The Studio Albums 1969-1978 (Vol. 1)

It has taken me 53 years to bother with Chicage and I am very pleased that I have found this CD set, a set that provides excellent value. It comes on a good hard case and the sound production is brilliant. Now the music is wonderful, a mixture of Jazz, Blues and Hard Rock and each album somehow manages to capture a different aspect of the group. No gimmicks found here just straight to the point musicianship and you would find it hard to compare it against anything of today, even the early albums sound great. Wonderful group and fantastic value as a box set.

The brilliant Terry Kath was Chicago's first lead guitarist and one of the band's main vocalists and songwriters – this ten CD collection from Rhino covers his period with the band very nicely. Sadly, Terry was a little too fond of guns and accidentally shot himself in January 1978 – this set covers 10 of the band's first 12 albums released between 1969 and 1978, and all, except the last one, feature Terry Kath's lead guitar work. Stating with the band's first album from 1969, when they were known as Chicago Transit Authority, the set goes up to the band's first album not to feature Terry Kath which was the disco influenced Hot Streets from 1978. The first album, Chicago Transit Authority, was a double LP, which was very unusual for a debut album, and it still stands up surprisingly well today with many tracks being instantly familiar. The band's second album was just called Chicago and again features much familiar material; after this second album the subsequent albums were numbered in Roman numerals until Hot Streets, the final album featured here. What would have been Chicago IV is a live album, actually titled Chicago at Carnegie Hall, and as this box set is called “The Studio Albums 1969-1978” the live album is not included. Also missing is Chicago IX : Chicago's Greatest Hits, which featured the single edits of the original album tracks – where necessary these single versions have been added here as bonus tracks to the albums they were taken from. What this limited edition box set offers is 10 remastered CDs, some featuring bonus tracks, at the very good price of around twenty-five pounds currently from Amazon. This is a no-frills collection, simply presented without any detailed notes or booklet, but you do get over 150 tracks nicely remastered and if you buy direct from Amazon you also get the AutoRip to your Amazon Music Library to play straight away. Great value, great music from the legendary rock and roll band with horns – recommended.

There's been many occasions where during my life, I have judged a band on what I've heard on the radio. As I've grown older, I've realised that this was a very silly thing to do and I'm going out my way to try out bands I have otherwise heard very little of. Chicago's hit singles as an example, they never pulled me in due to the simple fact that I found them a bit cheesy. But when I started reading about the band and how their early material was more jazz focused, I started to take an interest. What I found was some shame and a great box-set of material. The first of two Chicago box-sets is titled, The Studio Albums 1969-1978 (Vol. 1). It's a TEN disc collection that has all of the band's studio material from Chicago Transit Authority (1969) all the way through Chicago II - XI (eight albums between 1970-1977) and finishing on Hot Streets (1978). This is the usual box-set affair with a thick clamshell case housing ten smaller cardboard sleeves, made to look like the old vinyl LP covers. There's no information booklet or any sort of extras. The box does not feature the live album, Chicago IV (At Carnegie Hall) or Chicago IX: Chicago's Greatest Hits. The music for this early Chicago collection is fantastic. I've been genuinely impressed at how complicated their music is. I wasn't prepared for how diverse and all over the place their music is stylistically. There's obviously a lot of rock influences in there, but the band have also got quite the jazz influence and it shows in every album. Each record has a heavy jazz groove that sneaks in every few songs, making a more interesting contrast between the rock/pop stuff. There are times where the different style fuses together and these are the true highlights of their catalogue. If I were to recommend some songs of Chicago, I would stay clear of the greatest hits compilations. I don't think they do them justice at all. Take for example, some of my more favourite songs on their albums are likes of Poem 58 and Liberation from the band's debut album or Sing a Mean Tune Kid and the Travel Suite from Chicago III. But then there is A Hit by Varése from Chicago V, Hideaway from Chicago VIII, Mississippi Delta City Blues from Chicago XI. These songs are all more complex and interesting than If You Leave Me Now, which isn't a bad song in itself. But it's a fairly shallow little thing by comparison. The sound of the box-set and the over all remastering is fine. The bass has some wonderful depth. The guitars are powerful when need be and the horn section doesn't get shrill or irritating, like some do. It's all very well done sonically with no real horror stories. Of the lot, I found the second album to be the most undesirable in terms of sound. But that isn't a remastering issue, I think that is literally just the production of the album. I have read a number of comments online saying the same thing. Chicago were a band I never intended to listen to and in my sheer ignorance, I have missed a truly great band. This collection is well worth picking up for anyone who likes some complex '70s rock and doesn't want any of that pretentiousness that comes with prog rock etc. Don't be fooled by the compilation albums and the '80s material. This band is more than their reputation suggests and I couldn't recommend it more.

