Chicago XIV

Chicago XIV
Studio album by Chicago
Released	July 21, 1980
Recorded	March–May 1980 at The Record Plant, Los Angeles and Criteria Studios, Miami
Genre	Rock
Length	38:58
Label	Columbia
Producer	Tom Dowd
Chicago chronology
Chicago 13 (1979)Chicago 131979 Chicago XIV (1980) Greatest Hits, Volume II (1981)Greatest Hits, Volume II1981

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Allmusic

Chicago XIV is the fourteenth studio album by the American band Chicago, released in 1980. Recorded at a time of waning interest in the band, Chicago XIV remains one of Chicago's poorest selling albums and was a commercial flop. It is also notable for being their last studio album with Columbia Records, and the last one to feature percussionist Laudir de Oliveira.

Background

After the commercial and critical disappointment of Chicago 13, and the departure of guitarist Donnie Dacus, Chicago decided that a new strategy was in order. Instead of incorporating another guitarist into the band, they instead hired on Chris Pinnick as a session player and live performer. They also tried a new producer, this time Tom Dowd, who had worked with Aretha Franklin, Cream, Eric Clapton, and Toto. With Dowd taking the reins, and with Chicago abandoning the ill-advised dance club atmosphere that permeated the last album, the team recorded a lean, more streamlined record which would, predictably, be called Chicago XIV. Possibly designed as a response to the under-produced, new wave efforts on the radio at the time, the album was easily the band's least orchestrated effort to date. Still, it wasn't a perfect marriage, with Dowd having to shepherd a group whose members were not all on the same wavelength or headspace.

Release and aftermath

With Peter Cetera taking an even greater role in the band, his compositions included a mix of ballads, pop and rock songs. Robert Lamm turned in the rockers "Manipulation" and "I'd Rather Be Rich" (a song from 1975) and James Pankow also delivered the uptempo – if downbeat – "The American Dream". Like Chicago 13 before it, Chicago XIV did not improve Chicago's fortunes. In fact, XIV did worse than 13, despite being an "improved" album. To the record-buying public, Chicago's image was out of touch in 1980 and once the new album was released, it became clear that any attempt to win back their fans would be in vain.

Poorly promoted by Columbia Records, a label that was increasingly disappointing Chicago, Chicago XIV went unnoticed upon release and bombed, only reaching #71 in the US, and disappeared quickly. There were no singles hits again, with "Thunder and Lightning" stalling below the top 50 and "Song For You" failing to chart. Chicago also saw a poor attendance in many venues during the supporting tour. Realizing that the relationship had soured considerably, Columbia Records terminated their relationship with Chicago. In 1982, Robert Lamm recalled,

The thrill was gone as far as they were concerned, I think. Especially after Jeff Wald, who managed us in 1978 and 1979, kind of bullied them into signing a ridiculous multimillion dollar contract where every time we delivered an album, they had to cough up a million bucks. CBS didn't get close to recouping their money, and they wanted to get out of the deal. In fact they ended up paying us to leave the label.

As a settlement to ending the arrangement early, Columbia released the band's second Greatest Hits album and jettisoned them from the label. The money from the settlement was used to record Chicago 16 independently, while the band shopped for a new label. Realizing that the Latin/Jazz percussion style evident in the latter half of the previous decade no longer fit with the band, the album signaled the end of percussionist Laudir de Oliveira's tenure with the band after nine years. Peter Cetera, meanwhile, concentrated on his first self-titled solo album during the hiatus.

In 2003, Chicago XIV was remastered and reissued by Rhino Records with three outtakes from the sessions, "Doin' Business" (which first appeared on the 1991 4-Disc anthology Group Portrait), "Live It Up" and "Soldier of Fortune" as bonus tracks.

Track listing

Side One
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Vocals	Length
1.	"Manipulation"	Lamm	Lamm	3:45
2.	"Upon Arrival"	Lamm/Cetera	Cetera/Lamm	3:48
3.	"Song for You"	Cetera	Cetera	3:41
4.	"Where Did the Lovin' Go"	Cetera	Cetera	4:06
5.	"Birthday Boy"	Seraphine/David "Hawk" Wolinski	Cetera	4:55

Side Two
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Vocals	Length
6.	"Hold On"	Cetera	Cetera	4:15
7.	"Overnight Cafe"	Cetera	Cetera	4:19
8.	"Thunder and Lightning"	Lamm/Seraphine/Cetera	Lamm/Cetera	3:32
9.	"I'd Rather be Rich"	Lamm	Lamm	3:08
10.	"The American Dream"	Pankow	Cetera	3:19

Bonus Tracks on Rhino Re-issue
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Vocals	Length
11.	"Doin' Business"	Lamm	Lamm	3:31
12.	"Live It Up"	Pankow	Cetera	3:23
13.	"Soldier of Fortune"	Lamm	Lamm	3:50

Personnel

The Band

• Peter Cetera – bass, lead vocals (tracks 2-8,10), background vocals, lead vocal on "Live It Up"
• Laudir de Oliveira – percussion
• Robert Lamm – keyboards, lead vocals (tracks 1,2,8,9), background vocals, lead vocal on "Doin' Business" and "Soldier of Fortune"
• Lee Loughnane – trumpet, background vocals
• James Pankow – trombone, background vocals, brass arrangements
• Walter Parazaider – woodwinds
• Danny Seraphine – drums

Additional personnel

• Chris Pinnick – guitar
• Mark Goldenberg – guitar
• David "Hawk" Wolinski – keyboards
• Ian Underwood – synthesizer programming

Production

• Produced by Tom Dowd
• Production Coordination – Schatzi Hagerman
• Engineered and Mixed by Michael Carnevale
• Assistant Engineers – Karat Faye, Bill Freesh and Ricky Delena
• Mastered by Bernie Grundman
• Design – John Berg
• Artwork, Cover Lettering – Gerry Huerta

Charts

Album - Billboard (North America)

Year	Chart	Position
1980	Pop Albums	71

Singles - Billboard (North America)

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1980	Thunder and Lightning	Pop Singles	56