Side 1, then 2… I firmly believe that “Introduction” is one of the greatest first track on any debut album, ever.

@adladl4276

Жыл бұрын

I think Black Sabbath, on Black Sabbath, from Black Sabbath is a pretty amazing example too.

@philsmith2444

Жыл бұрын

“Sit back and let us groove And let us work on you” Talk about an appropriate line for the song and the whole album.

@caballero3601

Жыл бұрын

@@philsmith2444 Yes. The self-reflective lyrics are part of the song’s genius.

@philsmith2444

Жыл бұрын

@@caballero3601 They tell you exactly what you’re in for. “We are not the band for passive listeners, you’re going to have to put some effort into your listening. We promise you won’t be disappointed.”

@philipberger621

Жыл бұрын

The problem was that they had too many great songs that they had to move on to their next album. I don't remember this song getting any air time, along with South California Purples.

Man, don't you wish there were bands still making music like this today?

@Inquisitor6321

Жыл бұрын

💯%

@peterjordanson1021

Жыл бұрын

kzread.info/dash/bejne/a5Oo0dSIhK6bocY.html

@craigkowald3055

Жыл бұрын

There are a few still around besides these guys including Tower of Power, Blood Sweat and Tears, and Earth Wind and Fire.

@matthewking3126

Жыл бұрын

There are! But in their own sensibility. TapRoots is a modern group that plays Latin funk fusion, but they are heavily influenced by Chicago and others from back in the day ...

@rayjr62

Жыл бұрын

No, can't do that. After all, this is going to take a ton of studio time (not to mention, talent) and that is going to cut into the stock holders profit margin, and our beautiful investors will not tolerate that.

Peter is also a terrific bassist. The fact that he can sing lead vocals and play fairly complex and interesting bass lines is always impressive. Terry Kath is of course, one of the great guitarists ever. They were an incredibly talented band.

@robertakerman3570

Жыл бұрын

Hi Brian, Might I add that "drumming/singing" is also magical? We mere Mortals just marvel @ this stuff.

@thembill8246

Жыл бұрын

Key part of that is that they were an incredibly talented band. Once Terry died. It just was never the same. I blame Doc Severinsen for all the schlocky garbage that Peter cetera convinced them to put out under the Chicago name in the '80s.

@Gregor9043

Жыл бұрын

Agreed, I always hear people talk about good voice. But his bass playing is just masterful.

@philsmith2444

Жыл бұрын

Any bassist who can keep up with and complement Danny Seraphine is a one-percenter in my book.

@inexplicablyleft2729

Жыл бұрын

You forgot to add that he can chew gum at the same time. I laugh at so many of the early videos when I see him doing that.

If more people had heard Poem 58, Terry Kath would be in the conversation for great guitarists, but sadly, probably because Chicago is known as a "horns band", he flies well under the radar. My favorite "guitar" song. I've listened to this at least 50 times over the years.

@MB-mw1xr

6 ай бұрын

I’m more like listen 50 times A YEAR. 😁👍👍

@sturgeonslawyer

Ай бұрын

A lot of people have heard of Kath (PBUH). Jimi Hendrix (PBUH) once called him the best guitar player in the world. He probably isn't well-known to metalheads, but to more general music aficionados ... he is known. (He's also respected in prog rock circles, as the first several Chicago albums were very proggy.)

Terry Kath usually gets the most accolades, and understandably so, but everyone in this band was such an incredible musician.

@harleyhexxe9806

Жыл бұрын

I totally agree

@FG-gi9et

Жыл бұрын

Don’t forget that Bob Lamm practically wrote the entire album. He put them on the map

Terry Kath! The most underrated guitarist in the history of music IMHO 🔥✌🤘

@glennmichaelthompson4112

Жыл бұрын

Jimi Hendrix was a huge fan of Terry Kath's guitar playing.... so you're in good company!!!🎸🎼🎶

@rexrossman6666

Жыл бұрын

I'm not convinced that Terry Kath was even the most underrated musician in the band. The argument could be made that Danny Seraphine was even much more underrated than Terry.

@isitrealgood

Жыл бұрын

You're not so "underrated" if you're allowed to blow seven minutes of your band's debut double-album doing a Hendrix impression.

@stevenhymowech9931

9 ай бұрын

Band was not at all the same after Terry died. He was the heart and soul.

@eddcabrera2367

5 ай бұрын

I agree 110 % !!!!!!!!

@1:05:18 -- "Always start with Side One and run the whole thing. The whole thing is a composition."

Danny Seraphine is such an amazing drummer and one of my inspirations ( no pun intended ) for my drumming. He was a big part of Chicago’s sound back in the late 60s and the 70s.

