Once upon a time, way back in the late 1960s there were three bands who played rock music a la big-band style. They were The Electric Flag, Blood, Sweat & Tears and Chicago Transit Authority. Hipster authorities had it that the Flag were the baddest, followed in quality by the Al Kooper-led B, S & T, then the Kooper-less lineup, then the woefully commercial CTA (who quickly shortened the name to Chicago). Well, baddest to the bone or not, Chicago, charting higher and lasting a whole lot longer than the other two put together, wound up leaving an indelible, signature imprint on the music industry.
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