25 or 6 to 4 - reloaded- Chicago - 1974

[degree7]

The ultimate "staying up all night trying to finish some bullshit work" song.

[pajmf]

At 0:36 it looks like someone is getting a little too friendly with the sax :)

[msguidobiatch]

Holy crap, they all look so young!!!!!

[JamPantsProductions]

The perfect song to chase down some no good jive ass honkey and bring them to justice. I love being in the 70's

[zachisaniceperson]

hey guys, what ever happened 2 chicagokid1969? that channel had some really rare videos.

[msguidobiatch]

@zachisaniceperson: Good question, he took all his videos down. :(

[avengerwright]

wow umm old good footage.

[tedGEGI]

OK someday someone will explain the song's title......

[sonicwarrior]

@tedGEGI What time is it?

[635jazz]

@tedGEGI

Yeah for sure ,when he wrote the song it was a late night session and looking out of the window he was wondering what time it has ,looking at his watch, 25 or 6 mins to 4 am in the morning ! the rest history!! great song

[Kingant2010]

Ron Weasley my man!

[raelraven2]

I actually remember watching this when it first aired. We were visiting friends in Alabama and I had a huge crush on their daughter, who as an older teenager seemed almost like an adult to me. We sat "cross-legged on the floor" and watched this in their living room. Well, I was actually watching her and not paying so much attention to the TV show :)

[miiwii93]

this is legit one of the best songs.

[Docdogs1]

Not bad: are they??

I love this song too.

[quinzieg]

Awesome song my marching band is playing this

[cheeseppuff]

theres a reason why Terry Karth is Jimi Hendrix's favorite guitarist

[machias88]

@cheeseppuff: cannot believe they show video of kath on a motorcycle during his solo. criminal!

[jtizz711]

The guitar solo in this song takes me to a special place :)

[brilliantos]

Maurice Gibb filling in for Bobby Lamm?! One of those rare moments when two worlds collide ;)

[JacobZaringRulz]

I love how the dude dives in on the pie with his face. XD

[Monsta2283]

Gives me goose bumps. Love to hear metallica do a cover of this

[eddiott1]

their first hit, still sounds good in 2011

[cbak12sg]

@eddiott1 It wasn't their first hit. Not counting Questions 67 and 68, Make Me Smile was their first US top ten hit, and I'm A Man was their first UK hit.

[Delmarvellous]

Is that Julie or Diane Nini @ 2:35?

[cidaliacastro]

@Delmarvellous Diane Nini @ 2:35

[mykylc]

In the beginning that looked Giraldo Rivera on the trombone...hhahahahaha!

[mrJimCharles]

Walter and Gram Parsons - twins separated at birth

[kritikkal]

If you like Danny's drumming, I suggest picking up his memoir, "STREET PLAYER - MY CHICAGO STORY". It's a great book!!

[vampyLify]

I swear, THIS song has the best instrumental music EVER. THAT TRUMPET IS SO COOL!

[pajmf]

Nothing screams "macho" more than eating watermelon or pie without slicing it!

[metamorphosis67]

@pajmf or shooting a gun with one hand.

[planeagain]

Marvelous!!!!! Thanks for shearing!

[SuperAde1974]

"aired on August 16, 1974." <-- the very day I was born =)

[Delmarvellous]

@SuperAde1974 Very auspicious!

[xurubix]

Oh!! God. In studio.The First time for me . Thanks.

[lurch321]

Is Caribou ranch still standing?

[soccerhead3315]

@lurch321 caribou burned down in 1985

[Delmarvellous]

@soccerhead3315 Are you serious?



[soccerhead3315]

@Delmarvellous yep you can't even tell were it stood now

[Delmarvellous]

@soccerhead3315 Wow. What happened?! Is there a link or news story somewhere where I can learn about it? I thought James W. Guercio (Chicago's former producer) still owned the property there & was a rich, old rancher now.

[SuperAde1974]

thank you so much for posting this, I've always been fascinated by the Caribou Ranch & this peek inside is priceless.

[flyyspit]

Thank you cidaliacastro very much...

Reminds me of April Wine...I like to Rock video

good stuff

[highflier069]

thats what chuck norris did when he wasnt practicing martial arts

[wolfgar50]

great song for seraphine awsome drummer .

