Customer Reviews

Night And Day Big Band

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

The people who criticize this album definately need to listen AGAIN (or they just hate Chicago's sound). When I first heard this CD I couldn't believe that Chicago pulled it off! These are big band era tunes (40's) that are updated with great vocals, inventive arrangements, and end up sounding like..... well, Chicago. Much better than another power ballad.

Great performances by the guys in the band also. I'm wearing out this CD.

This Chicago offering is a terrific blend of the original trademark Chicago style with an excellent choice of standards from the Big Band era. While some critics have criticized the band for "Chicagoizing" these "classics", that's exactly what makes this such a unique and exciting CD.
Most every other artist's foray into the Big Band standards arena has produced recordings that are so true to the original arrangements (e.g. Harry Connick, Linda Rondstadt), they might as well have been recorded in the '40's, this outing by the boys from the Windy City evidences a fresh approach to this timeless material.
Every track shows Chicago exploring the composition from a different angle: whether it is the mystically slow tempo of "Night and Day", the Latin-tinged "Sing, Sing, Sing", or the down-and-dirty blues rock shuffle of "Blues in the Night".
True, the horn charts sound like classic Chicago, and that's the beauty of it. Here, they sound as warm and fat as ever, and trombonist Jimmy Pankow weaves them into the arrangements with his proven skill. Nothing fancy, just melodic and interesting horn charts with the trademark Chicago horns' silky style.
Every track here is a winner. A great CD!

I remember seeing the commercials for NIGHT & DAY and thinking, "Ah, jeez, Chicago's dead." I knew CHICAGO 21 hadn't sold well, and I'd heard something about what had transpired with THE STONE OF SISYPHUS. But a big-band album? It seemed to me an act of laziness, as if the fellas couldn't muster up enough creativity to do a REAL album of original tunes. So in my pig-headed way, I avoided listening to NIGHT & DAY for about 8 years.

I'm proud to admit here how dumb I was.

I picked up NIGHT & DAY a year or so ago, and kicked myself for not getting it sooner (the same holds true for the Christmas album). Simply put, it's among the best, most consistent works Chicago has done. Everything, from the singing to the arrangements, is carried off with gusto and flair. And the horns (aided and abetted by Bill Watrous' big band) are front-and-center for the first time in years.

A rousing version of "Chicago," voiced by Robert Lamm, kicks off the set, followed by a ripping version of "Caravan," also voiced by Lamm, and featuring lightning-fast horn arrangements (trombonist James Pankow has said that this album contains some of his best work in years, and he's right). LATE NIGHT WITH LETTERMAN piano man Paul Schaffer guests on "Dream A Little Dream of Me," sung effectively by Jason Scheff. And then things get REALLY good.....

"Goody Goody" features Bill Champlin, and he just sings the spots off the song. The cool keyboards help a lot, too. An upbeat version of "Moonlight Serenade" follows, and then comes the title track. Underscored by an African drumbeat and featuring a gorgeous horn bridge, "Night and Day" is really something special. But just when you think the album has peaked, Champlin strikes again with a blistering version of "Blues in the Night," arguably the best cut on the set; it famously features a wild guitar solo by Aerosmith's Joe Perry.

"Sing Sing Sing" is a bit of a letdown following "Blues"--the arrangement is thin, and the tempo seems forced--but "Sophisticated Lady" more than makes up for it with a lush, mysterious opening, terrific vocals from Scheff, and a haunting guitar solo at the close by Bruce Gaitsch. It's followed by a surprisingly straightforward version of "In the Mood" (with original lyrics by Chicago) and a really bright version of "Don't Get Around Much Anymore" featuring the best horn charts since CHICAGO V. The closer, "Take the 'A' Train," is a worthy retake on the Ellington classic, leaving the listener wanting more.

If you're a Chicago fan and haven't heard NIGHT & DAY yet, take the chance. No, it's not CTA, but this 1995 work creates and sustains a mood all its own.

This album is a return to glory for Chicago. They have taken the big band tunes and turned them into their own. Robert Lamm sets the tone with "Chicago". This song highlights his altra smooth voice and all three horn players. Then "Caravan" jams. Nice to hear a xylophone on this one and some good guitar rifs. "Goody Goody" is a fun fun bouncy tune featuring Bill Champlin. "Moonlight Serenade" is very well done. Jason Scheff and Robert Lamm share vocals on this one. Walt plays flute. The tune changes from a ballad to a rocker at the end with a nice fade. The title track is great. I love the "Lion King" drum intro and James Pankow plays his trombone about as well as ever. "Blues In The Night" is a hard blues/rocker complete with Joe Perry of Aerosmith playing guitar with a smoking solo. Champlin's vocals are soulful as well as powerful. Finally, my favorite "Take The "A" Train" is wonderful. It kind of reminds me of "Beginnings"

Really, this is one of Lamm's best songs ever as well as one of Chicago's best albums ever.

