The Chicago Transit Authority, established in 1967, changed their name to Chicago in 1969. The band has sold more than 40 million albums in the U.S. alone and have had five consecutive No 1 albums among a myriad other successes. In 1974 Chicago’s entire catalog of seven albums (at that time) was circulating on the Billboard 200.
Peter Cetera was co-founder and frontman of the band until 1984, after the release of their highly successful Chicago 17 album. Cetera went on to enjoy a famed solo career. He was thrust into the spotlight in 2016 after refusing to perform with Chicago at their Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction. He said during an interview that one of the reasons he refused to perform with the band was because they wouldn’t lower the key of the song “25 or 6 to 4” and that “nothing about the event sounded like fun.”
Co-founder Robert Lamm responded to the controversy by saying that Cetera could have at least stood with them, even if he didn’t want to perform.
