Chicago 17

Chicago 17 is the fourteenth studio album by American rock 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. As of 2023, it remains Chicago's best-selling album, with over 6.1 million units being sold in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan.[5] Four singles were released from the album, all of which peaked in the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[6] The success of the music videos for "Stay the Night", "You're the Inspiration", and "Hard Habit to Break" on MTV propelled Chicago 17 to achieve an RIAA certification of six times platinum.[7]

Chicago 17
Studio album by
Chicago
ReleasedMay 14, 1984 (1984-05-14)[1]
RecordedMid 1983 – early 1984
Studio
  • Vancouver, British Columbia
  • Los Angeles, California
Genre
Length41:53
LabelFull Moon/Warner Bros.[2]
ProducerDavid Foster[2]
Chicago chronology
If You Leave Me Now
(1983)		 Chicago 17
(1984)		 Take Me Back to Chicago
(1985)
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]

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),[8][9] Humberto Gatica won for Best Engineered Recording – Non-Classical,[10] and David Foster and Jeremy Lubbock won for Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s)[10] 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.[11] 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."[12] Writing for Billboard, Bobby Olivier said the album "is one of the greatest pure power ballad albums of all time — or at least from 1984 — and "[Hard] Habit [to Break]" is one of the finest entries."[13]

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,[14][15] is the main feature of the album cover. It does not feature any photos of the group. In a 2020 article for Muse by Clio, it was listed among "Nine 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."[16] The 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 the band appears 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
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."Stay the Night"Peter Cetera, David FosterPeter Cetera3:48
2."We Can Stop the Hurtin'"Bill Champlin, Robert Lamm, Deborah NealRobert Lamm4:11
3."Hard Habit to Break"Steve Kipner, John Lewis ParkerCetera with Bill Champlin4:43
4."Only You"Foster, James PankowLamm with Champlin3:53
5."Remember the Feeling"Cetera, ChamplinCetera4:28
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead 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
Total length:41:53
Bonus tracks on Rhino reissue
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
11."Here Is Where We Begin" (featuring David Pack)LammLamm with David Pack3:53
Unreleased
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
11."Sweet Marie"Cetera, Foster[17]Champlin 

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.[18][19] This is the last released Chicago song to feature Peter Cetera on vocals.

A song called "Sweet Marie" recorded during sessions for the Chicago 17 album has been performed by the Norwegian band TOBB. Bill Champlin offered this song to the band. It was released on May 14, 2014 by TOBB, the 30th anniversary of the Chicago 17 album's release.[20] It was performed by Chicago on rare occasions in 1984,[20] 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 boxed set from 2015) has the original album restored, with additional bonus tracks of alternate versions of "Only You", "You're the Inspiration", and "Prima Donna" as well as "Here Is Where We Begin". A demo version of "Hard Habit to Break" exists with Robert Lamm on vocals, as briefly heard during the documentary “Now More Than Ever: The History of Chicago.”

Personnel

All information in this section from except as noted.[21]

Chicago

Additional personnel

Production

  • David Foster – producer
  • Humberto Gatica – engineer, mixing
  • Terry Christian – assistant engineer
  • Eddie Delena – assistant engineer
  • Laura Livingston – assistant engineer
  • Larry Fergusson – mix assistant, additional overdubs
  • Paul Lani – additional overdubs
  • Simon Levy – art direction, design
  • Larry Vigon – album cover art
  • James Goble – photography
  • Harry Langdon – photography
  • Recorded at The Lighthouse (North Hollywood, CA); Sunset Sound (Hollywood, CA); Record Plant (Los Angeles, CA).
  • Mixed at Lion Share Recording Studio (Los Angeles, CA).

