Chicago 17

Chicago 17 is the fifteenth studio album, and seventeenth album overall, by the American band Chicago, released on May 14, 1984. As the follow-up to 1982's comeback Chicago 16, Chicago 17 capitalized on its predecessor's popularity by delivering their most popular album - currently seven times platinum in the US alone and a Grammy winner - and one which would spin off four Top 20 US hit singles, including the spare-sounding synth-rocker "Stay the Night" (#16), ballads "Hard Habit to Break" (#3) and "You're the Inspiration" (#3), and the bouncy dance-inflected "Along Comes a Woman" (#14). The album was the first to really embrace the MTV video age, and the four videos enjoyed widespread airplay, including the "Indiana Jones"-influenced "Along Comes a Woman."

Chicago 17 would once again spell a turning point for the group, as this would be the last studio album with bassist, vocalist, and founding member Peter Cetera.

Produced again by David Foster, the album expanded on the adult contemporary leanings of its predecessor, swelling Chicago's audience as a result. Chicago 17 was a slow burner, finally reaching #4 in the US in early 1985, even seeing significant - and rare - success in the UK, on the strength of its many hits.

Chicago had long promoted itself as a "faceless" band, to let the famous Coca-Cola styled logo (and the music) do the talking. However, with the advent of the music video age, the camera would ultimately focus on Cetera, who sang most (if not all) of the songs, despite the presence of two other lead singers.

This album was the last Chicago album with vocalist/bass player Peter Cetera. Cetera quit the band in July 1985 due to a combination of factors, including his desire to have a solo career alongside his band career, and a reduction in touring.

On the heels of their biggest album ever, Chicago found themselves in the unenviable position of finding another bass playing tenor. Cetera's replacement for Chicago 18 would be Jason Scheff, who is still with Chicago, and whose tenure in the band eclipses that of Cetera. Ironically, Scheff was discovered after submitting material for Cetera's first post-Chicago solo release, Solitude Solitaire.

In 2006, Rhino Records remastered and reissued the album, using the original analog versions of "Please Hold On" (which was co-written with Lionel Richie who was enjoying success from his album Can't Slow Down) and "Prima Donna" and adding a Robert Lamm demo, "Where We Begin" as a bonus track.