@keithbarnes9419

Жыл бұрын

Me too along with Keith Moon & Carl Palmer

@jeankutzer1556

Жыл бұрын

Danny has had his own band and done some recording. Even had Geddy Lee of Rush sit in with him once.

@lolmarcos9912

10 ай бұрын

Danny was head and shoulders above any other drummer of that era. There were good drummers, but no one to compare with what Danny could, and had to, do. The combination of rock, jazz, switching different times and beats was way beyond what the basic rock and roll band drummers were doing at that time.

Wow this brings back so many memories for me! The answer to the question, "why have I never heard this" is twofold. First, this album probably came out before you were born. More importantly, anytime you hear Chicago on the radio, all you hear is Peter Cetera's ballads, not this jazzy bluesy rock stuff. A friend told me that one of the members of Blood Sweat and Tears said that this was exactly the sound they really wanted. I just loved the first 2 albums. This is the United States' answer to progressive rock - based on jazz and blues instead of classical. I love all of it. Thank you for posting this.

@garyclark9618

Жыл бұрын

Very good 😊 That song Spinning Wheel is so freaking awesome 😎 Actually it's one thirty a.m. and now I just have to listen to that song too!

@paulclarry9991

Жыл бұрын

Agreed. David Clayton Thomas was soooo jealous that Chicago made it as a horn band while Blood Sweat and Tears was more or less a one-hit wonder. Cetera left Chicago because David Foster convinced him he was bigger than the band and because Cetera wanted to be known as a singer rather than as a bass player. Terry Kath's death was a huge setback for the band, but Foster destroyed it, turning it into a power ballad outfit. Cetera enjoyed his own success but somehow it seems that neither the band nor Cetera ever measured up to the success of early Chicago.

@daveburns3886

9 ай бұрын

A producer ? Record exec who was working with Chicago TA before they released saw the possibilities of strong brass section with rock and formed a group called BS and tears.. the had 3-4 great songs but.. they couldn’t touch this however, the talent gap was immense

"This is righteous" ... ABSOLUTELY CTA is in my top 5 favorite debut albums of all time 🤘

Cetera and Kath. God, in high school we heard these guys and our heads exploded. How could a band that looked like our high school jazz band be this cool and funky? I miss old Chicago so much.

@markthoele1808

6 ай бұрын

Me too.

@dantana5774

5 ай бұрын

I was in high school when this came out, and my instincts told me that this might be the greatest album I'd ever hear

I played trumpet in band all through my school days growing up so naturally, I was attracted to Chicago for the horns. But after listening to the first couple of albums, I fell in love with Terry Kath's guitar work which is just some of the best blues and rock guitar in the history of music! At the same time, Free Form Guitar never did much for me. Over the years, while Kath used the Strat a lot, he also used Gibson SGs but apparently his favorite was a Fender Telecaster that was covered with stickers from the Pignose Amp company which Terry had invested in. That story is covered in the documentary The Terry Kath Experience which was put together by his daughter, Michelle.

@oldmanghost219

Жыл бұрын

Same here except I played sax. I loved the idea of adding that guitar and rock to all the bands that I played in - Concert Stage & Marching. And i also recommend a Daughter's search for the father she never knew and the guitar that people had been looking for - for decades. She did find it., and the 1st one revealed looked like the one that he 1st used with Chicago, or at least in the live Tanglewood concert 1970. - The Terry Kath Experience - He already gave us part of the reason for the title.

Still their best album; it is a stone cold classic. Unfortunately it seems to get forgotten. Thanks for reviewing it.

"I don't think I like it but it's amazing!" Best description of Free Form Guitar ever. I've been fascinated by the track since I was a teen. But do I like it? Well...

Free form Guitar & The Old Castle (ELP Pictures at an Exhibition) both 100% guaranteed to get those famous fatherly words "turn that racket down" yelled from wherever he was

@spikeysnack

Жыл бұрын

" 'music' to make your parents cringe and look at each other concerned..." Still, putting that onto an album in 1969 was an act of rebellion. I guess Jimi Hendrix might have done something similar by then, but Oh Lord.

@caballero3601

Жыл бұрын

Don’t forget Revolution Number 9.

@caballero3601

Жыл бұрын

@@spikeysnack Or it could have just been a case of:

Free form guitar - i mean listening to this once is enough for most die-hard early Chicago fans. But really, it's amazing to imagine a world in which a record studio would allow a band to put this on their debut album. That this was done, alone, makes it remarkable.

@jazzpunk

Жыл бұрын

I used to wonder if Van Halen's "Eruption" was a nod to Kath's piece...

