Chicago - Chicago Transit Authority - 1969
Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab Records - MFSL 2-128
The Chicago Transit Authority is the self-titled debut album by Chicago Transit Authority, who would later be known as Chicago. It was recorded and released in 1969.
Upon the band’s 1967 inception, they were initially called “The Missing Links”. Then (according to Robert Lamm on an episode of In the Studio with Redbeard devoted to the making of the album) changed its name to “The Big Thing” (occasionally performed in areas outside Chicago and Milwaukee as “The Big Sounds” due to some venues complaining about the double entendre that the name “The Big Thing” also alluded to), before adopting the moniker The Chicago Transit Authority when producer James William Guercio took them on in 1968. Fusing brass and jazz with a soulful rock and roll feel was their trademark and Guercio instinctively felt that their sound would prove successful, lobbying for his label to give them a shot.
The Chicago Transit Authority were signed to Columbia Records late that year and recorded their debut in late January. While Guercio had recently produced Blood, Sweat & Tears’ second album (which proved to be a huge smash), he did so to raise capital for his band. By the end of The Chicago Transit Authority’s sessions, it was clear that the album would have to be a double. Very skeptical, seeing as the band had no track record, Columbia only agreed to the concept if the group would take a royalty cut.
In their original incarnation, keyboardist Robert Lamm, guitarist Terry Kath and bassist Peter Cetera all shared lead vocals, while James Pankow, Lee Loughnane and Walter Parazaider handled all brass and woodwinds and Danny Seraphine played drums. Lamm, Kath and Pankow were the band’s main composers at this juncture. Kath’s prowess as a guitarist was so strong that even Jimi Hendrix became a major fan of Kath’s playing. According to the album’s original liner notes, the solo performance of Kath on “Free Form Guitar” was created without the use of any pedals. In a nod to Hendrix’s guitar expressionism (Hendrix most notably used wah and fuzz pedals), Kath instead plugged directly into his studio amplifier and improvised the entire track in one take for the purpose of pure tone. “Free Form Guitar” is also noted as being another influence on the genre of noise music.
Released in April 1969, The Chicago Transit Authority (sometimes informally referred to simply as “CTA”) proved to be an immediate hit, reaching #17 in the US and #9 in the UK. While critical reaction was also strong, the album initially failed to produce any hit singles, with the group seen as an album-oriented collective. In 1970 and 1971, “Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?” (#7), “Beginnings” (#7) and “Questions 67 and 68″ (#71/#24 re-release) would all prove to be belated hits. Buoyed by the success of their later albums, the album stayed on the charts for a then-record 171 weeks, and was certified gold (and later platinum and double platinum).
While the band toured the album, legal action was threatened by the actual Chicago Transit Authority, forcing the group to reduce their name to, simply, Chicago.
Track Listing
Side 1
1. Introduction
2. Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?
3. Beginnings
Side 2
1. Questions 67 And 68
2. Listen
3. Poem 58
Side 3
1. Free Form Guitar
2. South California Purples
3. I’m A Man
Side 4
1. Prologue, August 29, 1968
2. Someday (August 29, 1968)
3. Liberation
Ripping Info:
VPI HM 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Zerostat Anti-Static Gun
Technics SL-1210MK2 Turntable
Origin Live OL1 fully modified tone arm (Rega RB250)
Audio-Technica AT33EV MC Cartridge
Dennon AU-300LC Step Up Transformer
Custom built, all tube phono stage
Creative 0404 USB @ 24 bit / 192khz
WaveLab for recording software
JBL LSR series studio monitors / subwoofer for playback listening
iZotope RX Advanced for any cleaning needed (all done manually)
iZotope RX Advanced for re-sampling to 24/96 & 16/44
Trader's Little Helper for SBE correction
mp3tag for tagging & re-naming files
Adobe Photoshop for scans
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