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| Chicago 16 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | June 7, 1982 (1982-06-07) | |||
| Recorded | January–April 1982 | |||
| Studio | Bill Schnee Studios (Los Angeles, CA) The Record Plant (Los Angeles, CA) Davlen Sound Studios (Hollywood, CA) Skyline Recording (Topanga, CA) | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 41:51 | |||
| Label | Full Moon/Warner Bros. | |||
| Producer | David Foster | |||
| Chicago chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Chicago 16 | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [1] |
Chicago 16 is the thirteenth studio album, sixteenth overall by the Americanrock bandChicago, released on June 7, 1982. It is considered their "comeback" album because it was their first album to go platinum since 1978'sHot Streets.[2] It made it into theBillboard 200 top ten,[3] and produced their second number one single in the United States, "Hard to Say I'm Sorry".[4]: 202 The album was certified gold by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in August, 1982, two months after its release, and platinum in December, 1982.[5] "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" was nominated for aGrammy Award forBest Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.[6]
Chicago 16 was the first album in a decade-long association with their new labelWarner Bros. Records;[7] the band's first project to be produced byDavid Foster, who has been called the "key" to their comeback;[7] their first album to include some songs exclusively by composers outside of the group;[8] and is also the first album sinceChicago VII (1974) not to featureLaudir de Oliveira as a band member.[4]: 132, 200 It is also the first studio album to be released two years after the previous, as previous studio albums were released annually.
The band brought inSons of Champlin founderBill Champlin as keyboardist and singer.[8] The group also retainedChris Pinnick from theChicago XIV sessions. Through the band's manager, Jeff Wald, and on suggestion of Danny Seraphine, producer David Foster would make contact with the band.[9] Jeff Wald was dismissed as manager and the band enlistedIrving Azoff andHoward Kaufman as their new managers shortly thereafter.
Once they agreed to Foster producing the album (the band had considered him for 1980'sChicago XIV[10]), Foster radically redefined Chicago's sound for the 1980s, with all of the latest technologies and techniques, and also brought in outside songwriters and studio players to the sessions. Three members ofToto lent their expertise to the sessions. In 2015 former Chicago drummerDanny Seraphine defended this choice to change their sound:
David Foster really tried to maintain the integrity of the band. He wasn't looking to diminish the musicality and the integrity of the band at all. Some people might say that he did. But he was going with what the times dictated. I'm telling you, there was word through our manager from radio stations saying they didn't want anything with horns on it. How do you deal with that?[11]
Thesoft rock leanings ofPeter Cetera and Foster permeate much ofChicago 16. The band was moving to a new label after an entire career at Columbia.Robert Lamm was also unavailable for the majority of the album's production because of personal issues,[8] and the once-prolific writer only shared a sole partial writing credit on the release, with no lead vocal contributions. Lamm said of this change:
I wasn't happy with the way things were going. The loss of Terry Kath was still massive. Suddenly, we have a new label who wants us to use outside musicians and songwriters, plus cut down the horns. We were a faceless band who now had a face. It wasn't what I signed up for. Also, my personal life was in turmoil at the time. I was very unhappy and came very close to leaving the band.[citation needed]
In an interview in 2019, Cetera described the initial songwriting efforts from band members that were presented to Foster as "pure shit," blaming alcohol and drug abuse in the band for the decline in the quality of songwriting. Eventually, Foster and Cetera collaborated to write the album's two hit singles.[12]
PercussionistLaudir de Oliveira was dismissed from the band after theChicago XIV tour, as his Latin-American style would not fit with the "more pop-oriented sound" of the band.[4]: 200
Upon its June 1982 release,Chicago 16 was a hit album, especially as "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" became the band's second number oneUS single,[4]: 202 going to number one on both theBillboard Hot 100 chart[13] and theBillboard Adult Contemporary chart.[14] The album ultimately went platinum[5] and reached number nine on theBillboard 200 chart.[15] The single would also be included in its lengthier form "Hard to Say I'm Sorry/Get Away" on theSummer Lovers movie soundtrack.[16][17] "Love Me Tomorrow", the second single lifted off the album, features a lengthy orchestration at the end. It went to number 22 on theBillboard Hot 100 chart[18] and number eight on theBillboard Adult Contemporary chart.[19] A third single, "What You're Missing", was released and peaked at number 81 on theBillboard Hot 100 chart.[20]
TheRhino remaster does not include the full-length versions of "What You're Missing" and "Love Me Tomorrow." The former was replaced with its single edit, and the latter had two bars of the sequence (prominently featuring strings) that begins the instrumental bridge removed. However, this remastered version does include a Bill Champlin demo, called "Daddy's Favorite Fool", as a bonus track. A subsequent international release in 2010 (included in theStudio Albums 1979-2008 box set from 2015) has the original album restored, with additional bonus tracks of the single versions of "Hard To Say I'm Sorry", "What You're Missing", and Love Me Tomorrow" as well as "Daddy's Favorite Fool."[21]
The original UK LP release contains "Rescue You" before "What Can I Say," unlike subsequent releases of this album.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Lead vocals | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "What You're Missing" | Jay Gruska,Joseph Williams | Peter Cetera | 4:10 |
| 2. | "Waiting for You to Decide" | David Foster,Steve Lukather,David Paich | Cetera withBill Champlin | 4:06 |
| 3. | "Bad Advice" | Peter Cetera, Foster,James Pankow | Champlin with Cetera | 2:58 |
| 4. | "Chains" | Ian Thomas | Cetera | 3:22 |
| 5. | "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" / "Get Away" | "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" (Cetera, Foster); "Get Away" (Cetera, Foster,Robert Lamm) | Cetera | 5:08 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Lead vocals | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6. | "Follow Me" | Foster, Pankow | Champlin | 4:53 |
| 7. | "Sonny Think Twice" | Bill Champlin,Danny Seraphine | Champlin | 4:01 |
| 8. | "What Can I Say" | Foster, Pankow | Cetera | 3:49 |
| 9. | "Rescue You" | Cetera, Foster | Cetera | 3:57 |
| 10. | "Love Me Tomorrow" | Cetera, Foster | Cetera | 5:06 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Lead Vocals | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11. | "Daddy's Favorite Fool" | Champlin | Champlin | 3:52 |
"Remember There's Someone Who Loves You" (Champlin, Lamm)[22] and "Come On Back" (Bill Gable, Lamm)[23] were recorded during the sessions and remain unreleased.[citation needed]
Reissue
Weekly charts[edit]
| Year-end charts[edit]
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[35] | Gold | 20,000^ |
| Canada (Music Canada)[36] | Gold | 50,000^ |
| Germany (BVMI)[37] | Gold | 250,000^ |
| Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong)[35] | Gold | 10,000* |
| Italy (FIMI)[35] | Gold | 100,000[38] |
| United States (RIAA)[39] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||