This is Chicago's first 10 studio albums, spanning 1969-1978 (missing only Chicago IV, which was live). The first four of these unquestionably represent the peak of Chicago's creativity, and feature most of their best hits as well. The mastering on these is identical to the mastering on the Rhino reissues from a number of years back, and bonus tracks are included here, just as on the Rhino remasters. The bonus tracks aren't crucial, but they're nice to have. Unfortunately, the mastering is so-so: Louder than is necessary, and ultimately mostly inferior to the original issues (on Columbia, then on Chicago Records). But if you're not an audiophile, you'll be happy enough... These are in mini-sleeves. Gatefolds are not reproduced, and there are no inner liners. In other words, pretty cheap packaging. But it saves a lot of space, and the music's still there. Full track listings, since Amazon has neglected to offer them. All feature bonus tracks except Chicago 1 (CTA) and Chicago III: CD1) Chicago Transit Authority: 1 Introduction, 2 Liberation, 3 Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?, 4 Beginnings, 5 Questions 67-68, 6 Listen, 7 Poem 58, 8 Free Form Guitar, 9 South California Purples, 10 I'm a Man, 11 Prologue, 12 Someday, CD2) Chicago (Expanded): 1 Movin' In, 2 The Road, 3 Poem for the People, 4 In the Country, 5 Wake Up Sunshine, 6 Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon, 7 Fancy Colours, 8 25 or 6 to 4, 9 Memories of Love, 10 It Better End Soon, 11 Where Do We Go from Here, 12 Make Me Smile (Single Version), 13 25 Or 6 To 4 (Single Version), CD3) Chicago III: 1 Sing a Mean Tune, 2 Loneliness Is Just a World, 3 What Else Can I Say, 4 I Don't Want Your Money, 5 Travel Suite, 6 Mother, 7 Lowdown, 8 An Hour in the Shower, 9 Elegy, CD4) Chicago V (Expanded): 1 A Hit by Varese, 2 All Is Well, 3 Now That You've Gone, 4 Dialogue (Part 1), 5 Dialogue (Part 2), 6 While the City Sleeps, 7 Saturday in the Park, 8 State of the Union, 9 Goodbye, 10 Alma Mater, 11 A Song For Richard and His Friends, 12 Mississippi Delta City Blues, 13 Dialogue (Part I and III) (Single Version), CD5) Chicago VI (Expanded): 1 Critics' Choice, 2 Just You `n' Me, 3 Darlin' Dear, 4 Jenny, 5 What's This World Comin' To, 6 Something in This City Changes People, 7 Hollywood, 8 In Terms of Two, 9 Rediscovery, 10 Feelin' Stronger Every Day, 11 Beyond All Our Sorrows, 12 Tired Of Being Alone (TV Special), CD6) Chicago VII (Expanded): 1 Prelude to Aire, 2 Aire, 3 Devil's Sweet, 4 Italian From New York, 5 Hanky Panky, 6 Life Saver, 7 Happy Man, 8 (I've Been) Searchin' So Long, 9 Monogonucleosis, 10 Song of the Evergreens, 11 Byblos, 12 Wishing You Were Here, 13 Call on Me, 14 Woman Don't Want to Love Me, 15 Skinny Boy, 16 Byblos (Rehearsal), CD7) Chicago VIII (Expanded): 1 Anyway You Want, 2 Brand New Love Affair (Part 1 & 2), 3 Never Been in Love Before, 4 Hideaway, 5 Till We Meet Again, 6 Harry Truman, 7 Oh Thank You Great Spirit, 8 Long Time No See, 9 Ain't It Blue, 10 Old Days, 11 Sixth Sense (Rehearsal), 12 Bright Eyes (Rehearsal), 13 Satin Doll (Live), CD8) Chicago X (Expanded): 1 Once or Twice, 2 You Are on My Mind, 3 Skin Tight, 4 If You Leave Me Now, 5 Together Again, 6 Another Rainy Day in New York City, 7 Mama Mama, 8 Scrapbook, 9 Gently I'll Wake You, 10 You Get It Up,11 Hope for Love, 12 I'd Rather Be Rich, 13 Your Love's An Attitude, CD9) Chicago XI (Expanded): 1 Mississippi Delta City Blues, 2 Baby What a Big Surprise, 3 Till the End of Time, 4 Policeman, 5 Take Me Back to Chicago, 6 Vote for Me, 7 Takin' It on Uptown, 8 This Time, 9 The Inner Struggles of a Man, 10 Prelude (Little One), 11 Little One, 12 Wish I Could Fly, 13 Paris, CD10) Hot Streets (Expanded): 1 Alive Again, 2 The Greatest Love on Earth, 3 Litlle Miss Lovin', 4 Hot Streets, 5 Take a Chance, 6 Gone Long Gone, 7 Ain't It Time, 8 Love Was New, 9 No Tell Lover, 10 Show Me the Way, 11 Love Was New (Alt),

An excellent collection of CDs. Chicago XI is the last one on which the great Terry Kath appears on. Superb guitar work and great tunes by the band. Uptown on Chicago XI nearly sounds like Hendrix with Terry's soulful voice and great guitar distortion. Terry and Jimi both looked up to each other. One thing to be aware of is the auto rip as advertised. It does not seem to exist. I bought the CD set and no auto rip was forthcoming. I went to the help and they referred me to the seller. The seller cane back and rightly pointed out it was Amazon that fulfilled the order and the auto rip is their responsibility. I contacted Amazon again and they said they could not do it. I was offered a refund without having to return the CDs. Beware of the auto rip for this box set. You may not get it.

