with the drums slightly remixed and "Oh, Thank You Great Spirit". Also included are two unreleased rehearsal songs and a remake of "Satin Doll" recorded for Dick Clark's Rockin New Year's Eve '74. Personally this album is my favorite Chicago album. The remastered version is a delight for me. This album ranks up there with CHICAGO TRANSIT AUTHORITY I & CHICAGO II. I highly recommend this album, especially if you like the early Chicago songs.

Imagine, a Chicago album without a ballad! This collection shows the entire group at their very best, Kaths best guitar performance since the debut and his vocal on "Brand new love affair" is just perfect. And the brass section really rock. While there is no ballad, the collection is still varied, out and out rock songs to match the best any hard rock group could produce "Hideaway" and the most amazing "Oh Thank you...",the acoustic "Till we meet again" and the 2 great singles "Old Days" and "Harry Truman". Funny, the only thing I dislike is Ceteras vocal on "Never been in love before"..how this got on Chicago IX and not the 2 hits above Ill never know.

I found the album a very interesting effort. The album had three good hit releases, "Harry Truman", Old Days" and "Brand New Love Affair". Harry Truman in particular had alot of air play where I lived back in West Texas. I completely disagree with those that claim Chicago stopped playing good music after the 3rd album. This album is a prime example. "Any Way You Want", "Hideaway" and "Oh Thank You Great Spirit" are also stand out tunes on this album.

Anyone who thinks Chicago does only ballads should listen to this CD. Chicago proves it can rock with songs such as "Hideaway," Terry Kath's "Oh Thank You Great Spirit," and "Ain't It Blue." Other songs include Top 40 favorites "Old Days" and "Harry Truman," but it's the songs that rock that really shine on this CD. The CD packaging is poor (in this case it's doesn't exist...no notes) but buy this CD for the music.

Imagine, a Chicago album without a ballad! This collection shows the entire group at their very best, Kaths best guitar performance since the debut and his vocal on "Brand new love affair" is just perfect. And the brass section really rock. While there is no ballad, the collection is still varied, out and out rock songs to match the best any hard rock group could produce "Hideaway" and the most amazing "Oh Thank you...",the acoustic "Till we meet again" and the 2 great singles "Old Days" and "Harry Truman". Funny, the only thing I dislike is Ceteras vocal on "Never been in love before"..how this got on Chicago IX and not the 2 hits above Ill never know.

Of all the Chicago albums, this one seems to be the most underrated and overlooked. Where I lived, "Old Days" got a lot of air play for a while but then it dropped of the dee jays play list. Nevertheless, this is a solid album and I'd recommend it to anyone who's a fan of Chicago.

Peter Cetera's song writing is at its best on this album and Robert Lamm, as usual, delivers more than his fair share of home runs. Although "Old Days" is a good song, I think songs like "Anyway You Want," "Long Time, No See" or "Hideaway" would've made better singles because they're catchy, enjoyable tunes that never wear out their welcome.

"Brand New Love Affair Parts 1 & 2" is the group's last jazz influenced song. Kath's vocal is solid and the orchestral arrangement blends in nicely without being overbearing.

The only really weak songs on this album are Kath's "Til We Meet Again" and "Oh Thank You, Great Spirit." TWMA sounds like it was recorded in the men's room and that's where it should've stayed. "Great Spirit" is too long and too bizarre for my tastes but Kath does some neat guitar work on this cut so I guess it's not a total bust.

Chicago's eighth album is a powerhouse mixture of hard rock, bluesy funk, & jazzy ballads, with a touch of psychedelia thrown in. Somehow, under Jimmy Guercio's Svengali-esque production, it works.

One thing that doesn't, on ALL of the CD releases, is the packaging. This damn album, like many of their 70's releases, came with a poster AND an iron on patch! Not that they'd reproduce that, but it's a shame that no one even tries to at least show you. These all need to be remastered, so I believe there's a market for reproducing the artwork. Hell, I'd buy it.

Anyway, rebounding from the meandering to effective Chicago VII, the band streamlines The Works in an enjoyable little package. The amazing thing is that, while the album charted one #5 single & one #61, there were about 3 other potential hits here.

With contributions from every major writer, all score with the exception of Bobby Lamm's popular but hokey HARRY TRUMAN. Well, it was intentionally hokey, but it still doesn't work. Pete Cetera's 12 bar blues-like ANY WAY YOU WANT manages to hook you right away, even more-so when guitarist Terry Kath lets it absolutely rip. Hit potential. Jimmy Pankow scores big with the 2 part jazzy ballad, BRAND NEW LOVE AFFAIR PTS 1 & 2 (which charted #61), with exquisite vocals by Kath. Robert Lamm's NEVER BEEN IN LOVE BEFORE features a great vocal by Cetera, and a poweful bridge with thoughtful Chicago harmonies. Hit potential. Cetera's HIDEAWAY is straight ahead hornless hard rock, but Kath's guitar again sets it apart. Kath's own accoustic TILL WE MEET AGAIN is simple & emotional.

After HARRY TRUMAN misses, there's no more of that. Kath's trippy OH THANK YOU GREAT SPIRIT is worth repeated listens. Lyrically, the narrator simply wakes up dead, but check out the chilling way it's presented. "I saw myself still lying there..." is plain spooky, considering the guitarist's eventual death. The final 3 tracks are relentless pop & blues hooks. Lamm's LONG TIME NO SEE absolutley reeks of the charts. The sax-heavy horn arrangement, buzzy guitar, and Beatle-sque "Yeah, yeah, yeah" are pure radio. Again, Lamm clubs you with AIN'T IT BLUE?, utilizing Kath's Ray Charlesy pipes & dirty Telecaster, Lamm's Steinway & group harmonies. Oh, and the horns. Not necessarily a single, but Pankow's OLD DAYS was, and a great one at that. Talk about nostalgia.

Talk about Power Pop. Chicago VIII was, well, "The Bomb," at least in 1974. Hell, I still like the CD, but it would be even better with the iron on patch.

Generally a good album. Contains the nostalgic 'Old Days' and the bluesy 'Brand New Love Affair'. The standout track has to be the mysterious 'Oh, Thank You Great Spirit'. CD packaging could have been improved (the inside of the booklet is blank!). The CD itself sounds good.

Although the rest of the album is very nice, one song pops up as Terry Kath's best performance in a studio. "Oh, thank you, great spirit" is absolutely the best Chicago song ever, and I mean ever. People who say that Chicago stunk after their first four albums should listen and weep.