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Chicago finds one in the vaults with Stone of Sisyphus—one of their strongest works in years

Out of all the omissions to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, I think Chicago is one of the Top Five.  Look at the state of music in 1969 and listen to Chicago Transit Authority, their first LP.  This is the fusion of rock and jazz, with strong performances from all seven members of this group.  The first nine albums are AOR treasure troves of tracks as well as AM pop radio staples.  Like most groups, the first greatest hits compilation seemed to become first death nail for the group.  They waned until Peter Cetera changed the focus of Chicago.
 
When Peter Cetera took over the writing and arranging, the band went from a jazz/rock group to a bland pop band.  But after Peter left the band, the remaining members decided to reform the original idea behind the band and again make a strong jazz recording.  The result Chicago XXII: Stone of Sisyphus.  The horn section of James Pankow, Walter Parazaider and Lee Longhnane were all on board along with original principal vocalist and keyboard magician Robert Lamm.  (Daniel Seraphine the original drummer was long gone and guitarist Terry Kath had accidentally killed himself).  Peter Wolf (not from the J.Geils Band) was brought aboard as producer and he wanted to use every skill of these talented men. 

When the product was delivered to Warner Brothers, the new hierarchy at the label hated it and shelved the product, which caused Chicago to leave their recording home.  After that faux pas, the album has received legendary status as a lost work.  The good people of Rhino have decided to right the wrong and released the disc as Chicago XXXII: The Stone of Sisyphus a mere fifteen years late.
 
Opening with the title track “Stone of Sisyphus”, this fifteen-track masterpiece is everything one would hope a classic Chicago recording to be.  It is full of big brassy horns playing hot licks.  The bass pops in the background as the blended vocals soar while a chopping guitar lays down the beat.  It is a masterpiece concoction of jazz and straight-ahead pop/rock.  This is the calling card that Chicago is taking a different direction.
   
The Jordinaires (the backup vocals behind The King’s biggest hits) are featured on the ballad “Bigger Than Elvis.”  This is an airy vocal exploration with little in background except for piano and those wonderful horns.  The middle bridge has more in common with fusion than basic song structure but the final payoff runs majestic.  “Mah-Jong” is so funky it could have been on a Prince recording while “Sleeping in the Middle of the Bed” is something akin to Was Not Was.  “Let’s Take a Lifetime” comes across more along the lines of a Peter Cetera ballad.  A nice song but less than groundbreaking when compared to the rest of the work but it has a very strong sax solo. 
 
My favorite song on the disc is “All the Years” a straight up rock and roll number with a fat beat from the drums and a social message about the frustration from the promise of the 1960’s that never came to power.  The initial recording ended with “The Show Must go on” a track about the corporate nature that music has become.  It is a biting indictment against the business that is music just not as harsh as Neil Young’s “This Notes for You” from years back.
   
The original LP was to consist of eleven tracks, but the producers have thrown in three demo cuts of “Love is Forever”, “Mah-Jong” and “Let’s Take a Lifetime” as well as “Stone of Sisyphus” but without the rhythm loop, which is a better recording.  These four do seem a bit overkill and are more for the fanatic who wants a complete work in progress overview. 

For the true fans of Chicago, this is a must own recording.  Now, if you are a casual fan and have the two greatest hit packages, this is a great reminder of how a group can still be relevant decades after their initial recording session. 

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