Published on Dec 8, 2004
Chicago fans have been desperate for an album of original
material from the band for about thirteen years. Well since then,
the closest Chicago has been to answering that wish is
Night And Day, Chicago’s tribute to the big band era, and
the bands latest offering,
What’s It Gonna Be, Santa? Neither album has been what the
fans have been asking for, but they have been welcome
surprises.
To be perfectly frank, with the exception of the unreleased
album
Stone of Sisyphus, this is Chicago’s strongest work since
the disaster that was
Chicago 21. The power ballads, the synthesizers, the drum
triggers, the elements that Chicago used during their burst of
popularity of the 80’s are gone. Instead there are glimpses of what
made the old Chicago so very, very good: the multiple vocalists,
the diverse styles, and most importantly, an energetic performance
from the horn section.
The heart of Chicago is their horn players, Jimmy Pankow, Lee
Lougnane, and Walt Paraziader. With
What’s It Gonna Be, Santa?, the brass section leads the way,
acting as that other “vocalist” as the band themselves put it. On
“Sleigh Ride” the trio matches Jason Scheff as he goes from note to
note, with the occasional jazzy burst. If the song requires a
quieter arrangement, i.e. “Feliz Navidad,” the horns stream
fluidly, not pushing anything, resulting in a very natural sound.
On past albums at times, it has seemed like horn arrangements were
just tacked on so they would sound like Chicago. Not so on this
work.
Chicago has been blessed to have a bevy of outstanding singers
throughout their 35+ year career. In fact, the band has not this
wide array of singers since the 70’s. Five different members have
lead vocals at some point on the album, each one bringing something
original to the table. Jason Scheff is the so called “Peter Cetera
Clone”, but this is his best performance of his career with the
band. Robert Lamm contributes with his silky smooth, almost lounge
singer-esque voice. Bill Champlin and Lee Loughnane in turn each
bring a soulful, gritty quality to the songs they perform on. Keith
Howland, making his lead vocal debut, gives the most plain
performance, but makes up for it with enthusiasm.
As always, the sound of the band is a group effort. The moments
where the band hits on all cylinders, “Bethlehem,” “What Child Is
This,” “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen,” etc., give evidence that the
band hasn’t run out of gas just yet, and can still be creative when
they want too. The challenge in making a Christmas album is that
the songs have been heard and played so many times. The goal is to
make these classics your own, and Chicago does just that.
What’s It Gonna Be, Santa?, clocks in at twenty songs and
goes over the hour mark, which means that there is bound to be some
filler. Two of the original song, “Childs Prayer” and “One Little
Candle” are cute, but not necessary. It’s nice to hear the band
member’s kids, but I want to hear more of the guys themselves. I’ve
never liked “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer”; no matter who
performs it, though Chicago gives it a good try. Some of the more
average moments such as “O Come All Ye Faithful,” or “Christmas
Time Is Here” could have been weeded out.
What’s interesting about this album is that some of it was
originally released in 1998 as
Chicago’s First Christmas or
Chicago XXV. It did fairly well, so it’s interesting that
band felt the need to expand it. If I had my way, I would probably
take the original version, take out some performances on it, and
throw in some of the added songs on this album. However,
What’s It Gonna Be, Santa? is the album to get if you A.)
enjoy Christmas music, and B.) like Chicago.