kudos to Rhino Records and Chicago for finally getting Stone of Sisyphus (XXXII) out to the fans after 15 years in limbo. Back in 1994, Warners/Reprise opted not to release the record stating that it wasn’t marketable at the time. and like most unreleased albums by major artists, the legend surrounding Stone of Sisyphus grew from that point on. Over the years fans clamored for its release, believing it to be a creative milestone for the group. ultimately the album’s backstory overshadowed the actual content. Listening to it now after all these years, Stone of Sisyphus sounds dated and a bit weak from a commercial standpoint. one can see Warners/Reprise’s side of the argument especially with subpar material like “Sleeping in the Middle of the Bed” which features some awful rapping and forgettable ballads like “Let’s Take a Lifetime” and “Here With Me”. also unique to this record is producer Peter Wolf. Wolf’s signature sound is all over this record. Wolf’s recognizable synth patches, mechanical drum & percussion programming and overly compressed sound made Chicago sound more like Starship, Go West or Wang Chung (Wolf’s other productions). overall, the album is a mix of weak material with a few good ones sprinkled here and there. the title track “Stone of Sisyphus” is a strong rocker but again, it sounds more like Starship than Chicago. “Bigger than Elvis” is a nice pretty ballad that was written for Jason Scheff’s dad. ironically the song is ruined by Scheff’s screeching vocals. “The Pull” has a great verse and chorus but unfortunately the awkward bridge in the middle brings the song to a grinding halt. “Plaid” is probably my favorite off the album. the song features a great groove and a fantastic instrumental break. if they just had a couple more like “Plaid” the album would have been so much better.
all the negatives aside, it’s great to see an album like this finally get officially released. not a lot of albums get a second chance like this. Stone of Sisyphus isn’t the long lost masterpiece that legend would have you believe but viewing it as a snapshot of the early nineties version of the group Chicago, it’s a nice document to have.
Stone of Sisyphus (XXXII) Tracklist: 1 Stone of Sisyphus (Bailey, Loughnane) 4:11
2 Bigger Than Elvis (Scheff, Wolf, Wolf) 4:31
3 All the Years (Gaitsch, Lamm) 4:16
4 Mah-Jong (Scheff, Walsh, Zigman) 4:42
5 Sleeping in the Middle of the Bed (Lamm, McCurry) 4:45
6 Let’s Take a Lifetime (Scheff, Walsh, Zigman) 4:56
7 The Pull (Lamm, Scheff, Wolf) 4:17
8 Here with Me (A Candle for the Dark) (Lamm, OConnor, Pankow) 4:11
9 Plaid (Champlin, Lamm, Mathieson) 4:59
10 Cry for the Lost (Champlin, Matkosky) 5:18
11 The Show Must Go On (Champlin, Gaitsch) 5:25
12 Love Is Forever [demo version] (Lamm, Pankow) 4:14
13 Mah-Jong [demo version] (Scheff, Walsh, Zigman) 4:59
14 Let’s Take a Lifetime [demo version] (Scheff, Walsh, Zigman) 4:15
15 Stone of Sisyphus [No Rhythm Loop] (Bailey, Loughnane) 4:35
listen to “Get On This” which didn’t make it on the official release:
Peter Wolf + The J. Geils Band were awesome!! Remember seeing the U. of Michigan Marching Band led by Wolf as the Major coming on Stage at Pine Knob in Detroit + the Crowd went Wild!!
Peter Wolf + The J. Geils Band were awesome!! Remember seeing the U. of Michigan Marching Band led by Wolf as the Major coming on Stage at Pine Knob in Detroit + the Crowd went Wild!!
Full House was a Killer Album!!
) Peace*
Billy, actually the J. Geils Band’s Peter Wolf is not the same guy as the big 80’s producer named Peter Wolf.
But the J. Geils Band was great. “Flamethrower” was a favorite of mine!