Chicago 17

Chicago 17 is the fourteenth studio album by American band Chicago, released on May 14, 1984. It was the group's second release for Full Moon/Warner Bros. Records, their second album to be produced by David Foster[4] and their last with founding bassist/vocalist Peter Cetera.

Chicago 17
Studio album by
Chicago
ReleasedMay 14, 1984 (1984-05-14)[1]
RecordedMid 1983 – early 1984
Studio
GenreSoft rock, pop rock
Length41:53
LabelFull Moon/Warner Bros.[2]
ProducerDavid Foster[2]
Chicago chronology
Chicago 16
(1982)		 Chicago 17
(1984)		 Chicago 18
(1986)
Singles from Chicago 17
  1. "Stay the Night"
    Released: April 2, 1984[1]
  2. "Hard Habit to Break"
    Released: July 2, 1984[1]
  3. "You're the Inspiration"
    Released: October 29, 1984[1]
  4. "Along Comes a Woman"
    Released: February 4, 1985[1]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]

Four singles were released from the album, all of which placed in the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[5] The success of the singles propelled Chicago 17 to achieve an RIAA certification of six times platinum.[6] Chicago 17 remains the biggest-selling album in the band's history.

In 1985 the album received three Grammy Awards. David Foster won for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical (tied in this category with Lionel Richie and James Anthony Carmichael),[7][8] Humberto Gatica won for Best Engineered Recording – Non-Classical[9], and David Foster and Jeremy Lubbock won for Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s)[9] for "Hard Habit to Break" which was also nominated for Record of the Year, Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals and Best Vocal Arrangement for Two or More Voices.[10] In his review of the album for AllMusic, music critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine says Chicago 17 is "the pinnacle of [producer David Foster's] craft and one of the best adult contemporary records of the '80s," and one of the most influential albums "within its style."[11]

In 2006, Rhino Entertainment remastered and reissued the album, using the original analog versions of "Please Hold On" (which was co-written with Lionel Richie who was enjoying success from his album Can't Slow Down) and "Prima Donna" and adding a Robert Lamm demo, "Here Is Where We Begin" as a bonus track.

Artwork, packaging

In keeping with the majority of their albums up to that time (1984), the traditional "Chicago" logo, designed by John Berg and Nick Fasciano,[12][13] is the main feature of the album cover of the vinyl LP record and the cover does not feature any photos of individuals in the group. In a 2020 article for Muse by Clio, it was listed among "9 Great Album Covers, Chosen by Gregory Sylvester." Sylvester describes the cover as, " ... an illusion of a package within a package ... brown kraft paper, twine and a faux red stamp."[14] The vinyl LP album cover looks like a package wrapped in brown paper tied with twine and (on the back) secured with tape. On the front, the "Chicago" logo appears to be in bas-relief (it is not), covered by the wrapping paper. The number "17," in Arabic numerals rather than the Roman numerals used by the group formerly, appears to be stamped on the wrapping paper below the logo. In the upper left-hand quadrant of the cover back, a pink "receipt form" is depicted (designated as a "TOPS FORM 3014" in small print at the bottom of the "receipt"), tucked underneath the "twine," with the "Chicago" logo stamped on it near the top in purple ink and, below the logo, a "DESCRIPTION OF PACKAGE" lists the tracks on side one and side two. The bottom of the "receipt form" shows production and engineering credits and the Warner Bros. logo "stamped" on the slip. On the inner dust sleeve a large group photo of all the then members does appear on one side: (back row, left to right) Lee Loughnane, Bill Champlin, James Pankow, Walt Parazaider, Robert Lamm, (front row, left to right) Danny Seraphine, Peter Cetera. The reverse side of the dust sleeve gives track listings, song lyrics, and song and album credits, including credits for artwork and packaging: Art Direction/Design, Simon Levy; Album Cover Art, Larry Vigon; Photography, Harry Langdon, James Goble.[2]

Track listing

For tracks one through ten: track titles, track order, side, writers and lengths from [2].