@debbiecatrambone4266

Жыл бұрын

That is one of the reasons when Jimmy Hendrix was asked what’s it like to be the best guitarist and his response was.I don’t know ask Terry Kath!!!!😮😅😊

@pjeastwood9241

10 ай бұрын

I think I am the only person who listens to Free Form guitar for pleasure. I imagine I am peering out from under hood of a racecar as we fly around the track. 😁

@pjeastwood9241

7 ай бұрын

"That's amazing! I don't think I like it. " made me laugh out loud.😅

Poem 58, 53, 54 years later is just fantastic. Many people don't know this true gem.

@ajaykiran973

Жыл бұрын

Absolutely phenomenal!!! Way ahead of what Led Zeppelin did in terms of sheer musicality.

"I'm a Man"... Live video at Tanglewood is jaw dropping! You get to see the raw stage performance with no bells and whistles.... Oh, and "25 6 to 4"!!!

@oldmanghost219

Жыл бұрын

Yes - Tanglewood and add to that - Ballet For A Girl In Buchannon. Terry was on FIRE !!!

Kath, Seraphine, Cetera, Lamm. Best rhythm section in the history of rock 'n roll.

"I think I'm going to go to our herbal friend for this one." Good call.

One of the unique things about the Chicago horns is that they are not just there for stabs and backgrounds... they are a legitimate additional voice of the band. Somewhat similar to Blood Sweat, and Tears, but different from many other rock bands with horns.

Hey Doug. “Free Form Guitar” puzzled me for decades too. I thought it was “too deep” for me to understand…until I got lots more life experience and education. Now I think this is more likely what happened: CTA producer James Guercio: “Hey guys! Listen up! We got too much music for one album but too little to make two. You got any ideas?” Terry Kath: “Hold my beer…”

@timothystamm3200

Жыл бұрын

Apparently he was just messing around and the studio tech opened the mics and latter submitted it for the album. I do not know why they accepted outside of the fact that it filled it out and explained the end of Liberation.

@oldmanghost219

Жыл бұрын

LOL - That's as good of an explanation I have ever heard. Joe Walsh in the documentary - The Terry Kath Experience - Said that he knew how Terry got some of those sounds but some he can't

@caballero3601

Жыл бұрын

@@oldmanghost219 Yeah. I heard that! I think CTA’s members at that time were still heavily influenced by the Beatles. You hear that in many places on CTA and Chicago II. The Beatles got away with the experimental soundscape that is “Revolution #9” so CTA’s creators thought, “If it’s good enough for the Fab Four, it’s good enough for us.”

@caballero3601

Жыл бұрын

@@timothystamm3200 How’d it explain the end of Liberation?

@timothystamm3200

Жыл бұрын

@@caballero3601 they were willing to experiment with noise, because with Free-form Guitar you would have heard it before it shows up at the end of the solo section of Liberation.

Poem 58 is my favorite Chicago song of all time

@robertcussins2807

Жыл бұрын

Oh...absolutely. Gads what a great power trio...Cetera, Seraphine, and Kath.

@bennythedog93

Жыл бұрын

Me three!!

@dragonfan9696

Жыл бұрын

chicago still tries today

@Seej1982

Жыл бұрын

Have you heard the quad mix? Backing vocals bounce from one speaker to another as well!

@briancoyne8815

Жыл бұрын

This was my favorite song to stump my friends…name that band! 4 minutes of “Robin Trower? Jeff Beck? Santana? Rory Gallagher? I give up!” 3.2 seconds after horns enter…”Chicago!? No way!”

Cetera is the most underrated bassist ever!!

To be fair on the Free Form cut, Terry was asked to do this because they needed to fill up a few minutes to fill out the double album..

Hey Doug, someone may already mentioned this story about Terry Kath and Jimi Hendrix, but if not.............very early in Chicago's career (when they were still CTA) they were doing a show at the Whiskey A Go Go on the Sunset Strip and Jimi Hendrix was in the audience. During a break, Jimi came up to Chicago's sax player, Walter Parazaider, and told him that the band sounded great and that "you're guitarist is better than me". Jimi and Chicago ended up playing a couple gigs together and Jimi had wanted to record an album with Chicago, but unfortunately, he died before they had the opportunity.

I don't have your knowledge of the mechanics of the music, but I know what I like when I hear it and when this album came out, I LOVED IT - it is still my favorite

I saw CTA on their first tour of Britain back in 1969. The tour was very under publicized and nobody in UK had heard of them. It was a Saturday afternoon matinee performance at an Odeon cinema in the suburbs of South London. Only about 30 people in the audience. They played most of the stuff from this album and they were brilliant, despite the venue and small audience. Top drawer professional musicianship.

