Chicago Performs "Alive Again" Live (10-25-1978) - Highest Quality Available! - with Dick Clark 

I couldn't agree more!

Danny wasn't just their drummer, he was a founding member and made a lot of business decisions for the band to keep them going into the 1980s. He's the one who brought in David Foster and Bill Champlin, and he had the band renegotiate the contracts with their old manager since they got screwed out of millions. So basically, he saved the band, time and time again. He also wrote some memorable tunes.

All true!

@@lamarravery4094 indeed. I can’t believe that they fired him for doing something to save the band. They complained that he didn’t like using a click track to keep time. They brought in Jeff Porcaro, because he was like a human click track. I love Jeff ‘s abilities to this day. I have no bad feelings towards him. It was just another gig. Dang, it must have been just before Jeff’s death! After saying all of this, I have heard that it was Peter Cetera that brought David Foster in.

Actually, as ironic as it sounds, Danny was the one who picked David Foster to produce Chicago 16. He also personally invited Bill Champlin to join the band. Funnily enough, Peter once said in an interview that he had never heard of David Foster before in his life when Danny first mentioned his name back in 1981 or so.

Nothing but the facts!

great!

My pleasure, and you just summed up my exact sentiments regarding Danny's contributions to Chicago. Seraphine was as irreplaceable as Kath and Cetera.

Yes Danny was the heart and soul if the group. He never used click track. His clock was his own . He was like a fine high price elegant watch Seraphine inc.

Kath also not replaceable. Cetera also as far as voice. But a little to much of him. On the love ballads direction they where heading for. I think it missed with Kaths mind he didn't like the direction they where going in . Neither did Danny. First seven Albums where there best. Love the first double record set CTA . CHICAGO . CHICAGO AT CARNAGE HALL. AND THE WOOD LOOKING ALBUM CHICAGO 7. was my favorites

So well said, Ed! Lee Loughnane makes my stomach turn when he makes the idiotic "[Tris] never has trouble finding the 1" comment. Playing with a dang metronome is cheating, plain and simple. Danny never needed one, and deterioration of drumming ability was NOT the true reason why he was fired. Anyone who's not deaf or dishonest knows that.

Also Danny was a percussion style drummer. Very rhythmic. There where all kind of different time signatures being used in early Chicago. The old God father of soul James Brown this is a man's world. Always made it known . My horn section and rhythm gtr are my time keepers. My drummer colors the sound and gives me the funky back beat . Off beat syncopation to drive the band. So the horn section can find and set the 1. Danny was fine. Listen to Trish on make me smiles Danny's trade mark small drum solo at the end of the song where it reaches a climax . Danny timing is so smooth and fluid . Amazing it was by Danny. Trish still to this day rushes the solo. To where it's missing something as if the bottom drops out. Very noticeable. Trish is what Chicago wanted later yrs a 4/4 time and ballad drummer. No syncopation

Well said! Totally agree!!!

My goodness, just... ALL. OF. THIS. Good God, where is the talent like this now? The talent, the passion - what a thrill. We had it good back then.

He is great and the drums without the bottom heads really open up!

Discerning listener! I couldn't agree more, Jason! Danny's my drumming hero.

I concur!

You're preaching to the choir with this guy. I'm a mega PC bass fanatic. LOL Be sure to check out his KILLER bass line on the live performance of "Street Player" that I uploaded.

Yes, but don't forget the equally prodigious talent of Peter Cetera, bassist extraordinaire!

Let's all just agree on this point and change the subject: "Chicago was never the same after Terry, Peter, and Danny left."

I personally cannot call anything after Danny and Peter left Chicago it was hard enough when Terry was so sadly lost

You share my exact sentiments!

Danny was smoking. Too bad he got canned later on.

The quality of their output started to decline, in my opinion, when they moved to the ranch. So _Chicago VI_ and beyond. Lots of things to speculate as to why, but I feel that living in comfort and isolation surrounded by groupies and drugs didn't help.