[oruga101]

Did this come out before or after Led Zeppelin's song "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You"? They both use the same tune and are in the same key and time.

Somebody plagiarized...

[fgldnglbs]

@oruga101 I thought that the first time I heard "Babe."" That came on on Zep's debut in '68; this came out on the Silver Album in '70. Subconcious? Who knows.

Saw the Chicago/EWF show in Circuit City while they were still around. I thought, "why bother?" What a draw that would have been back in the day!

[Roaltar]

@oruga101 "Babe I'm Gonna Leave you" came first. But I really don't think there's any plagiarism here. It is a common progression in Am, but the rhythm, grove and melodies of both songs are very very different. If you listen to U2 "With or Without You" and try to dig around, you'd probably find 10+ songs using the same chords. Nowadays every other song on the radio sounds like a song from a long time ago, that already has been done before.

[Delmarvellous]

@oruga101 Both of those songs are takeoffs from the original riff/chord progression found in "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" by George Harrison/Beatles.

[discojerk]

So that's where all the coke went!

[FinalScoreProducts]

I like this song! I always wondered what it was about. There is this blog called SongSense.info where they tell you what the song really means. I can't believe what some songs are really about. I never would have imagined some of it. Cool Stuff.

[garylongden]

I wonder where Black Sabbath got their "Killing Yourself to Live", riff from..........

[kevman25508]

hey check Dave Wanstat or whatever his last name is at 0:22.haha

[rascalferret]

Geraldo,Chuck Norris,Raab, and Cheech on a horse...cool

[WKUK2059]

King of the Hill?

[beckieieie]

Green day's Brain Stew....  :/

[YahIDontKnow]

@beckieieie

Yah serously the guitar riff. I noticed that too.

[hameron]

Is that Geraldo Rivera on trombone?

[cidaliacastro]

@hameron Nope, Jimmy Pankow

[MrScully69]

@cidaliacastro I was surprised at how many songs Pankow wrote for Chicago...They played @ our fair last year.....Best concert ever!

[metamorphosis67]

@cidaliacastro No way, that's Geraldo Rivera. He even shot a gun in the Macho one-hand style like Geraldo !

[cidaliacastro]

@metamorphosis67 Yes, you're right... Oh, by the way, nice to meet you, my name is Marylin. Marylin Monroe! ;)

[RasMajnouni]

@hameron Not quite,Geraldo Rivera played baseball for the Boston Red Sox from 1913-1924.

[cast390]

@hameron LOL

[Bogmen123]

@hameron I GET IT!

[DoUWanna007]

Egads...6 people didn't like this song...probably weren't born yet...LOL:)

[EggMcMffn]

could this version's sound be anymore dated??

[floresan1]

que video! toda una joya...

[GILGOCA1]

I think that took the name of Lysergic acid diethylamide, abbreviated LSD or LSD-25,for this song because you can be high of 6 pm to 4 am.

[jacme1219]

These ABC special's were kind of like their Let It Be / rooftop period.

[cathycastleton]

terry kath and guns......thats what ended him, bit sad....

[allegedretribution]

this version is not good at all

[dredayak18]

@allegedretribution any song that terry kath touched was a SUPERB version... but sure any fan of the band loves his 4-5 minute solos on 25 or 6.

[allegedretribution]

@dredayak18 nope, this one sucks.

[Reaper2k]

My dad tells a story of how, in the '70s, he and his band played a gig at a nightclub owned by Danny Seraphine. Danny was in that night and personally asked each band member what they drank. When my dad answered, "rum and coke," Danny left and returned with a case of Bacardi. A class act who obviously he knew how to treat a band. ;)

[vaneglorius]

Kath's guitar and backing vocals are soorly missed.he was irreplaceable..

[CFCBrenn]

Terry, you left us way too soon. RIP.

[LeslieDesigner]

As like the first special best. pC with facial hair - they all look happy there.... Terry, everybody looks great. Either way, this one is excellent too. My cabin awaits ;)

[bluesbreaker51]

Suuuper Sound, noch immer :-) Bernie

[kupa890]

what an awesome clip, chicago at the studio new cool versions, shots, horses, bikes, beards... man that was a real band.

[NixonTech2071]

What does that statement even mean? (25 or 6 to 4)

[TheUnclewedge]

@NixonTech2071

25 or 6 to 4 is the time (03:35 , 03:36) tells you in the lyrics.

