Chicago ~ You Are On My Mind 1976 Jazz Funk Purrfection Version

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I fell in more in love with Chicago when they released Chicago 10. A local FM DJ played the then album track one late afternoon and "You Are On My Mind" was announced to me. It was spring and the feeling for the upcoming Bicentennial celebrations was positive, people had faith it was going to go well and don't you know it was the biggest and best party ever, even more so than the new millennium.

The song was played on the radio and I never forgot it. It slipped my mind because I did not write it down until today when I heard it again. It was on a mixtape I transferred to CD and I thought, yeah I really like that one. it's so soulfully jazzy R&B, I don't understand why it was not a bigger hit. The song marked the vocal debut of trombonist James Pankow, who as composer felt the other vocalists in the band were not able to duplicate what he heard in his head. That is when producer Guercio stepped in and told Pankow to sing it.

It entered the chart at #83, the second highest performing single behind Addrisi Brothers "Slow Dancin' Don't Turn Me On" that had debuted at #82. The #1 single that was week was Abba "Dancing Queen". Then it spent three weeks at it`s peak at #49 before dropping off the chart three weeks later.

This was a new sound for the band and it suited them well. "Another Rainy Day In New York City" and "If You Leave Me Now" were the big hits from that album. While I love those two, "You Are On My Mind" was the right song at the right time and it represents hope and positivity to me. A lot of the more recent uploads on this channel have been cathartic experiences for since the strong feelings I have woken up by listening to all that great music I heard on the radio back then.

The album had produced the #1 "If You Leave Me Now" and went gold in seven days attaining Platinum status that November and has since gone multi-platinum. It did not take home the "Album Of The Year" award but did take home the Grammy for Best Album Package (ie the unwrapped chocolate bar stamped with Chicago). The album peaked at #3 in the US and broke the band in the UK where it reached #21.
Category
Funky