As far as I'm concerned this is one of the, if not THE, best debut albums ever.

@apooyosucks

Жыл бұрын

There's honestly a lot of great debut albums out there. Boston, Toto, Led Zeppelin, and the Beatles' Please Please Me.

@skatter44

Жыл бұрын

@@apooyosucks Well, I did say it was one of the best. I didn't say that it was absolutely the best.

When I was first getting into music in the 80s it was the soft side of Chicago then once I heard Terry Kath and the Old Chicago my God I was hookec

I appreciate your speaking from an accomplished musician's point of view about music I have listened to for decades. It adds to my understanding.

Chicago doesn’t get the respect they deserve. They should! The rhythm section of Kath, Cetera and Seraphine are among the best ever. Cetera in particular should be put upon a pedestal, the guy is a monster

@mrheem44

Жыл бұрын

its because they sucked after 1975 or so,---can't remember exactly when the "old Days" single hit big but many knew something was seriously wrong. they were great while it lasted tho.....

@oldmanghost219

Жыл бұрын

I can't see anything wrong with - Old Days 1975 - It is one of my favorites but you are right that it is about the time that Chicago began transitioning to commercial power ballads and they really lost me after Terry Died. It was Peter's vocals in Questions 67 & 68 along with the bass that really got my attention. He is fantastic. But i also have huge respect for Danny drums & Terry who is probably that most underrated guitar player in history.

@mrheem44

Жыл бұрын

@@oldmanghost219 I love 'Question 67-68' one of their finest

@oldmanghost219

Жыл бұрын

@@mrheem44 Thumbs up.

Thank you for covering the Chicago Transit Authority album. I have listened to this group since childhood and have admired them greatly. I am a fan predominantly from this album to Chicago 17 and also like their recent album " Born For This Moment". As for August 29th, 1968, I was almost a year and a half old; I probably was sleeping when the violence was happening. My mom remembered watching this on TV. My dad was at work; my mom was so upset about what was happening that she called my dad at work to tell him about it. As an adult, I had seen the video of the activity and that upset me too.

Oh, don't know if you noticed Doug, but this was a live recording on Liberation and Terry's rhythm playing toward the end shows his right hand technique. Joe Walsh said he can tell a great guitar player by his right hand (or left, if left handed) and Terry had...well, he had it all.

A desert island album. I have been listing to this album for more than 50 years and never get tired of it...though almost universally no one likes it when Free Form Guitar comes on...to bad so sad. Columbia took a chance letting the band release a double album for its debut. The world is a better place for that decision.

Well, I'm listening to this on Friday, so nah, nah, ne, nah, nah. 😅🤣😂 BTW, one of their best albums, hands down, some of the best music you'll ever hear: rock, jazz, funk, etc. Two words: horn charts. Also, Poem 58 is one of the greatest jams ever recorded: rock, funk, jazz, blues. Amazing.

Just a phenomenal debut album, another in a lone line of them from the 60's and early 70's. And a great example of the incredible creativity and talent and diversity of the music of that era. The times and the industry made for the perfect environment for bands of all different types to do what they wanted and go all over the map and make great music. We'll never see anything like it again. Everyone in Chicago is top notch, and it really helped to have multiple songwriters and singers. Robert Lamm wrote most of the songs on CTA, he was in a zone back then most of us could only dream about. Even though I'm a lifelong guitar player, I'm with you on 'Free Form Guitar'. Interesting, yes, but not a song I long to listen to. Not really even a song. But this album has five or six of their very best songs. It sure isn't what most people think of when they think of Chicago!

I had the privilege to see this concert live at the Racine Case High School, in Racine, WI, About 75 miles north of Chicago. That was before they got sued and had to remove "Transit Authority" from their name. They were a late 60's protest band. One song they played live was "Song for Richard and His Friends" (It was kind of gruesome as they cut the head off of a charicature of Richard Nixon on stage) It was the best $6 I ever spent!

“I’m a Man” is my favorite song from this album. Hey Doug, look into the 2nd Chicago album next.

Listen/Poem 58 are for me the guts of this great album. The sustained note by Kath at 21:11 goes through me like a friendly dagger....and the instrumental layering in at the finale is....like wow man.....

Chicago used all of the available notes and keys, sometimes many at the same time. No joke. Great stuff!! Poem 58 comes along and all of a sudden they are like a 3 piece. Their dynamics are second to none, crazy good. Terry Kath - wonderful, yes - incredible, yes - unequaled, probably!

Red is the color of anger. Blue is the color of depression. What you get when you depressed and angry about being in L.A. South California Purples

South California Purples is the song I used to blast in my car after leaving the house, angry with my (now ex-) spouse.

