Mr Mike's Highschool Record Collection: Chicago 18

For some reason I've had this album on my mind lately, which is funny because I don't have it anymore. So, I'll get it out of my system with a post to a classic. I'm talkin'...

Chicago 18 (1986)

Technically I bought this between high school and college, but oh well. I became a huge fan of Chicago when I was in high school. Peter Cetera's clinched jaw crooning over David Foster's bombastic production was magical to me. Chicago 17 was my favorite record for awhile back then. "Hard Habit To Break"? Thought it was the best song ever.

So you may be able to imagine my disappointment when his Ceteraness was given the boot from Chicago before the next album. I mean, who's gonna sing all the hits? And Cetera co wrote a lot of those hits, how were you gonna replace that? And have you seen the guy's hair?? Who else had a head that could hold that much hair gel??? My gawd, somebody think about the hair gel!

Needless to say, I went into Chicago 18 with some reservations. The band tried to get Martin Page to replace Cetera but he said, "Uh, I've got this band Mr. Mister. I think we're gonna be big some day." They tried to nab Mickey Thomas, he said "Uh, I've got this band Starship and I think we're gonna beat this Jefferson Starship lawsuit thing." Ok, they may not have said those things but the end result was hiring Jason Scheff, another blonde high pitched voiced bass player.

But really, there was only one way to replace Cetera: Let David Foster put his "Fosters Freeze" production all over the record. All vocals will be processed, all sounds recorded with sonic clarity and mixed to the most antiseptic standards. And an army of outside songwriters will help too. It sounds bad and if I was a true rock critic it would be, but I have a thing for David Foster's 80's production style so track by track here's Chicago 18.

Niagra Falls - The opening track gets the album off to a moody start. Jason Scheff tackles the lead vocal effectively as he namechecks landmarks to descrive his love. Nice midtempo cut and the 4th single from the album

Forever - Robert Lamm's obligatory song on the album recorded just before he gave up on recording decent songs. Lamm's jazziness shines through the thick cloud of electronic drums and hazy synths. James Pankow cuts loose with a great extended trombone solo at the end. Good stuff.

If She Would Have Been Faithful... - My favorite from the album and the third single! Intended to be a sequel to "Hard Habit To Break", the smooth voice Scheff and the gruff voiced Bill Champlain trade off lead vocals while the song has those a capella breaks and classical music influence that made previous hits great. Best of all, the song has some of the worst love song lyrics ever written. It tells the convoluted story that if his first girlfriend hadn't cheated on him, he would not have found love with the second girlfriend. Is that even romantic? Here's some sample lyrics "It's a paradox/full of contradictions (yeah, that's what a paradox is)/ how I got from there to here/defys a logical expla-na-tttiiooonn!" Worst. Lyrics. Ever.

25 0r 6 to 4 '86 - You know the band must have been sick of this song to think "What we need is a slowed down dance version of our biggest hit!" And so it went, this awful mess of a song with it's repeititve beat, limp vocals and echoing horns. The first single from the album didn't make the Top 40. I think they just got tired of playing the song the way it was and wanted an excuse to play it a new way.

Will You Still Love Me? - Ah, Chicago. Love songs for co-dependants. The second single from the album was a Top 10 hit thanks to David Foster's superb production. Classical style piano, Foster style boom booms (like at the start, Da DA DAA Da...da) and winsome lyrics made for Adult Contemporary paradise. Scheff's vocal established him as the successful successor (say that thre times fast) to King Cetera.

Over and Over - Is exactly what this song does. I can't even remember who sang lead on this one. Maybe Robert Lamm.

It's Alright - Bill Champlain gets his R&B groove on with the sole uptempo track. As with most latter day Chicago, the Champlain cut gives the group a chance to swing a little and lay down a groove. Nice song.

Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now - Not to be confused with the Starship hit a year later, this Scheff penned ditty showed the new Cetera had some talent. Not great, but not bad either as far as Adult Contemporary goes.

FreeFlight -The Horn Section gets to do a little something. For about 30 seconds.

I Believe - More Adult Contemporary Heaven thanks to a more subdued vocal and production than normal. Champlain and Scheff again trade off vocals. The vocal gets a little whiny.

One More Day - James Pankow still wrote the occasional song and his contribution here is the closing track. The song mildly bounces to an "inspirational" chorus of asking to give the children of the World One More Day.

As you can see, the second side of the cassette got a little skimpier than the first side. Chicago got a Top 10 and Top 20 hit single plus a Gold record for Chicago 18. Following the four hit singles and triple Platinum status of Chicago 17 it was quite a comedown. The band proved they could carry on without Cetera, but just barely. The memories of solo Cetera and Ceteraless Chicago still stand out in my mind. They're forever linked to a time between highschool and college with memories of being out of the house for the first time in my lfe. To celebrate Chicago's independence twenty years later, here's "It's Alright" on what looks like Solid Gold!

Chicago - "It's Alright"