I strongly disagree that Chicago's output began to decline when they relocated to Caribou Ranch. In fact, the opposite is true. As Robert Lamm once remarked, that setting was akin to a "creative monastery" for the band. Two of their must-own albums, which are among my Top 3 favorite Chicago records (CTA being the other), are VI and VII. Both of those are masterpieces of Pop/Rock/Jazz-Rock.

@@Eighties_Child totally agree--VII is a masterpiece

Laudir was really jamming on percussion as well.@@ScornedRemnant

They can't even compare, especially Tris.

True he's great, but have you watched this video featuring Leonid & Friends? Even Danny agrees that Javad is just super drumming during the song!

This is an amazing message. Thanks for sharing! Don't get me started on all the reasons to feel sorry for anyone born in the '90s onward. (Where does one begin, right???) Just sticking with music, it's as if the entire industry took a nosedive into the sewer (both musically and lyrically) as soon as the '80s ended. Granted, there have been a few "needles in a haystack" here in there, but nothing will ever compare to or rival any of the vocalists, musicians, and songs written and performed between the 1930s and the 1980s, with the peak "Golden Age" of popular music being circa 1958 to 1985. But how incredible is it that you got to see the band back in '71? Wow! So blessed!!! I also agree that Donnie was a lot better than most Chicago fans give him credit for, but the band erred in hiring a guy whose singing voice/range was closer to Cetera's than Kath's. Donnie was a fine singer, but he lacked that husky, blue-eyed-soul voice. In my opinion, the greatest guitarist Chicago hired after Terry's passing was Chris Pinnick. Unfortunately, Pinnick wasn't a singer.

My Favorite Album By These Chaps...

Undeniable!

That he was a beast! Read his autobiography!

Agreed! Danny is one of the greatest ever.

When it comes to Chicago, you are definitely NOT in the minority for preferring their upbeat tunes to the slow ballads. And as far as your son goes, GO FOR IT! Every aspiring drummer/percussionist needs a good drum kit at home. :-)

Same.

I am an old heavy metal guy....but that horn section just gets my blood flowing!

ABSOLUTELY, your son needs something at HOME so he is not limited to playing when he's in the band room. He NEEDS someting at home to go as far as he wants!

Get your son that kit. Come hell or high water. Just do it. He'll thank you later :)

Agreed! No contest.

You are so very blessed! Which year? Town and venue? And do you remember the setlist? :-)

@@Eighties_Child It was 1976 at the Omni in Atlanta. I don’t have the set list, but it was all their hits plus more. I was young and went with my big brother.

Sweet! Thanks for sharing! You must have caught their Chicago X tour. :-)

Sadly, Chicago has been a glorified tribute act since the '90s. Their "Night and Day" album and the first two Christmas albums are really enjoyable (almost entirely because of Robert's singing and the horn arrangements), but their live performances have not been pretty. Scheff was a vocal train wreck, and Champlin the over-singer wasn't much better. The newer replacements do nothing for me either, although Jeff Coffey is a very good singer-*much* better than Jason!

Thank you for saying that. Totally agree! Hot Streets (with the exception of "Little Miss Lovin'") is a great, underrated album.

The Dynamic Duo!

You are correct on both accounts, Deb. And the band was never the same post-1985. The thing is, both Peter and Danny were better with Chicago too, so all parties suffered by those two exits.

I agree Deb, although I will add that, IMHO, it wasn't because Peter was 'carrying the band' after the mid-70s (I'm not implying that you suggested that...just adding it in because some folks may think that way...). Although Peter's contributions were significant & must always be valued by all fans of the band, IMHO there was plenty & vocal talent, songwriting abilities, skill with the media & connection with the audience from Terry/Donnie, Robert, Danny, James, James, Walter, Lee, and Laudir. FWIW, I'm not anti-Peter in any way...his great vocals and truly under-appreciated musicianship on the bass cannot be denied...however, I will suggest that what made Peter so important for Chicago during the latter part of the 70s & into the 80s was that (along with the raw talents & adaptability of the band) he truly helped extend the popularity of the band beyond the mid-70s & especially in the early-80s. That was due to a couple of factors, namely (a) his strong & clear 'true tenor' voice was very much what the much more pop-oriented industry/radio programers/public were craving, plus (b) new fans who were drawn to Chicago because of Peter's voice & image were inevitably pulled into Chicago's incredible late-60s & early/mid-70s catalogue. I don't know if record sales of late-60s & 1970s Chicago would support my hunch re reason 'b', but I do have friends who became fans of 'early' Chicago only after forming a musical crush on Peter, e.g. prior to getting hooked on Chicago in the late-70s & in the 80s, many of my friends did not know who Terry Kath was, but they eventually became admirers of Terry's talents & songwriting. And, yes, Eighties Child hit the nail on the head....Peter & Danny were not the same outside of Chicago, and I know plenty of people who loved Peter's many impressive contributions as a member of Chicago, but then quickly gave up on Peter's music after he went solo.