Side One
No.TitleWriter(s)VocalsLength
1."Stay the Night"Peter Cetera/David FosterPeter Cetera3:48
2."We Can Stop the Hurtin'"Robert Lamm/Bill Champlin/Deborah NealRobert Lamm4:11
3."Hard Habit to Break"Steve Kipner/John Lewis ParkerCetera with Bill Champlin4:43
4."Only You"James Pankow/FosterLamm with Champlin3:53
5."Remember the Feeling"Cetera/ChamplinCetera4:28
Side Two
No.TitleWriter(s)VocalsLength
6."Along Comes a Woman"Cetera/Mark GoldenbergCetera4:14
7."You're the Inspiration"Cetera/FosterCetera3:49
8."Please Hold On"Champlin/Foster/Lionel RichieChamplin3:37
9."Prima Donna"Cetera/GoldenbergCetera4:09
10."Once in a Lifetime"PankowChamplin with Cetera4:12
Bonus Tracks on Rhino reissue
No.TitleWriter(s)VocalsLength
11."Here Is Where We Begin"LammLamm with David Pack3:53

Some songs were recorded during the Chicago 17 sessions but not released. "Good for Nothing" was later released on the We Are the World superstar charity album in 1985.[15][16] This is the last released Chicago song to feature Peter Cetera on vocals.

A song called "Sweet Marie" that was supposed to be released on the Chicago 17 album has been performed by the Norwegian band called TOBB. Bill Champlin offered this song to perform with the band. It was released on May 14, 2014 by the band, the 30th anniversary of the Chicago 17 album that was released on May 14, 1984.[17] It was performed by Chicago on rare occasions back in 1984,[17] and has surfaced online from VHS recordings of some of their performances.

A subsequent international release in 2010 (included in the Studio Albums 1979-2008 box set from 2015) has the original album restored, with additional bonus tracks of the alternate versions of "Only You," "You're the Inspiration," and "Prima Donna" as well as "Here Is Where We Begin." There also exists a demo version of "Hard Habit to Break".

Personnel

All information in this section from [18] except as noted.

Additional personnel

  • Jeff Porcaro – drums (uncredited) on "Stay the Night"[19]:206
  • Carlos Vega – drums (uncredited) on "You're the Inspiration"[19]:208
  • John "JR" Robinson - drums (uncredited) on "Please Hold On"
  • Michael Landau – guitar
  • Paul Jackson Jr. – guitar
  • Mark Goldenberg – guitar, additional arrangements on "Along Comes a Woman" and "Prima Donna"
  • Paulinho da Costa – percussion
  • David Foster – keyboards, synthesizer programming, synth basses on all tracks (except "Stay the Night"), additional arrangements
  • John Van Tongeren – synthesizer programming
  • Erich Bulling – synthesizer programming
  • Marcus Ryle – synthesizer programming
  • Gary Grant – trumpet
  • Greg Adams – trumpet
  • Kenny Cetera – background vocals on "Stay the Night", "Prima Donna", "You're the Inspiration", and "Along Comes a Woman"[20]
  • Donny Osmond – background vocals on "We Can Stop the Hurtin'"
  • Richard Marx – background vocals on "We Can Stop the Hurtin'"
  • David Pack – duet vocals on "Here Is Where We Begin"

Charts

Weekly charts
Chart (1984) Peak
position
Dutch Albums Chart[21] 20
German Albums Chart[22] 12
Norwegian Albums Chart[23] 14
Swedish Albums Chart[24] 1
Swiss Albums Chart[25] 6
US Billboard 200[5] 4
Chart (1985) Peak
position
Canadian Albums Chart[26] 4
New Zealand Albums Chart[27] 25
UK Albums Chart[28] 24