[bigMlittleorgan]

@TheUnclewedge

you mean 03:35, or 03:34 ......

[300mspecial]

@NixonTech2071 25 or 6 to 4 refers to the time (3:35 am); the song is about the difficulty of songwriting.

[quakerproductions]

these guys were not fucking up here. so fun.

[dwcharron]

I had the honor of seeing these guys live in 1971 or was it 1972 at Tanglewood in the Berkshires. They had just come out of the studio from recording Chicago II -- what a show! Terry Kath was and still is the man! Not only is he a phenominal lead guitarist, this guy plays some of the most fascinating rhythm guitar I have ever hear. They say he played a guitar so hard that he would wear out a pick while doing a song.

[pumpumpompom]

Uffffffffff la encontre!!!!!!

[celticqueen0206]

why can't bands include varied instruments like Chigago did. How many nuances can be discovered by a Bass, Guitar and Drums after so many years.

[gino066]

Chicago is just a cover band of itself without Kath & Cetera............

[RedCeltYank1]

What's sad is, if you click on one of these vids from the A&E Private Sessions show, they totally desecrate the genius they possessed during this era. Their current vocal lineup really takes away from the legacy they built w/ Cetera, Kath, and Lamm. Champlin and Scheff were great at one time, but that time has passed. Too bad they won't give the fans that have been paying their bills all of these years what they really want.... A farewell reunion tour with Pete Cetera.

[SixtyThreeStrat]

Take a bit of Allman Brothers, some CSN harmonies and Bill Chase's horn section and put them altogether with one smokin' ass guitar player and have them play Carnegie Hall.... All others can go sit in the corner now and say "We have been schooled" a thousand times!!.... Well except for EWF.hehe They get recess with These guys!! lmao

[kimberkley]

who's EWF?

[cidaliacastro]

@kimberkley I guess it's Earth, Wind & Fire...

[SixtyThreeStrat]

The real question is what does "Questions 67 and 68" Mean??? :-)

[dwcharron]

@SixtyThreeStrat It refers to the questions about the civil unrest during that time.

[kimberkley]

where the hell is chuck norris? am i missing something?

[kimberkley]

kath's clip is the coolest. and i'm super jealous of that diane nini.

[fucheduck]

reminds me of the theme to Kojak or Starsky&Hutch with the warmer bass than the 60's version. why all the horses of the yellow wall panaling era '74 footage always tinged yellow?

[JFinSD2]

Sp sorry to be a spoil sport.....but I like the original so much better.

[bintangtheater1]

Awesome footage!

[jemcnick]

what does 25 0r 6 to 4 mean?

[usernamehmmm]

@jemcnick 25 or (26) minutes to 4 in the morning!!!!

[JoeBradshaw123456]

Yep!

[carina2244]

@jemcnick -- Bobby Lamm explained the meaning of his song on the Chris Isaak show. You can find his comments on "songfacts". Cheers!

[lisahallmark]

@jemcnick 25 minutes or 26 minutes to 4:00 a.m.

[AudioFixation]

stay up all night gettin high. at about 3:35 am look at the clock and tell me exactly what time it is

[pekoe]

====Magic---

[gollick]

What happened to the beat in this? Is it a different drummer?

The straight beat was what made this song.

[sonicwarrior]

After playing this song for about 6 years straight, Terry always changed up his guitar on it and Danny would change up the drums. Danny was with Chicago (T.A.) from the beginnings to 1990.

[kemicon]

@gollick they have the congas in there. I agree the original is funkier but I like different flavors played live, kinda like Bill Wither's doing use me up at mad slow tempo. Although in his case that was a bit more of a success IMHO. Still a cool vid tho.

[lisahallmark]

I am so jealous of Diane Nini........

[carina2244]

Someone didn't like owen09234's comment, "god their drummer is sick". When I was growing up (60s-70s), if you said someone was, "sick", especially guitar players or drummers, that was one of the highest compliments you could pay. Based on that, I would have to agree that Danny was TOTALLY "sick"...

[HeadstartHats]

Pies, Horses, Motorbikes.....Awesome!

[minobrodic]

Strepitoso!!! grazie per lo splendido regalo.

[draggardevir]

Caribou Ranch is one of those places you never hear about in the history of music but was a very important place.