Great collection of the early Chicago albums.

For the price, this is fantastic value, and so much great music. But don't expect any glossy booklet, rare pics or anything at all really beyond 10 cardboard covers with the LP front cover image on the front and a basic track listing on the back. They are not complete CD size replicas of the original vinyl LP covers. But very nice box to keep all the CDs in, and well worth the money. Nice to have all the bonus tracks in one place too, slight though some of them are.

What can you say. Cd's sound really good. It's a great way to get the studio albums without having to buy them all separately. I "only" listened to their hits for years and have been a fan since I'm a kid. There's always cool songs on studio albums they don't ever play on the radio. I would recommend this set. Sue G. USA

Die Chicago-Alben waren eigentlich von jeher keine kurzfristigen Hitparadenstürmer sondern jeweils ein in sich geschlossenes Album, welches durch seine Gesamtheit überzeugte. Also keine wahllose Ansammlung von Songs mir EINEM Hit und sonstigem Füllmaterials, sondern Gesamtwerke - oder besser: GesamtKUNSTwerke! In der nun vorliegenden Zusammenstellung erhält man 10 Chicago-Alben für den Preis, der sonst fast für eine CD aufgerufen wird! Da ist man natürlich gespannt, ob der Sound dann ein billiges Zusammengestöpsel ist und die ganze Sache den Preis nicht wert! Bisher habe ich nur das Album 7 angehört, doch allein schon diese hat mich voll vom Hocker geholt: Sound ist klar, frisch, mindestens so gut wie man es damals nicht besser konnte! Lt. Titelliste sind ein Teil der Aufnahmen "remastered". Doch auch die übrigen Aufnahmen klingen sehr gut! Insgesamt bekommt man 10 Alben für rund 25 Euro - da lohnt sich das Downloaden anderwo kaum. Klangqualität 1A, Preis mehr als günstig - was will man mehr um in die Erinnerungsoase "Chicago" einzusteigen!

Cómo gran fan de este grupo, que me considero desde 1968, cuando editaron su primer LP Chicago Transit Authority. Aquí en España se editó en un LP sencillo, por lo que unos años después, recurrí a un amigo que viajaba a Estados Unidos para encargarle éste primer LP doble, tal y como se había editado en ese país. Desde entonces, fui comprando todos vinilos que sacaron al mercado, ya con el nombre de Chicago añadiendo en números romanos el título del LP. Cuando apareció el CD, me pasé a este formato en las sucesivas ediciones nuevas. En el 2016, Rhino tuvo la feliz idea de editar en Blu-ray y en multicanal (4.1) los nueve primeros discos, que como enamorado que soy de la música en multicanal, disfruto enormemente cada vez que los escucho. Finalmente, esta recopilación de sus 10 primeros discos en estéreo me motivó a su compra para poder escuchar en cualquier lugar y con auriculares. En estos años, las mezclas de estos discos han ido retocándose y han llegado a un nivel de calidad francamente bueno. Aún, si no sois acérrimos seguidores de este grupo, como lo soy yo, os lo recomiendo con empeño. Vais a disfrutar de lo lindo.

Completo. Ótimo som.

Son 10 discos, yo estoy satisfecho con los primeros 8....desde que lo pedí, a cuando llegó, pasaron más de 40 días, quizás por eso llegó un poco maltratada la caja ....paso mucho tiempo...como mensajería de hace 20 años. Único inconveniente...

Avec son album "2", Chicago conquit la planète. J'avais a l'époque été scotché, au même titre que Electric Ladyland de Hendrix. Faire du rock jazz avec moult cuivres c'était très nouveau (le groupe Blood, Sweat & Tears tenta un peu la même chose) Duke Ellington considérait Chicago comme le plus gd groupe du moment.... Rock jazz déjanté sur les 3 premiers albums il sorienta ensuite vers qqch de plus "classique" puis a partir de 76 vers un rock "FM" avec les compositions/ballades parfois sirupeuses de Pète Cetera mais il faut bien le reconnaître d'excellente qualité (If you leave me now " ou encore " What a Big surprise" Qd on pose l'un de ces cds ou vinyle sur la platine on a pas du tout envie de zapper Malheureusement après 78 la qualité devient éclectique Mais leur tout dernier album (born for this moment" en l'absence de Kath, Seraphine, Cetera, est tres bon meme si il n'y a plus de folie. A 75 ans passés les survivants n'ont plus cette hargne sachant qu'ils st "close to the bones" et c'est sommes ttes normal, j'en sais qqch!!!!!