Playing nightclub gigs around the Midwest in the ‘60s, three college students from DePaul were astounded one night when they and their bandmates listened to a brand new record by The Beatles.  In the song arrangements on Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, they heard a new way to make music.  There were countermelodies that wove in and out of the verses.  There were brass instruments that stood shoulder to shoulder with the guitars in the choruses.  There were instrumental interludes that felt as much a part of the song as the vocals.

It was a listening experience that inspired those young Illinois musicians to form a novel group of their own:  a rock band that included a horn section.  And not just as “extra texture,” those brass instruments would be part of the group’s identity.

And so Chicago was born.  With their unique instrumentation and their blend of jazz, classical, and R’n’B influences, they became one of the most successful American bands of all time, second only to The Beach Boys.  And though the ‘70s are seen as the group’s heyday, Chicago delivered the biggest selling album of their career with their 17th record in 1984.

With twenty Top 10 hits and five #1 albums, we’ve got our work cut out for us when Great Moments in Vinyl brings you the hits and highlights of Chicago, Friday, June 27th in an outdoor concert on the rooftop of the Joliet Area Historical Museum.  Great songs.  Great stories.