One of my 2004 summer highlights was seeing seminal '60s-'70s-'80s band Chicago live (with Earth, Wind & Fire) in a stadium setting with sound quality that was surprisingly good…but not as sterling as this 2003 PBS Soundstage performance, presented here in Dolby Digital 5.1 or stereo. Performing 14 songs (15 are listed, but--anally speaking--"Now More Than Ever" is really part of the seven-piece "Make Me Smile" suite, as is "Color My World," also presented here, but the latter is a bona fide separate hit), the four original members (Robert Lamm, Walt Parazaider, James Pankow, and Lee Loughnane) are joined here by Bill Champlin, Jason Scheff (who replaced bass player/singer Peter Cetera), Keith Howland, and Tris Imboden (who plays a mean set of drums) on such audience favorites as "If You Leave Me Now," "Dialogue," "Saturday in the Park," "Beginnings," "Just You 'N' Me," "Feelin' Stronger Every Day," "I'm a Man," "25 or 6 to 4," "Hard Habit to Break," and "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?", drawn from three decades worth of hits (they could have easily added another hour-plus with songs such as "Call on Me," "Happy Man," "Lowdown," "Harry Truman," "Old Days," "Wishing You Were Here," etc). Sure to be popular with Chicago's legion of fans, Chicago: Live in Concert also features text bios and a discography. Highly recommended. Aud: P. (R. Pitman)
Chicago: Live in Concert
(2004) 83 min. DVD: $19.98. Koch Vision (avail. from most distributors). Color cover. ISBN: 1-4172-2753-2. Volume 20, Issue 1
Chicago: Live in Concert
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