As much as I love Terry Kath (he is the best thing about Chicago and in a band with that much talent that's saying a lot), that solo improv track is just a wankfest. lol. I fully support him exploring those sounds, I am sure it was mindblowing the first time someone heard them, and I'll even listen to it, cuz a double album is for stretching out into weirder stuff, but yeah it's not musically interesting. If it went anywhere that was interesting I'd probably like the wank more, because there would be a payoff. But it does illustrate something important about Chicago: You called them middle of the road pop rock, but it's more complex than that. Chicago is BOTH a pop rock band AND an aggressively avant-garde prog jazz fusion band. And there was a tug-of-war going on between the members that wanted hits and the ones who wanted uncompromised art. There are albums I can't even play for people cuz they get super grating. I mean I LOVE IT but I like weird music. lol.

Really enjoyed this video. Hope you continue with the next two Chicago albums - both double albums. The second Chicago album, to this day, remains my all-time favorite album from any band.

Doug, if it hasn't been mentioned, the G hold you are referring to is Kath's guitar feeding back while holding that note. I must embarrassingly admit that when I was in HS when this came out, I was sure it was Parazaider holding the note on a clarinet.

"Poem 58" PROVES what Jimi Hendrix meant when he told CTA "your guitar player is better than me!" talking about Terry Kath! 🎸 It was said by Robert Lamm about the title of "Questions 67 & 68" that he was dating a certain girl in the years 1967 and 1968 and that was the inspiration for the title. Terry Kath perfectly bookends the debut LP with "Introduction" where he asks the audience to give the band a chance to play for them, Robert Lamm continues that theme with "Listen", then Kath closes it out in "Liberation" with the only sung lyric "Oh thank you people" to thank the audience for giving the band a chance.

I saw CTA at Convention Hall in Atlantic City, NJ in the summer of 1969. It was a most wonderful experience from a group that was well ahead of it's time.

Peter down there with his base going into jam band mode

Chicago Transit Authority in 1968 played in a bar called Barnaby's just off Rush Street which was the nightclub district of Chicago at that time. Many bars in the area had live music which ranged from a piano bar to many fine rock banks. In March 1968 I played guitar in a rock band on Rush Street and the word on the street was you had to go to Barnaby's to see this band which I did. When I saw Terry Kath play and sing (especially "I'm a Man") I seriously thought momentarily about quitting the guitar. LOL They were a fantastic band even then with complexity, great musicians, and something entirely different from what everyone else was playing because all the rock bands at that time were playing Sgt. Peppers. Sadly, I've always felt Terry was the heart and soul of the band and they were never quit as good after his untimely death. Doug, since you mentioned Jim Guercio, I just wanted to let you know he was a great bass player and musician, too.

The best Chicago I’ve heard is from live at Carnegie hall!! A magnificent 4 LPs box set when it came out originally! ❤

@JackTorrence237

Жыл бұрын

Right on the money you are with this choice! Nothing can compare in my humble opinion! From Anyone, I mean NO ONE man! EVER! And as deep of a music lover I am, this is a Huge statement for me to make! I challenge anyone to put this statement to shame! Recorded after the release of their third album so it contains the music from all of their first three masterpieces! Please check this out if anyone is unaware! Peace

I love just watching someone else enjoy how great this music is. Chicago is my favorite band of all-time, and I even love all the "schlocky" 80's power ballads that everyone pretends to hate in comment sections, but you know you all sing along to "You're the Inspiration" when it comes on your radio and you're alone.

Poem 58 is wicked cool.. Terry can just steal the show when they decide they should acknowledge his awesomeness. Don’t overlook the bass and drums, easily done with all else going on.. they’re all top notch..

If you want to have your mind blown again, check out “Leonid and Friends” covers of Chicago songs. They’re more Chicago than Chicago is now!

Excellent reactions to one if the heaviest albums ever, from one of the very best bands ever. Note that the “whole world’s watching” chant on “Someday” was a recording of the protestors at the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago, just as the Police were moving in with their clubs to assault the protestors.

Truly gifted musicians in CHICAGO needed no electronic gizmo effects to create mood or unreachable sonic skill - just raw energy and talent !!! Great always - phenomenal up until Terry's tragic death. Still an ensemble exists now. GBjj

Man, I've heard Chicago's radio standards before but this stuff gets down.

I grew up in Chicago during the late 60’s and 70’s, this album is the sound track of my youth..

@keithbarnes9419

Жыл бұрын

If you were a band kid in the early 70's this was your jam.

Terry is one of the best you’ll ever hear.

Southern California Purples (as I'm remember it being called on my older brother's copy of this album) is my favorite Chicago tune. Great groove.