The bands heart & soul were Terry & Robert. They wrote the songs, sang the biggest hits and were the most talented musicians. Nothing against Pankow, Seraphine and Peter’s very skilled bass, the band goes nowhere w/Terry & Robert. When Terry died, the band became rudderless; Terry was gone and Robert, his best friend, was so distraught he temporarily left band. Nothing against Peter, somebody had to take over the reigns, but the sound, soul and versatility all changed. From a band the mixed blues, rock and an occasional jazz inspired rift, became a bubblegum pop band with fluffy love ballads. One could argue the band may have evolved similarly regardless of Terry’s loss, most rock bands of late 70’s changed quite dramatically in response to the disco movement. I personally don’t believe Terry would’ve allowed such a swing, if anything they would’ve gone more jazz like Steely Dan, but that just my opinion. As a fan of band that saw them perform live over half dozen times w/Terry, I never saw them live again after his death and never bought another album after Chicago VIII, which I haven’t listened to more than twice. On other hand, I listen to their albums w/Terry regularly, CTA and Chicago II are still fresh and brilliant. I think I’m on my 6th copy of Carnegie Hall, one of best live rock albums ever. 👍

​@@derekbaker3279You forgot to mention David Foster. He was hugely responsible for the band's resurgence in the 1980s. Without Foster, I really don't think they would've succeeded. Foster knew how to get the sound he wanted to from the band and he wrote and cowrote and played a lot of instruments on their albums.

Well, David Foster's relationship with Chicago is a very bittersweet thing, to say the least. Most fans of classic Chicago (i.e., 1967-1981, but especially the Kath years) deeply resent Foster and blame him (and/or Peter) for ruining the band's sound and turning them into a Soft Rock ballad band. There is actually a lot of truth to this point of view, but it is also undeniable that the band immensely benefited from the commercial resurgence they enjoyed on Chicago 16 and 17. My greatest beef with David Foster, other than his arrogance, is that he's the person responsible for killing Peter Cetera's passion for playing the bass. Sadly, his cheesy, lame keyboard/synth "bass" was enough to make PC-one of the greatest bassists God ever created-put his bass back in its case, almost permanently. Musically speaking, that is "unforgivable." ;-) That said, I really appreciate a lot of Foster's compositions, especially his work with Jay Graydon (great vocalist/songwriter) in the band Airplay. It's a shame they recorded only one album (1980). Nevertheless, that one album is a "Yacht Rock" gold mine!

I couldn't agree more, Gordo. Danny's my favorite drummer of all time. Back in middle school and high school, I was a drummer/percussionist for an award-winning marching band, and the Lord blessed me with the *awesome* privilege of getting to play a Chicago repertoire during my senior year (1998-1999), which means I got to pretend to be my drumming hero for several months on "Make Me Smile," "Saturday in the Park," "Just You 'N' Me," and "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?" (my personal favorite). Talk about being on cloud nine! We won the state championship with that show too. Needless to say, God is GOOD!!! :-)

@@Eighties_Child What kind and inspiring words! Anybody who uses a Snoopy Motif is awesome. Yes I played jazz drums in high school and college too. People don't realize that Danny was the only sober member of the band back in the hot streets album days. I think there was a lot of resentment once everybody sobered up and went to AA. Danny ended up getting kicked out of the band which is just a joke in my opinion. But hey life goes on he's an amazing guy. At least they didn't cut him out of the royalties.