Singles
Year Single Chart Position
1984 "Hard Habit To Break" Adult Contemporary 3
1984 "Hard Habit To Break" The Billboard Hot 100 3
1984 "Stay The Night" The Billboard Hot 100 16
1984 "Stay The Night" Mainstream Rock Tracks 7
1984 "You're The Inspiration" Adult Contemporary 1
1984 "You're The Inspiration" The Billboard Hot 100 3
1985 "Along Comes A Woman" Adult Contemporary 25
1985 "Along Comes A Woman" Mainstream Rock Tracks 10
1985 "Along Comes A Woman" The Billboard Hot 100 14

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[29] Gold 25,000^
United States (RIAA)[30] 6× Platinum 6,000,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

References
  1. The Very Best of Chicago: Only the Beginning (CD liner). Chicago. Rhino. 2002. p. 11. R2 76170.CS1 maint: others (link)
  2. Chicago (1984). Chicago 17 (vinyl LP record). U.S.A.: Warner Bros. Records, Inc. 25060-1.
  3. https://www.allmusic.com/album/r3860
  4. Deriso, NIck (May 14, 2015). "Danny Seraphine and Bill Champlin defend 'Chicago 17'". Something Else!. Retrieved July 27, 2017.
  5. "Chicago – Awards: AllMusic". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
  6. "Gold & Platinum - RIAA". RIAA. Retrieved 2017-01-20.
  7. Graff, Gary (January 11, 1985). "The Grammy Awards: Prince, Tina Turner, Cyndi Lauper take five nominations each". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1C, 5C. Retrieved July 26, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. "Grammy Winners". Los Angeles Times. February 27, 1985. p. 5V. Retrieved July 26, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. "27th Annual GRAMMY Awards". GRAMMY.com. January 16, 2013. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  10. "Chicago". GRAMMY.com. May 14, 2017. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  11. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Chicago 17: AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine". AllMusic. Retrieved February 26, 2019.
  12. A., M. (July 20, 2002). "It's An American Brand: About That Logo". Billboard. p. 50. Retrieved July 27, 2017.
  13. Nini, Paul (October 30, 2007). "Across the Graphic Universe: An Interview with John Berg". AIGA | the professional association for design. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  14. Sylvester, Gregory (May 21, 2020). "9 Great Album Covers, Chosen by Gregory Sylvester". Muse by Clio. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  15. Hulse, Megan (March 29, 2017). "Art from the Attic". The Daily Utah Chronicle. University of Utah Student Media. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
  16. "We Are the World". Billboard. 97 (14). April 6, 1985. pp. 12-13 (two-page advertisement). Retrieved October 25, 2017.
  17. Nelson, Jimmy (May 15, 2014). "Bill Champlin revisits lost 1980s Chicago track "Sweet Marie" with TOBB". Something Else!. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
  18. Chicago 17 (CD liner). Chicago. Warner Bros. Records Inc. 1984. 9 25060-2.CS1 maint: others (link)
  19. Seraphine, Danny (2011). Street Player: My Chicago Story. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ISBN 978-0-470-41683-9.
  20. Cetera, Kenny (April 6, 2015). "Chicago 17: Interview with Kenny Cetera". www.amfm-magazine.tv (Interview). Interviewed by Paul Doty. At time 9:36. Retrieved July 25, 2017.
  21. "Dutchcharts.nl – Chicago – 17". GfK Dutch Charts (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
  22. "Album – Chicago, 17". Charts.de (in German). Media Control. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
  23. "Norwegiancharts.com – Chicago – 17". Norwegiancharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
  24. "Swedishcharts.com – Chicago – 17". Swedishcharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
  25. "Chicago – 17 – Hitparade.ch". Hitparade.ch (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
  26. "RPM 100 Albums". RPM. 41 (25): 11. March 2, 1985. ISSN 0033-7064. Archived from the original on December 28, 2012. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
  27. "charts.nz – Chicago – 17". charts.nz. Hung Medien. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
  28. "1985-02-16 Top 40 Official UK Albums Archive | Official Charts". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
  29. "Gold & Platinum Awards 1987" (PDF). Music and Media. American Radio History Archive. 26 December 1987. p. 46. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  30. "American album certifications – Chicago – Chicago 17". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 18 January 2017. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
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