Chicago - The Best Of Chicago 40th Anniversary (30 tracks) +Album Reviews

Never thought I'd say this, skip this one.

Jonathan W. Schult | Mass. Park, NY | 02/11/2008

(1 out of 5 stars)

""The Best of Chicago:40th Anniversary Edition" does a grave disservice to all of its fans old and new by including the shorty 45 edits of its hits. That means that '25 or 6 to 4", which runs 4:50 in its full length, only runs 2:53 here. "Beginnings", at 7:51 for its complete version, only runs 2:52 here (even the "Greatest Hits" edit ran 6:26, only editing off the percussion run-off at the end, but leaving the body of the song intact). Doing this is NOT giving good value for the money. Do yourselves a favor - skip this, and pay the extra few dollars for "The Very Best Of Chicago: Only the Beginning". It has more songs, and the early hits are represented by their more complete versions. The current release smacks of what record companies do best: exploit, underestimate, and take advantage of their customers in the name of the almighty dollar."

Chicago - The Radio Hits

wr | Richmond, Virginia | 10/17/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"People are misinformed about this release. On the front of the CD, it says 30 radio hits, which means these are the songs in the original forms they were released to radio. There is no fooling people unless you don't look at the CD cover (this is on the outside on the plastic packaging, regarding what this oompilation is).

The only exception to this is What Kind of Man which is the LP version, a mistake by the record company.

This edition has comments provided by the band.

So, it is not at all a diservice to the band, but a collection of the songs as they were heard on the radio.

It was only after Chicago was a sucess that radio stations started playing the album versions of the hit singles.

This collection could have been titled: "Chicago: 40 years of radio hits" - so that so many of you would have not have been fooled into thinking it was something the collection is not.

I think it is nice to have all of the original radio releases all in one collection with the insight provided by the band members.

This is what Rhino does, compilations and re-issues, and this is a worthy collection for completists and the casual fan that needs an introduction to Chicago.

"

Horribly Edited Songs

Bill | Maple Glen, PA USA | 10/07/2007

(1 out of 5 stars)

"Buyer beware. I only got through the 1st 5 songs of the 1st CD before taking it out of my CD player in disgust. The songs are terribly edited (less than 3 minutes for Beginnings, same for Question 67 & 68). I thought that since there were fewer songs per CD, they would include the full album versions. And there is plenty of room on the CD to do so (only 51 minutes on the 1st CD). Why anybody would want these inferior versions is beyond me. All the Chicago greatest hits CDs suffer the same fate (although the edits on this one are worse than previous ones). Shame on you Rhino! Give us a real greatest hits with the real versions."

Remastered Hits

Dr. Dennie Templeton | Virginia | 02/10/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"In many albums that have been remastered, especially groups that have been around as long as Chicago, it is always a tough choice to decide to buy remastered releases. Chicago, as much as any band has had more variations of their music in different release formats with the possible exception of the Beatles and Elvis. I have been listening to Chicago since the first album was released on vinyl. That will give you some idea of how old I am. I have been through their progressive and experimental rock sounds in the 60's, Terry Kath's accidental death, and the departure of Peter Cetera in the 80's. With each change the band shifted gears and tried to recover. Terry provided the hard edge as one of the finest guitarist in rock history and Peter, much like Paul McCartney with the Beatles, wanted to move the band more toward traditional ballads and "love songs". This was not a bad idea because it resulted in a string of songs that extend the life of the band. Listening to If you Leave Me Now and A Hard Habit to Break on the remasterd album and the early Beginnings track emphasized the pronounced rift in the founding members including drummer Danny Seraphine. The sound and tightness of the band changed with each major loss or change in members. The attempt to bring in young talent to infuse the music seemed contrived or forced in the attempt by remaining band members to maintain the core of the group sound and uniqueness. I have seen Chicago seven times over the past 35 years and the last two have been disappointing in that I thought they were going through the motions much like I do from time to time at work.The live event Chicago preformed on the HD Rave satellite channel was the closet to a revival.

Most long time fans that have followed the band like me will dissect and enjoy the individual songs that contributed to the historical body of work. The newer releases will expose the gaps and loss of creative new work. Using a sports analogy, it is like a musical free agency problem. This is truly one of the finest bands that have ever played and, when you heard them the first time in the 1960's. Chicago had a unique and new sound and I can still appreciate and remember the experience in the same way I remembered the Beatles when I heard them the first time. I wish the current band members would bury the hatchet with Peter Cetera, get back in the studio, and go on the road again. Not to play all of the old songs, but to see what they can come up with now. Although The Best of Chicago, 40th Anniversary Edition, is a fine remastered album it is hard to improve on perfection.

D. Templeton"

Skip this release

Galley | Greenville, South Carolina United States | 10/06/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Although this set does include a few of Chicago's hits in the 2000s, it is seriously lacking compared to 2002's The Very Best of Chicago: Only the Beginning. That excellent compilation has 39 tracks; this one has 30. You do the math."

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