The build up of "Free Form Guitar" on the album cover is hilarious. It's in there because Robert Lamm ran out of songs to fill out the double album. SOUTH CALIFORNIA PURPLES and I'M A MAN are also on the CHICAGO LIVE AT CARNEGIE HALL (Chicago IV) album . They have some of Terry Kath's best guitar solos.

@cocktailsfortwo5660

Жыл бұрын

Cannot recommend the Carnegie Hall LP (IV) highly enough!

Saw them several times in early 1970s, they were always great never missed a beat

Hey Doug, if you enjoyed this album, then you'll most certainly love the 1969 self-titled album by Blood, Sweat & Tears - same album producer, same overall brass rock awesomeness, only jazzier. Side 1 featuring a cover of the Billie Holiday song "God Bless The Child" and a cover of Traffic's "Smiling Phases" is rather magical, and Side 2 includes the major hit singles "Spinning Wheel" and " You've Made Me So Very Happy", which are nothing short of brass-rock classics. A "must have" album for fans of the genre.

@caballero3601

Жыл бұрын

Ya. I’m surprised more bands didn’t incorporate some jazz, horns and wind instruments in the wake of Chicago’s and B,S & T’s success.

I bought this in 1969, when it was released - 1st time I heard Free Form Guitar, it struck me that in certain places during the number I felt being on a race-track watching race-cars go by. I should mention, that in 1969, I came home early from work. turned on my radio and out came I'm a Man, which I knew from Traffic (and Spencer Davies Group - Stevie Winwood wrote it when he was 15). So I turned of my radio, went down to grab a bus and went to my favourite record shop and bought this - never regretted it 😀

Free Form Guitar… you have to remember that this was in the midst of the Hendrix era of guitar exploration… Zappa, and others were also experimenting in textures. So, in that reality, Terry Kath’s FFG fits perfectly.

@TheTinklingofBells

Жыл бұрын

You must be my age, there's no way any other generation could understand the significance of free form guitar.

When Jimi Hendrix went backstage at whiskey a gogo in LA after seeing them, he said - your horns sing like one voice and your guitarist is better than me!- do you want to go on tour” and they said - YEAH! I saw story Told by one of the horn players

My favorite side is Side One only on the strength of "Introduction"; to me, it's the best thing they ever did. It surprises me that they never equaled the intensity, color, and passion of the first song of their first album in subsequent releases.

Poem 58 had me smiling...took me back to the days when I had hair and a slim waist.....a hot sweaty upstairs room in a pub and whole bunch of hairy hippies heads-a-bobbin to the groove....the bands my not have been as accomplished but the atmosphere was great

Liberation was recorded live in the studio.

The free form guitar reminds me of the Van Halen solo, that Marty McFly puts in his teenage father's ears, in Back to the future!

@_richardleon

Жыл бұрын

but way better

Yes, absolutely about 1968 DNC, a huge moment in Chicago history.

Since 1972 side 4 has been my favorite side of this album. Over the years before CD's I probably wore out 3 or 4 of both albums.

@paulclarry9991

Жыл бұрын

Right about that. I went through 3 vinyl copies of CTA until the CD came along. An epic, always listenable album.

Free Form Guitar was not their last experimentation with noise it shows up later here of course and also in Chicago III as part of a multi track tune lamenting industrializations bringing harm to nature, plus a tune meant for Chicago V that they did perform at shows like the one they recorded Chicago Live at Carnegie Hall and Chicago Live in Japan. Specifically the tune meant for Chicago V was a lambast of Nixon demanding he resign with the noise section being an intro though the whole tune is off kilter.

In the documentary "The Terry Kath Experience", Joe Walsh tells about how he would listen to "Free Form Guitar" over and over and try to figure out how the hell Terry got those sounds out of his guitar.

I just bought this album in 1972. I didn’t buy it before because I had no stereo. But I was working then and I played it constantly. I only had the stereo for about 2 weeks and got drafted into the army. I was more pissed about that I wouldn’t be able to play it then going into the army. Lol

If you haven't yet seen it, check out the 2016 documentary film "The Terry Kath Experience"

Never realized before how much Free Form Guitar sounds like war and airplanes doing a bombing run. I wonder if that was part of Terry's conception.

@lizcenterfield1963

Жыл бұрын

@tele.gram.at.Doug_Helvering Sure

Fun fact about Questions 67 & 68. The horns have virtually no rests.

Chicago was my first love and CTA meant everything to me.

