GREATEST HITS 1982-1989

I think when I got this the only pre-80s Chicago songs I knew were "Saturday In The Park" and "If You Leave Me Now". I am now pretty familiar with the group's 1969-75 output. They always had a poppy side to them. After 1975 they became less adventurous. In the 1970s the group wrote most of it's own songs; by the 1980s they were using outside songwriters.

The only songs here worth a damn are "Hard To Say I'm Sorry/Get Away", "You're The Inspiration" and "Hard Habit To Break". The rest is awful, awful '80s soft rock. Three of the songs here have the word "love" in them. I think the only 80s group that used that word in song titles more was Air Supply.

This is very slick, overproduced fluff made for radio. If you are a lover of 80s soft rock that leans towards the ballad-y end of things, this may be for you. People who liked the group's first two greatest hits collections probably wouldn't even like this. If you like Petera Cetera's solo albums you will like this. The best thing about this compilation is that it saves you from buying 16, 17, 18, 19, etc. The best songs here you will hear on the radio at some point. There are Chicago compilations that feature both their 70s and 80s music; those would make a better introduction to the group. But if you want to hear them at their progiest, you have to listen to their first 8 albums. This is pointless, probably not even in print anymore. 1 star.