CHICAGO (TRANSIT AUTHORITY) - SELF-TITLED 1st (2) LP - COLUMBIA GP8 - NM VINYL

$

27

Chicago Transit Authority - Debut lp

Released in April 1969, Chicago Transit Authority (sometimes informally referred to simply as "CTA") was an immediate hit, reaching #17 in the US and #9 in the UK. While critical reaction was also strong, the album initially failed to produce any hit singles, with the group seen as an album-oriented collective. In 1970 and 1971, "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?" (#7), "Beginnings" (#7) and "Questions 67 and 68" (#71/#24 re-release) would all prove to be belated hits. Buoyed by the success of their later albums, the album stayed on the charts for a then-record 171 weeks, and was certified gold (and later platinum and double platinum). It is one of two albums not to have any songwriting contributions from Cetera during his tenure in the band, the other being Chicago V. He started writing songs with the second album, Chicago.

The cover design for the album is called "Painted Shingle" on the group's official web site.[4] In his review of the album, Paul Morelli says that the jacket of his vinyl LP came with "ringwear" on it, that there is also "ringwear" around the logo in the center, and that, " It looks like the logo has landed in black water and is sending out ripples."[5] The inside jacket features individual photos of each band member, and Morelli further notes, "For a band deliberately constructed to be a leaderless democracy, Robert Lamm (far right, standing) sure stands out in the band photos!

In their original incarnation, keyboardist Robert Lamm, guitarist Terry Kath and bassist Peter Cetera shared lead vocals, while James Pankow, Lee Loughnane and Walter Parazaider handled all brass and woodwinds (trombone, trumpet and saxophone, clarinet and flute respectively) and Danny Seraphine played drums and likely doubled on percussion. Lamm, Kath and Pankow were the band's main composers at this time. Jimi Hendrix was an avowed fan of Kath's playing. According to the album's original liner notes, the solo performance of Kath on "Free Form Guitar" was created without the use of any pedals. In a nod to Hendrix's guitar expressionism (Hendrix most notably used wah and fuzz pedals), Kath instead plugged directly into his studio amplifier and improvised the entire track in one take for the purpose of pure tone. "Free Form Guitar" was an influence on the genre of noise music. 
While the band toured the album, legal action was threatened by the actual Chicago Transit Authority, forcing the group to reduce their name to simply Chicago. Courtesy: Wikipedia

Here's what you'll get: (grading is for vinyl first, then jacket.)

Chicago Transit Authority   (2 lp)    Columbia   GP 8     1969     NM/VG+   
Excellent Copy - Don't Pass It By!
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