Thanks Doug! I first heard this album in 1968 on some older guy's high end stereo, ( for the time ) and it remains my favorite Chicago offering, and I'm really glad you feel the same about South California Purple's as I do. That being said side 1 is my favorite mainly, because of Introduction, it shows the musicianship of each member, a "true" introduction.🤠👍👍👍👍

I had a great high school music appreciation and music theory teacher that I wish could have gone over this album like you are right now. A friend and I listened to Chicago until we knew their songs by heart. I didn't understand til later how unbelievably talented they all were. Terry Kath was very well acquainted with his guitar!

Side 2 would be my favorite but liberation is fantastic ! Happy Holidays

So many great tunes. My favorite is Questions 67 and 68 and it is probably because of the horns and vocals.One of my all time favorite albums and bands.Yes Terry could play anything and everything.Like the loss of Duane Allman And Jimmy music fans lost out on such greatness.i’m The Man became CTA’s song!

@macsnafu

Жыл бұрын

What is up with those links? And why can't I open them up in a tab? Danger, Will Robinson. Danger!

This is THE VERY FIRST album I remember captivating me as a kid, and listening to straight through. I still remember Dad putting the needle on it for the first time. Incredible musicianship throughout from every guy on every song.

Crazy good tone on the guitar! Terry Kath is of course, one of the great guitarists ever. They were an incredibly talented band.

I think Chicago VII was one of their best experimental music.

@craigw1911

Жыл бұрын

That entire Disc 1 of Chicago VII being instrumental on Side 1- Prelude to Aire, Aire, Devil's Sweet, then Side 2 with Italian From New York, and Hanky Panky instrumentals before the first vocal track Life Saver, shows how experimental and how much range Chicago had. Those albums recorded at Caribou Ranch were really special.

@JohnSmith-mx8wp

Ай бұрын

Well said, craigw. Yes, VII is my 3rd favorite (behind CTA and II, if we must rank them). Definitely a new direction for the band, but a lot of it pops pretty well too!

I rediscovered this album recently after hearing it quite a bit in its day and there's a couple of the riffs and melodies that I've been humming in my head and playing on the guitar for decades not remembering where they came from

Free form Guitar would inspire some mind blown terror movie if listened to more than once. I'm sure of it. 😅 In my younger years I played this album over and over and over again - loudly! CTA and Blood Sweat and Tears were my faves for a period of time - just so darn much fun hearing them again after a few(?) years! Gonna dig them up and give them a twirl again - have to do it when hubby isn't home - he'd have me committed!

I, like most, only knew of Chicago from their hits. But after this and side 1, I think I have a new band I’ll have to listen more to. I never realized they were this good.

@1planetmusic294

Жыл бұрын

Glad Doug posted this and caught your attention. Their hits were well crafted but their best stuff (IMHO) with just a few exceptions didn't generally make it to radio. Definitely check out Chicago V, VI, and VII for more incredible songs and playing similar to this, then Chicago III and II. I think you will really enjoy these as well.

Although you didn't say much (verbally) about Danny Seraphine's drumming, I appreciate you bringing attention to his work thtough your physical response. I feel that he is criminally under-appreciated. Kath and the horn section get most of the accolades (and are totally deserving, of course). But Danny is a bit overlooked much of the time, IMO. He's fabulous! And he's still touring (independent of the band).

One song not recorded or released until years later was Mississippi Delta City Blues. This one needs to be heard followed by Terry's last recording with Chicago before he died which is called Taking It On Uptown with no horns. Supposedly a sample of what was to come from his upcoming solo debut with his new band. Sadly the day they were to start recording is when he died. Also in the works was Ray Charles and Joe Cocker recording some stuff with Terry. Jeez......

@misterghee1

Жыл бұрын

Recoding Some snuff Joe being there ha mmyeah

@oldmanghost219

Жыл бұрын

If only - He was to go to the studio the day he died. He could have then cemented himself on G.O.A.T. lists Definitely in the top 10. Thanks for the mention of the song. I will be looking for it.

@lolmarcos9912

10 ай бұрын

When I bought 'Chicago XI', Mississippi Delta Blues took me by surprise. But what surprised me more, along with it was just a great Terry Kath song, was that he wrote it in the early '70's! Wonder what took so long to put it in an album?

On Free Form Guitar, Terry explored sounds that the band used as texture to great effect in songs like "A Song for Richard & his friends". David Gilmour did similar "experimental" sounds on "Animals" which to my ears sounded like sadistic laughter, on the track Dogs

@gj8683

Жыл бұрын

Yes, on the Live at Carnegie Hall album (the four-record set), the lead-in for "A Song for Richard & His Friends" is Kath doing his free-form guitar thing. Kinda links the idea of chaos to Richard Nixon.