I share your sentiments, Gordo. Danny seems like a class act - so down to earth, humble, affable, honest, and appreciative. I’m so thankful that he finally got back into drumming in 2006, and I have enjoyed the California Transit Authority’s music, but they will never be Chicago. I feel the same way about the bands Peter has put together over the years for his live shows- enjoyable, but nowhere close to the real thing. Both Cetera and Seraphine should have remained with Chicago from 1985 to the present. Imagine the kind of albums they could’ve put out if both of them had kept playing bass and drums, respectively, and if all the members had put aside their differences and egos and continued to work together as a team and as a family of brothers, like in the old days. Present-day “Chicago” is a parody of their former selves, and honestly, tribute bands sound more like classic Chicago than they themselves do.

@@Eighties_Child Yes except for Leonid and Friends. The Russian cover band amazing stuff they're doing. And they toured the US. The thing about Peter though is unfortunately as we age we just can't hit the high notes. So it does take a new lead singer after a few decades it's just human nature. There are few exceptions out there Mickey Thomas formerly of Starship and Jon Anderson of Yes. The difference there is they are true tenors, where Peter is really more of a baritone with Incredible range.

Leonid and Friends is actually the band I had in mind when I was thinking of Chicago tribute bands who sound better than post-Cetera Chicago (though certainly NOT as good as the original Chicago, as some people crazily say). I love most of their covers! As for Peter, even though he sings in a lower range now, given the fact that he's almost EIGHTY (can you even wrap your mind around that???), his golden voice is still unmistakably "Peter Cetera" and sounds fantastic, regardless of vocal range, and I would still rather have Peter Cetera singing in a lower key as a Chicago front man alongside Robert Lamm than any other vocalist. By the way, are you aware that Chicago came within a split second of hiring Mickey Thomas to fill the lead tenor vacancy when Peter left the band in '85? God gave PC one of those inimitable, distinctive, one-of-a-kind voices, but Mickey Thomas (and Bobby Caldwell, who was also in the running) also has some sensational pipes. Unfortunately, instead of Thomas or Caldwell (again, imagine the tunes Chicago could have made with either one of those cats!), the band went with an unknown, greenhorn 23-year-old kid who, on his best day, was only a mediocre vocalist who couldn't even reach Cetera's high range, which makes it all the more incomprehensible why he was ever hired. The fact is, Scheff routinely butchered Peter's vocal parts in concert, and it just kept getting worse as the years went on; but musical criticisms aside, Jason is a super nice, humble, stand-up guy. This is nothing personal!

Indeed! That was almost always the case from the late '60s through 1985. To hear one of Cetera's greatest live vocal performances and an even more killer bass line, check out my "Street Player" upload (video can be watched by following the link in the description or pinned post).

He sure did. I really miss Dick Clark. Such a pro!

Dick Clark was the best. New Years isn't the same without him.

You said it. I think ABC should have permanently canceled "New Year's Rockin' Eve" when Dick Clark passed or when he was unable to host anymore due to the tragic stroke he suffered.

Thanks for watching and commenting. Glad you enjoyed seeing it again! And you are spot-on about the drummer. :-)

Nicely put!

Well said.

Dacus was widely known for being a talented jerl-ask Chicago, Stephen Stills, and many others

Agreed!

Yes, but they kill it even more here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-PnRBso6wCOg.html (link to video is in the description)

@@Eighties_Child yup, saw that original airing!

Danny showing how and why he alone is Chicago's drummer.

@@Eighties_Child Truth

"Wow" is an appropriate response both to his iconic singing gift AND his equally stunning bass playing abilities!

Seriously, right?!

Peter Cetera - Probably the greatest of all time

Ha ha! I love that analogy!

Laudir was the perfect complement to Danny's drumming. He was a sensational auxiliary percussionist!

You have good taste in music, Lee. :-)

@@Eighties_Child over 6600 CDs and 1600 LPs in my collection. 🤘🤘

Whoa . . . have you contacted Guinness yet?! ;-)

LOL!!!

