Maps of Music

Chicago 16 (1982)

Where the lyrics of Chicago 16 take you, and where it was really made.

Chicago's comeback album was their first to go platinum since 1978, and it was made with outside songwriters and studio players brought in by producer David Foster.

Key places

Recorded at Bill Schnee Studios (1982)

Recording site Schnee Studio — The source lists Bill Schnee Studios as a recording location for Chicago 16 in North Hollywood, California. The point is shown at city-center level. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recorded at Davlen Sound Studios (1982)

Recording site The Music Grinder (Hollywood) — The source lists Davlen Sound Studios as a recording location for Chicago 16 in Hollywood, California. The point is shown at city-center level. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recorded at Skyline Recording (1982)

Recording site The Garage — The source lists Skyline Recording as a recording location for Chicago 16 in Topanga, California. The point is shown at city-center level. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Chicago 16: thirteenth studio album, sixteenth overall, by the American rock band Chicago
• Released June 7, 1982
• Considered the band's 'comeback' album: first album to go platinum since Hot Streets (1978)
• Reached the Billboard 200 top ten and produced the band's second US number one single, 'Hard to Say I'm Sorry'
• First album of a decade-long association with new label Warner Bros. Records
• First Chicago project produced by David Foster
• First album since Chicago VII (1974) without Laudir de Oliveira as a member
• First studio album released two years after the previous one; earlier studio albums came out annually

Background

• Bill Champlin joined as keyboardist and singer
• Chris Pinnick retained from the Chicago XIV sessions
• Foster was contacted through manager Jeff Wald and suggested by Danny Seraphine
• Jeff Wald was dismissed as manager; Irving Azoff and Howard Kaufman became the new managers
• Foster brought in outside songwriters and studio players; three members of Toto contributed
• Robert Lamm was largely unavailable during production because of personal issues
• Laudir de Oliveira was dismissed after the Chicago XIV tour

Recording

• Recorded at Bill Schnee Studios (North Hollywood), Davlen Sound Studios (Hollywood) and Skyline Recording (Topanga)
• Mixed at Studio 55 in Los Angeles
• Engineered and mixed by Humberto Gatica

Cover

• Photography by Aaron Rapoport
• Original art design and direction by John Kosh and Ron Larson

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · ko.wikipedia.org

Artist

Formation

• Chicago is an American rock band formed in Chicago, Illinois, in 1967.
• The band described itself as a "rock and roll band with horns" and blended classical music, jazz, R&B, and pop.
• The group first called itself the Big Thing, became Chicago Transit Authority in 1968, and shortened its name to Chicago in 1969.

Members

• The original line-up was Peter Cetera (bass), Terry Kath (guitar), Robert Lamm (keyboards), Lee Loughnane (trumpet), James Pankow (trombone), Walter Parazaider (woodwinds), and Danny Seraphine (drums).
• Lamm, Loughnane, and Pankow have remained constant members since 2009.
• Terry Kath died in 1978 after an accidental gunshot wound.

Career

• The band's debut double album, Chicago Transit Authority (1969), was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2014.
• In 1971 Chicago became the first rock act to sell out a week at Carnegie Hall.
• "If You Leave Me Now" (1976) became the group's first number-one single and won its only Grammy.
• Billboard placed the band among the most successful chart acts in its history, and it has sold more than 100 million records.
• The original line-up was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2016.
• Chicago received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award on October 16, 2020.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Billboard wrote that the album was 'filled with the distinctive hooks that made it the top American band throughout most of the 70s'
• Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic characterized the album as "no-nonsense, all-business, crisp and clean pop for the Reagan era"
• Billboard said the band's cool vocal sound contrasts with hot, horn-sparked arrangements on a range of tunes, from midtempo ballads to catchy car-radio rockers

Reappraisal

• Billboard's praise centered on the hooks and the vocal sound set against the horn arrangements
• AllMusic's review framed the record as crisp, efficient pop typical of the Reagan era

Records

• Reached number nine on the Billboard 200
• 'Hard to Say I'm Sorry' became the band's second US number one, topping the Billboard Hot 100 and the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart
• 'Love Me Tomorrow' reached number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number eight on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart
• 'What You're Missing' peaked at number 81 on the Billboard Hot 100
• Certified gold by the RIAA in August 1982, two months after release
• Certified platinum by the RIAA in December 1982
• 'Hard to Say I'm Sorry' was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Robert Lamm was largely unavailable for production because of personal issues and received only one partial writing credit and no lead vocals.
• Two outtakes, 'Remember There's Someone Who Loves You' and 'Come On Back', were recorded during the sessions and remain unreleased.
• The original UK LP release included 'Rescue You' before 'What Can I Say', unlike later releases of the album.
• The Rhino remaster replaced 'What You're Missing' with its single edit and included a Bill Champlin demo, 'Daddy's Favorite Fool', as a bonus track.
• The 2010 international release restored the original album and added single versions of 'Hard To Say I'm Sorry', 'What You're Missing' and 'Love Me Tomorrow'.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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