Doug - thank you for this. I first heard this album when I was 11 years old in 1969. It captivated me then (as did the Byrds) and it remains my favorite album here in 2023. Introduction was by far my favorite tune as it progressed through each band member getting to make their mark. Poem 58, South Carolina Purples, and Liberation remain among my favorite tunes off the album although it was all solid. I play Free From Guitar to annoy people who can't appreciate it. I enjoy it because Terry Kath was staking his claim to be one of the most innovative guitarists - a title that Hendrix seemed to own. If I had to pick 3 albums to be stranded on a desert island with, it would be Chicago Transit Authority, Alan Parsons Tales of Mystery and Imagination, and Jeff Wayne's War Of The Worlds. Led Zeppelin Presence and almost any album by The Connells, Emm Gryner (especially Asian Blue), or The Ramones being close.

I bought this album when it first came out. Blew me away.

Bought it when it first came out and still love it. When they lost Terry I felt like they never were near as good - kind of like when Lennon and McCartney were split. Terry added the grit and edge to the band. One of my all-time favorite albums. Hendrix’s respect for Terry Kath is a testament to how incredible he really was.

@JohnLRice

Жыл бұрын

Agreed, although Chicago VII was the last album that I really liked by the band, and there were a few albums after that which still had Terry on them.

@rogermiller2159

Жыл бұрын

I think you should revisit the post Kath Chicago. I was in eighth grade when this came out and I also had a bias towards the “new stuff”. The have more music then you can shake a stick at. (What ever that means )

@JohnLRice

Жыл бұрын

@@rogermiller2159 What albums would you recommend? I'm game to try some newer stuff!

I was just playing South California Blues on my bass and came across your review to listen if I had it right. You along with almost everyone else doesn’t remembers this song. Glad you enjoyed it.

Welcome to "Vintage Chicago" ... Might have been their best album of all. MILES beyond the sappy David Foster ballad band they became in the 80's. I remember buying it when it first came out and listening to it repeatedly. Terry was my idol at the time. Influenced my playing like no other.

@submandave1125

Жыл бұрын

CTA is an amazing debut, but I think Chicago (II) is a thematically more solid, tighter, and cohesive release.

@justmefl7045

Жыл бұрын

@@submandave1125 You're right. The first 3 albums were my favorite. Following that, while there were some excellent compositions on 4 & following, they weren't up to the same level - in my opinion.

@submandave1125

Жыл бұрын

@@justmefl7045 I mentally group Chicago albums into epochs. - The initial trinity are largely untouched by anyone for sheer creativity, audacity, and execution. - After what I see as a live compilation of those three, V and VI were the beginning of Chicago as superstars and a move toward a more commercial product. - Then comes the odd man out, VII, which is kind of a bridge between wild experimentalism of the early days and hit-machine form that existed until XI. - After Terry's death we get Chicago in the wilderness, as they try to find their voice again on Hot Streets, 13, XIV, and XV. - The Chicago reformation happened on 16 to 19, returning them to the top of the charts but ultimately loosing the founding bassist and drummer, and, according to some, their soul. - After that, Chicago wandered in the wilderness some more until ultimately achieving their final form as elder statesmen of stadium rock largely performing as a cover group of themselves.

@justmefl7045

Жыл бұрын

@@submandave1125 That's pretty much spot on.

I got to see them in 1968 just after the album release at the Oakdale theater in the round. The show was incredible and I was only 18 but I was surprised to see many older and middle aged people were in the crowd. They were raw and explosive playing even longer versions of some songs. My thoughts on side 3 1st cut Freeform Guitar is sides 1 & 2 are shear genius and side 3 cut 1 is pure insanity and the rest of the album is a combination of both. There is a totally different feel between the 2 albums and I always thought about WHY? They say there is a fine line between genius and insanity.These are my conclusions... You should check out Chicago II. It is still before they went strictly commercial and while they were still the REAL Chicago.

What an absolute treat for a lazy Saturday morning! When I was a teenager back in the '70s, I always skipped "Free Form Guitar." It wasn't until I was in college, when I could alter my state of consciousness with something a little stronger than herbs that I could fully appreciate it.

I'm glad you were able to get around to listening to Chicago as they intended for everyone to hear them. They were and still are one of the most talented groups to emerge out of the USA. I still consider them to be the first American progressive rock band, or "Art-Rock" band, as the term was coined back in the day. They wrote and performed all their compositions on natural instruments, which would be emulated in the 70's with synthesizers by famous British bands. I can listen to their first three records and never get tired of it. Doug, even if you never get around to putting it on KZread, I would recommend you listen to the entire 2nd and 3rd Chicago albums, and hear all the things the radio would never let you hear. It's fascinating music, like no one else could do.