This CD is not for everyone. These are contemporary, rock, r&B, and Latin (among others) re-arrangents of Big Band songs. Although it deserves at least a chance, true big-band fans will be divided on this one. Some will love it, some will think they butchered perfectly good songs. I loved it. I didn't like all the songs, such as "Chicago," "Goody Goody," "Blues in the Night," and "Don't Get Around Much Anymore." didn't care for "Take the A Train," and I did not like what they did with "In the Mood." But, dislikes aside, the rest is great.

"Chicago" didn't appeal to me at first, but it got better and better. Paul Shaffer's excellent piano work and Jade's soulful voices give a big boost to "Dream A Little Dream of Me." In the intro, Shaffer's fingers seem to be all over the keys at once. I did come to like the "Lion King"-ish re-working of "Night & Day" after some time, even though I hated it at first. "Moonlight Serenade" gets a lovely '80's ballad turn, with nice brass work. "Sophisticated Lady" is re-worked into a sexy R&B ballad, with an introduction that just pulls you right in. The singing is appropriately romantic, and the end, with its reprise of the introduction, is very gratifying. As a big fan of Latin jazz, I really loved "Caravan" and the biggest surprise here, the Latin arrangement of "Sing, Sing, Sing" with the Gipsy Kings. "Caravan" is in fine form here, with a standard but still infectious Latin phrase repeating under the lyrics and a harmon-muted trumpet playing the tune as it is sung. I especially enjoyed the instrumental break where all the instruments blare out the Latin phrase as a sort of fanfare, with the percussion beating away behind it. I found this part wonderfully reminiscent of the fanfare during the mambo in "West Side Story" where the Sharks flamenco-step across the gym floor and yell "Mambo!" I also found the short part near the end where all the instruments except percussion stop and it's just the vibes playing repeating the accompaniment a nice touch. "Sing, Sing, Sing," although one wouldn't think it, thrives with its Latin arrangement. you know you're in for something when you hear the guitar take over the opening "bum, bum-bum bum..." part. Like with "Caravan," my favorite part here was the instrumental break. Where in Goodman's arrangement the brass would slowly vamp in after the drum solo, here it's taken care of by the guitar with an intriguing effect. I enjoyed the part near the end when the horns do the stripper-music-sounding bit over the guys singing in Spanish.

This really is a good CD, and it should be given a listen by anyone who likes big-band. You never know; you may like it.

The purpose of a review is to help someone decide whether s/he should purchase a CD. Wow, this is a hard one, because it's hard to describe the very comprehensive liberties that Chicago takes with these classics. This CD won't appeal to everyone, but I think it would be surprisingly appealing to a lot of people who aren't already Chicago fans.

For whatever it's worth, I feel very positive about what Chicago has done with these charts. In fact, WOW! What an addictive CD with big, rich sound and with a very knowledgeable group of musicians' interpretation of the classics in America's musical genre (jazz)! VERY exciting stuff for me! Most of the people I know who have ever played a wind or rhythm instrument agree that this is a fantastic CD.

That said, again it's hard to be descriptive in this review. So, in the absence of any helpful description, here's who should definitely take in this CD:

1. People who like Chicago for its musical prowess as a group, but not necessarily for its "pop love sap."
2. People who like Jazz for its tendency to be constantly evolving and improvising, even on its own successes.
3. People who like Big Band classics AND don't mind the idea of having them remade so that they don't sound like the essential classic Big Band charts.
4. People who would like to be introduced to the Big Band genre without listening to albums with grainy sound and pre-digital production.

Those who may NOT appreciate this CD include:

1. People who like Chicago's classic rock tunes but haven't liked them since their sound became digitized in the 80s and 90s. (Although this is a completely different genre, so I would still give it a chance--it might surprise you.)
2. People who like Big Band classics but think they should remain classics not to be tampered with. (Definitely would NOT like this CD, because it does take liberties with the classics.)
3. People who have listened to jazz, rock, pop, and Big Band--and they don't like any of it! (Classical music gurus, country fans, rappers, and metal heads will not appreciate this.)

That said, I could not give a higher endorsement to any CD made strictly of remade music. This was the most unique CD I added to my permanent collection of favorites in the mid- to late 90's. I recommend it to anyone who likes new ideas in music, likes "feel good" music in any gnere, or enjoys strong musicianship and memorable melodeis.

I really did listen to this CD "Night and Day," for months after I bought it. I think most people would do the same.

