Sweet! This will go great with my 37 other Chicago greatest hits compilations.

The Very Best of Chicago: Only the Beginning is the one I have and it's all I need. It's a very well-done comp.

why?

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Yup.
Because Warner Music knows if they rerelease the album it will sell a few thousand copies, which will look good on their next quarter sales. If they didn't rerelease it, the various existing Chicago's Greatest Hits titles won't sell squat over that period. This will refresh the catalog. And this is an opportunity to have a "new" compilation containing tracks remixed by Steven Wilson, even though it's just the same ones already available on his 2017 remix of the self titled album.
But really, Renny, every time they rerelease these, or release a newly compiled collection, it's to move a few more copies. It's not for longtime collectors, but some of us get sucked in as well. And the bean counters don't mind if we do get sucked in.


But I suspect you know all this.
So my question is- Why do you pretend not to know every time one of these pointless, redundant anthologies is announced? Why ask why?
I'm genuinely curious.

This is for us holdouts who never got a Chicago comp, ha. I bought their first 8 albums then lost interest. Never bought a comp as none of them had "I'm A Man", this one doesn't either. Covering 1969 to 1980, this is mostly a combo of GH vols 1 + 2, featuring at least 1 song per album up to the XIV album. Prime time stuff, I'm in.

Though I wonder which running time version of "Beginnings" will be included = my ultimate fave Chicago jam, never get tired of it, so fun to play on guitar and bass.

well, it bothers me that something like this released, which takes minimal effort to actually do, when there is so much other material that could be out there.

the list of albums that still have not been released on CD amazes me, and i get that many times its the artist fault as much as the record company.

but the plethora of best of's, greatest hits, essential, and live concerts form the 70's being released is all about money, as jim said above, and i don't like it......i know it's a personal thing and i probably should just keep it to myself, but sometimes, like this chicago thing, it is just so unnecessary and seemingly foolish i can't help but to say something about my disgust for it.

years ago, jimbo and i used to keep track of how many bands had more comps than actual albums, there were a few, but the number seems to have grown by leaps and bounds in the last 5 years or so.

sorry if my complaining is annoying, i'll try to subdue my feelings form now on.

If it featured all new Steven Wilson remixes (in addition to the Chicago tracks), I'd be in. Otherwise, I agree that both Questions 67 & 68 are: "Why?"

wilson only did chicago II as far as i know, and those are pointed out in the track list.

and, for what its worth' it is the very best sounding chicago II i have ever heard.

No, don't suppress your feelings, I was just wondering about why you write "Why?" every time similar albums are released. A bit of context/explanation is nice. I don't think you can really blame the record companies fully for this issue. As you mention, the artist often get in the way of approving unreleased material. And most consumers don't really care about the stuff we love. They aren't even buying physical media at all. I'm fairly certain this release would outsell a set previously unreleased material. And most releases now have fairly small print runs as the labels don't want to bother carrying warehouses full of inventory and dead stock. If the small quantities out and they think there's a demand for more, they hedge their bets by adding some new tracks, or in the case of vinyl, pressing it in a new color. Then they can make an announcement of a new release to draw attention to it. It may be just another boring reissue for us, but that's what the market is supporting these days. I'm sure you've seen excitement for the latest splatter vinyl reissue of some old release.
Thanks for the reply, Renny!

When was the last time a Chicago compilation like this was released on vinyl? Serious question, as I really don't know. Maybe there was one 2 years ago, maybe it's been 20 years? Whatever the case may be, I think this release is intended for vinyl buyers, not CD buyers. If there hasn't been a recent greatest hits vinyl release like this, there is a reasonable place in the market for it.

This compilation rubs me the wrong way for a couple reasons. Rush put a bunch of bonus material in the R50 set that had been recently released as bonus material on recent deluxe editions reissues, it seemed pretty cheap to already start recycling that material in another release. So the Steven Wilson remixes being included here...one, doesn't it seem a bit soon to already be recycling that stuff in other releases and...two, if this is supposed to be a Chicago IX release, why not keep it authentic and use the original mixes as they were on Chicago IX. Also, if it's an expanded version of Chicago IX, why not keep the original 11 song track listing as it was, and then tack the expanded part of the track listing on the end. I understand why they re-arranged the track listing. But in doing so, it's not really Chicago IX anymore. It's true that many are big fans of compilations, grew up with those compilations and are used to and like hearing those songs in that order. If you are going to alter the cover (but basically use the same cover image) and call it Chicago IX, then keep the spirit of the original Chicago IX release. Don't completely change the song order because now it's no longer Chicago IX, this is a completely different and new compilation IMO.

please correct me if i am wrong, but on the original release of this chicago album weren't the single mixes included and not the album cuts???

i ask because i seem to recall it being the only place (at the time) to get the single version of 'make e smile" and 'beginnings'.....and (if i am right) i wonder which are included on this one?

I don't know the answer to that question, but if it is so, and the initial CD version also contains the single mixes, I want it.

Two of the tracks on this release, "Make Me Smile" and "25 Or 6 To 4", are listed as edits of the 2017 Steven Wilson remixes.

Then all Chicago and/or Steven Wilson fans need this release.
Or they are fake fans.

So they switch it to chronological order, added tracks... and they could have added better singles. Nobody is buying this for Thunder and Lightening.

It at least makes sense, if still unnecessary, to expand the album to include the other singles of the Terry Kath era. Feels wrong to me to include any post-Kath tracks.

"Thunder And Lightning"? Goddamn, that's so exciting!





Wait, that's Thin Lizzy.

All the outstanding comments above..for me...this album meant a lot growing up...actually my parents 8-track.
I eventually picked it up as a CD, though did not really need as I have everything through XI and Group Portrait.
But IX was a warm fuzzy blanket to me, so snatched as a discount.
For me, having it released as Expanded simply does nothing for me (there's a few others - typically Greatest Hits albums - that I would not want to be re-worked for similar reasons (Doobie Brothers, Elton John, Eagles come to mind). Totally ok for another compilation by any of those artists, and willing and have picked some up over the years for a more 'representative' review of a career. But the touchstone of what these original releases were to me growing up, just does not do it for me (Good Grief - I mean, sure one could expand 'Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy' with quality tracks from the period, but it's perfect as it is (though that title could use a sonic upgrade from the 85 disc for sure).

You said that 5 years ago.