Production for 2006 reissue

  • Jeff Magid – project supervision, mixing (bonus selections)
  • David Donnelly – mixing (bonus selections), remastering
  • Cory Frye – editorial supervision
  • Greg Allen – art direction, design
  • Karen LeBlanc – project assistance
  • Steve Woolard – project assistance
  • Mixed at DNA Studio (Studio City, California)
  • Mastered at DNA Mastering (Studio City, California)

Charts

Certifications
Certifications and sales for Chicago 17
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[40] Gold 25,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[41] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[42] 6× Platinum 6,000,000^

^ 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.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (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 17 by CHICAGO sales and awards". BestSellingAlbums.org. Retrieved 2023-09-24.
  6. "Chicago – Awards: AllMusic". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved January 17, 2013.
  7. "Gold & Platinum - RIAA". RIAA. Retrieved 2017-01-20.
  8. 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.icon of an open green padlock
  9. "Grammy Winners". Los Angeles Times. February 27, 1985. p. 5V. Retrieved July 26, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.icon of an open green padlock
  10. "27th Annual GRAMMY Awards". GRAMMY.com. January 16, 2013. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  11. "Chicago". GRAMMY.com. May 14, 2017. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  12. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Chicago 17: AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine". AllMusic. Retrieved February 26, 2019.
  13. Olivier, Bobby (April 25, 2019). "The 50 Best Chicago Songs: Critics' Picks". Billboard.
  14. A., M. (July 20, 2002). "It's An American Brand: About That Logo". Billboard. p. 50. Retrieved July 27, 2017.
  15. Nini, Paul (October 30, 2007). "Across the Graphic Universe: An Interview with John Berg". AIGA | the professional association for design. Archived from the original on March 21, 2019. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  16. Sylvester, Gregory (May 21, 2020). "9 Great Album Covers, Chosen by Gregory Sylvester". Muse by Clio. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  17. SWEET MARIE
  18. Hulse, Megan (March 29, 2017). "Art from the Attic". The Daily Utah Chronicle. University of Utah Student Media. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
  19. "We Are the World". Billboard. Vol. 97, no. 14. April 6, 1985. pp. 12–13 (two-page advertisement). Retrieved October 25, 2017.
  20. Nelson, Jimmy (May 15, 2014). "Bill Champlin revisits lost 1980s Chicago track "Sweet Marie" with TOBB". Something Else!. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
  21. Chicago 17 (CD liner). Chicago. Warner Bros. Records Inc. 1984. 9 25060-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  22. Seraphine, Danny (2011). Street Player: My Chicago Story. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ISBN 978-0-470-41683-9.
  23. Cetera, Kenny (April 6, 2015). "Chicago 17: Interview with Kenny Cetera". www.amfm-magazine.tv (Interview). Interviewed by Paul Doty. At time 9:36. Archived from the original on July 12, 2018. Retrieved July 25, 2017.
  24. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 62. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  25. "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.
  26. "Dutchcharts.nl – Chicago – 17" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  27. "Les Albums (CD) de 1984 par InfoDisc" (in French). infodisc.fr. Archived from the original (PHP) on 27 October 2012. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
  28. "Offiziellecharts.de – Chicago – 17" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  29. "Charts.nz – Chicago – 17". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  30. "Norwegiancharts.com – Chicago – 17". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  31. "Swedishcharts.com – Chicago – 17". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  32. "Swisscharts.com – Chicago – 17". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  33. "Chicago | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  34. "Chicago Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  35. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0618". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  36. "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts". GfK Entertainment (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  37. "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1984: Alben". Swiss Charts Portal (in German). Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  38. "Top Pop Albums of 1984". Billboard. December 31, 1984. Archived from the original on December 31, 2012. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  39. "1985 The Year in Music & Video: Top Pop Albums". Billboard. December 28, 1985. p. T-19. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
  40. "Gold & Platinum Awards 1987" (PDF). Music and Media. American Radio History Archive. 26 December 1987. p. 46. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  41. "British album certifications – Chicago – Chicago 17". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved November 14, 2020.
  42. "American album certifications – Chicago – Chicago 17". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
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