You are welcome, Abdul!

LOL re: Walt and Lee (and Donnie's) hair! The three worst male hairstyles of all time are the mullet, the Jerry-curl, and the man perm. Ha ha!

@@Eighties_Child Donnie probably thought his "Peter Frampton look" would get noticed by the girls...

You're probably right in that assessment. Dacus, from what I've heard, was quite the womanizer.

I definitely agree with your first sentence, but I'm not keen on the idea of a heavy metal cover of "Alive Again" (or anything, really-LOL). I can't even imagine how that would even work. Ha!

Nicely put!

But Ironically Left In 1982...

@ELPCOTILLION-SD1970 Actually, Peter left the band in the spring of 1985, essentially because they wouldn't let him do like Phil Collins and record another solo album while still with the band, and because the record company/management demanded that he get right back in the studio and record Chicago 18 and then promptly return to touring. Ridiculous music business "red tape."

@@Eighties_Child I knew he left. I was fortunate enough to see him as the front man in the mid 80's.

Hey, Terry (nice name). I was responding to the person who thought that Peter left Chicago in 1982. But you are very blessed to have seen Chicago while Peter was still there. Not fair! :-)

Absolutely. I love Donnie's high harmonies with Cetera, especially throughout the Hot Streets album and the *amazing* concert Chicago recorded at the Greek Theater on August 11, 1978.

Excellent point

Yes, he was!

It actually reached #14 on billboard.

Donny was a great player in his own right and was a great slide player.

Quite honestly, for any guitarist to come in to fill Terry Kath's shoes was a no-win situation. DD did a good job, given the circumstances.

The band sounds great here but Dacus was fired a year later. He never really fit in.

Cool!

I was in high school, but I do not remember this show! Of course, I had tons of homework so TV was usually a Saturday night thing

Well, when an artist/entertainer says he has "retired," you can't ever believe them. Consider how many "farewell tours" the Eagles, Phil Collins, and other artists have had. LOL! Peter will be back some day. I can feel it in my bones, man. ;-) I honestly think he was just spooked over the pandemic, which was just emerging when he made those comments on that podcast. Now that it's largely over and he's had three years off the road and out of the studio, I'd say he's just itching to sing and play (hopefully!) in some capacity again.

@Eighties Child Peter did a podcast interview in 2019 announcing his retirement, and he said he had enough traveling at odd hours to be at places at certain times plus he said he was getting out before he lost voice and as we all know, he had lowered keys to many of his songs live over the years. He was asked by the interviewer if he would sing locally in Idaho, and Cetera said no "I'll learn to be an out of work singer" . One more thing , more interviews Cetera did in the past are being put on the internet and I heard him on one of the interviews say, he had quit before and what brought him back was because David Foster had contacted him years before and asked him would he be interested in singing with an orchestra and Cetera agreed. Those concerts are on RU-vid. I believe Cetera is done . He didn't reunite with Chicago and he did NO FARWELL concerts as a soloist. He seemed serious and sincere in retiring for good.

I saw this first-run. I even taped it-with an *audio* tape recorder!

Hey, Walter. I am well aware of all that you mentioned. In fact, I listened to that particular podcast interview long before it was ever published on RU-vid or anywhere else. (I happened across it in iTunes a few years ago when I was randomly searching Peter's name.) I simply choose to remain an optimist. Peter himself always says, "Never say never." ;-) Take care!

Me too, the kids of '60 !

That's the biggest truism among all these RU-vid comments.

Crazy you say that. I get it is incredibly sad what happened. But the song is arguably one of their finest

Maybe not quite the same but they sound GREAT here!!

Agreed!

Well said about the vocal differences. This is why the band ultimately hired Bill Champlin. Unfortunately, Bill's over-singing was often obnoxious. In the studio, he exercised self-restraint and sounded great, especially when singing with Peter; but he's no Ray Charles or Terry Kath. I'm probably in the minority, but I think Chicago's music suffered more by losing Terry's *voice* than by losing his guitar playing.

