'' is the fourteenth
Album by
American Rock band
Chicago and was released in
1980 . Recorded at a time of waning interest in the band, ''Chicago XIV'' remains Chicago's poorest selling album and was a commercial flop. It is also notable for being their last studio album with
Columbia Records .
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''. It may have been a response to the under-produced, New Wave efforts on the radio at the time. The album was easily the 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.
With
Peter Cetera taking an even greater role in the band, his compositions were largely insipid romantic ballads, giving ''Chicago XIV'' a decidedly
Adult Contemporary sound.
Robert Lamm served as Cetera's foil, turning in the rockers "Manipulation" (Lamm's paen to metaphysical onanism) and "I'd Rather Be Rich" (a song from
1975 ) and
James Pankow also delivered the uptempo - if downbeat - "The American Dream". It was, by most accounts, an improvement over ''Chicago 13'', but 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, despite its charms. There were no singles hits again, although "Thunder And Lightning" came close. Realizing that the relationship had soured considerably,
Columbia Records excused Chicago from its recent multi-million contract, and let them go. Percussionist
Laudir De Oliveira , with Chicago since
1973 , decided to explore other options and would leave the band in
1981 , realizing that the Latin percussion evident in the latter half of the previous decade no longer fit the band style.
In
2003 , ''Chicago XIV'' was remastered and reissued by
Rhino Records with three outtakes from the sessions, "Doin' Business", "Live It Up" and "Soldier Of Fortune" as bonus tracks.
#"Manipulation" (
Robert Lamm ) - 3:45
#"Upon Arrival" (
Peter Cetera /Robert Lamm) - 3:48
#"Song For You" (Peter Cetera) - 3:41
#"Where Did The Lovin' Go" (Peter Cetera) - 4:06
#"Birthday Boy" (
Danny Seraphine /David Wolinski) - 4:55
#"Hold On" (Peter Cetera) - 4:15
#"Overnight Cafe" (Peter Cetera) - 4:19
#"Thunder And Lightning" (Robert Lamm/Danny Seraphine) - 3:32
#"I'd Rather Be Rich" (Robert Lamm) - 3:08
#"The American Dream" (
James Pankow ) - 3:19
''Chicago XIV'' (Columbia 36517) reached in the US during a chart stay of 9 weeks. It did not chart in the UK.
- Chris Pinnick - Guitar
- Mark Goldenberg - guitar
- David "Hawk" Wolinski - keyboards
- Ian Underwood - programming