This CD is not for everyone. These are contemporary, rock, r&B, and Latin (among others) re-arrangents of Big Band songs. Although it deserves at least a chance, true big-band fans will be divided on this one. Some will love it, some will think they butchered perfectly good songs. I loved it.

I didn't like all the songs, such as "Goody Goody," "Blues in the Night," and "Don't Get Around Much Anymore," and I did not like what they did with "In the Mood."

But, dislikes aside, the rest is great. "Chicago" has a swinging/rocking intro, and continues in a similar fashion. It's a fun song.

Paul Shaffer's excellent piano work and Jade's soulful voices give a big boost to "Dream A Little Dream of Me." In Shaffer's very bluesy intro, fingers seem to be all over the keys at once.

"Moonlight Serenade" gets a lovely '80's ballad turn, with nice brass work (the horns are really put to good use here) and a lovely flute. As a big Glenn Miller fan, I really appreciated the wind instruments playing the melody under the singers very much like the Miller band. In the middle, there is a rocking musical interlude, complete with great horns and echoing voices. I also like the way they end it.

I once thought that this arrangement of "Night and Day" was atrocious with it's 'Lion King'-style reworking, but I've since changed my opinion of it. I've grown to rather like that opening, perhaps because it conjures clear images of adult Simba running across the plains with his father's image in the sky and all that. All the 'Lion King' stuff stops when the actual song starts, though, and the song is actually very good and done relatively straight. The chanting sneaks back in at the end, along with a few stray bird calls and soon after, the sound of a running stream. Before long, it's sounding like a ballad by Martin Denny! But, it's still good.

"Sophisticated Lady" is re-worked into a sexy R&B ballad, with an introduction that just pulls you right in. The singing is appropriately romantic, and I love the instrumental parts. There's a short one with a cute arrangement of note-climbing horns. The end where the introduction is reprised are very gratifying. The horns are full, robust, and especially beautiful here, and there is a very jazzy and very sexy guitar solo. This is one of the disc's best tracks.

I hated "Take the A Train." It starts off fine, but soon gets bad and then devolves into a dissonant, cluttered, crowded, noisy and messy end.

As a big fan of Latin jazz, I really loved "Caravan" and the biggest surprise here, the Latin arrangement of "Sing, Sing, Sing" with the Gipsy Kings.

"Caravan" is in fine form here, with a standard but still infectious Latin phrase repeating under the lyrics and a muted trumpet playing the tune as it is sung. I especially enjoyed the instrumental break where all the instruments blare out the Latin phrase as a sort of fanfare, with the percussion beating away behind it and the electric guitar sizzling away. I found this part wonderfully reminiscent of the fanfare during the mambo in "West Side Story" (check out my review!) where the Sharks flamenco-step across the gym floor and yell "Mambo!" I also found the short part near the end where all the instruments except percussion stop and it's just the vibes playing repeating the accompaniment a nice touch.

"Sing, Sing, Sing," although one wouldn't think it, thrives with its Latin arrangement. you know you're in for something when you hear the guitar take over the opening "bum, bum-bum bum..." part. Like with "Caravan," my favorite part here was the instrumental break. Where in Goodman's arrangement the brass would slowly vamp in after the drum solo, here it's taken care of by the guitar with an intriguing effect. I enjoyed the part near the end when the horns do the stripper-music-sounding bit over the guys singing in Spanish.

This really is a good CD, and it should be given a listen by anyone who likes big-band. You never know; you may like it.

This CD is absolutely one of the best I've heard. The production quality is unbelievable and the song selection is classic. Anyone that enjoys the fusion of rock/horns should get this. It pratically lives in my CD player. And, my kids love it too!

I love this album! Normally I listen to contemporary music, but this gave me a new appreciation for the old standards. It presents these classics with a new, hip twist; while remaining true to the original "feel" of the song. Naturally, while some tracks are better than others, and purists will generally turn many shades of green; those with open minds will be glad they tried it.

This album was released in 1995, I didn't hear about it until 2003, and didn't find a place to buy it until I started buying from Amazon.com in 2009. I am mad at myself for not finding it sooner. This should have been done a long time ago.
I grew up listening to these songs, they were my parents favorites and, as a musician myself, I loved them. and Chicago has been one of my favorite bands since 1968. The combination of that band and those songs is unbeatable.
One of my favorites, is Bill Champlin's rendition of "Blues In The Night" it is so solid that I am going to get my band "The Dixie Blues" to add it to our playlist.
This album just puts a smile on your face as you listen. It is great to hear these wonderful songs played in a fashion that does them justice and brings a new current interpretation to them.
"Night and Day", would make a good gift for someone that likes big band music or a Chicago fan like me. Buy it, you may not like every song but you should like most of it.