@@Eighties_Child - well for the last few years Terry was alive, Chicago wasnt into playing like they were early on with the full power of Terry's guitar howling like a banshee. They had really gone more commercial, with some brilliant pop songs and some jazz/pop stuff. Certainly not the sonic blast of the first few albums. Nice chatting with you Eighties and thanks more for the great posts....Hammer.

@@Eighties_Child That is an excellent point, E.C.

@@Eighties_Child In some ways, I agree with you about Terry the singer being harder to replace than Terry the guitarist. Most people could accept that any other guitarist would, at best, only come close to Terry's virtuosity on the fretboard. However, Chicago's vocals had always been predicated on a three-lead singer troika. Given how many classic Chicago songs relied on Terry's unique voice (Make Me Smile, Dialogue, Wishing You Were Here, Free, etc.), it is no wonder that his death irreparably damaged the band artistically.

Precisely my point!

Well said! :-)

Agreed. How could they be though? You have got to give them credit though...this was one hell of a performance, after Terry....

Agreed, but Pete leaving was the dagger & when Danny left I lost interest in replacements but still respect originals!

Do you know about Leonid & Friends? If not...check them out.

You are so right....this was the turning point from a great band to ..what they became in the 80s. I do love this video because how many bands did you ever see perform live on American bandstand type show

True but this is pretty darn good.

You didn't buy 16 or 17????

Cool!

NBA

​@@davidmoser3535 NFL on CBS during the L8 1970s-Early 1980s often played "Alive Again" b4 & upon return from commercial breaks (along w/Heart's "Crazy On You" & Elton John's "Mama Can't Buy You Love").

I agree. That song features one of Cetera's most beautiful bass lines, as well as some of Danny's smoothest drumming, and a phenomenal horn chart. Sadly, I have yet to find a clean, decent-quality recording of that tune performed live while Peter was in the band. It makes absolutely no sense either, because that was a Top 20 hit for them (their last Top 40 hit, in fact, until "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" in 1982).

@@Eighties_Child you and me both. I’ve searched high and low for it. I don’t like how they do it now. Nothing against Lee since he co-wrote the tune but the change the key etc and it doesn’t sound great imo

Chicago needed a guitarist 🎸. I'm glad Donnie Dacus stepped up while the band was still grieving. The distraction was worth it.

Actually, it's even more insulting than you remember: Chicago wasn't inducted into the so-called "Rock and Roll" Hall of Shame until 2016! But it meant absolutely nothing (talk about "too little, too late"!), and as much as I wanted to see Peter finally reunite with his former band mates, I realize now that he made the right decision in not attending. The majority of people inducted into that farce didn't even play Rock and Roll music, and the lion's share of them didn't/don't have one ounce of the talent that the original Chicago had.

Donnie was a very good guitarist and an underrated vocalist, but he had the unenviable job of filling *un-fillable* shoes.

Nobody. But there were some great axemen: Bruce Gaitsch, Dawayne Bailey, Keith Howland, and Chris Pinnick.

No one did

Nobody could replace Terry Kath ... one of the most underrated guitarists of all time.

And yet Kath's singing is even more underrated, and in my opinion, the loss of his blue-eyed, Ray Charles-like vocals was a bigger musical blow to Chicago's sound.

Pretty good? It smoked. Danny's drumming is above excellent! And the rest of the band was up at that level too!

I agree, Tom. The phrase "pretty good performance" is a bit of an injustice!

Jimmy definitely wrote some all-time classics, as did Cetera, but I've gotta go with Robert Lamm. By the way, Peter has said that he always enjoyed playing Bobby's songs more than anyone else's, and he once called Lamm "one of the all-time great American songwriters."

Chicago had many great songwriters in the band. Something for everyone, they were our Beatles.

Well said! Fitting too, given the fact that the members of Chicago (especially Peter) were all huge Beatles fans and often covered their tunes live. Speaking of which, it's a crying shame that they didn't record an album of classic Pop, Rock, and R&B covers while Terry, Peter, and Danny were all in the band. I've heard over the years that such a record was actually planned at one point, but the idea got scrapped.

Indeed. I love _Hot Streets_!