[rucb1alum]

So where is Caribou Ranch's 'Smoke on the Water"? It burned down, too, didn't it.

[guntherxtent]

That's what happens when u gather a shit load of awesome musicians.

[theedrstrangelove]

@guntherxtent spot on! plus analogue 2 inch multi-track tape! i'd put my two a3340s teac machines against any, and I mean ANY digital system.

[incubus421421]

hahaha eating a whole pie in the forest

[owen09234]

god their drummer is sick

[leon55429]

Ás vezes esqueço porque gosto de música ...A banda CHICAGO SALVOU A MINHA VIDA!

[itsstillfriday]

The intro souns like background music for an episode of CHIPS!! :-)

[Nickthetoast]

Top groove- but the video doesn't seem to match the urban vibe. Just my feeling, that's all.

[crewmom]

Thank you for posting these. I remembering watching when it first aired. Been a fan since 69. They are still the best in should be in the rock hall of fame.

[dyhanendra]

terry kath...what a player...

[Garvarino]

Yes he was,,,, dont play with guns

[cathycastleton]

agree, poor terry what a terrible loss...

[ganyi]

chicago is one of the best bands

[MoreAsianThanYou]

Didn't know chuck norris was in the band

[cidaliacastro]

hauhauhuahuhahahuauhuahuhauhau­

[huggy2bear]

@cidaliacastro Lamm or Pankow? I think Lamm is def more Norris-esque in this vid

[brazilianEYEreportU]

@cidaliacastro HUEHUEHUEHUEHUEHUEHUEHUEHUEHUE­HUEHUEHUE

[evh5150316]

0:19 or Geraldo Rivera.

[michaeltgrace]

Get a load of Geraldo on Trombone...

[NOTENGAMIEDO]

@MoreAsianThanYou  LMAO!

[1rhpsfan]

@MoreAsianThanYou Just Chuck Norris it ouut the window.

[vincevega0]

@MoreAsianThanYou He provided the security.

[Ledegg]

This is not the original song being recorded, it's from a 1974 TV special, and this special "live in the studio" recording is strictly for this goofy vid segment. I thought this was cool when I was 13; I now think it goofy, and more and more I realize that Spinal Tap was not satire but 100 percent fact. The word "fatuous" comes to mind; the gun scene is a bit portentious, and Terry Kath was a blazing git player, true. The heroic dirt bike riding is truly something out of a dream. . .

[BahamutINFINITY]

2:20-2:23 Horse no want! XD

[jbassman666]

Chicago kicks ass

random fact: Terry Kath wa the first celebrity to be nominated for a darwin award

[bowfrog]

He could ride though----- what a great band and a great pst Castro!!!!!!

[WeCamefortheDead]

You've got to be kidding me...They cut the first solo for a fucking shot of Kath riding a dirt bike?

Anyway, damn nice version. Early Chicago was always my favorite. Once they hit their slower stuff in the 80's...Blech.

Amazing song.

[imupwiddat]

They sound so unbelievably great in this live studio take. I must say, I'm glad they decided to go with an accelerated version of this song on the album.

[greenmean1]

Hey! It's that news guy Rivera whats his face on trombone, never knew he played with Chicago.

[bretoff]

I bet those guys were getting so much tail back in those days

[wiredtojupiter]

it's peter being peter, but he's got that chicago sound-great band and song

[darintaylor79]

Lol the debate continues, I read that he was trying to go to sleep and it was 25 or 26 to four I did not read he was tripping on acid.

[JokinJoe]

Real music.

[BandGeekTX]

I love this song. I greatly aprreciate this song...not only for the goodness of the song but for the horns! as a fellow sax player(tenor all the way) I love to hear horns such as a sax, trombone, and trumpet used in rock songs. Its a great combination. :Þ

[17865329]

People sometimes forget how damn good Chicago was in those days.

[Garvarino]

Who ??? not me

[CircleCityEric]

It's only an edited version, but it still sounds excellent!

[sschier]

CHICAGO rules : 1969 -1978. This is the original live session for the album!!

[donnabunnie]

Terry Kath-one of the greatest guitarists ever..

[Garvarino]

True,, when poeple thi nk of chicago they think of the great lyrics and of course the horns,,, but kath was the backbone of Chicago

[dmm1208]

im only 27 but givme abrak this wrecks whats goin on now a dayzs

[dillonrockband]

heck, im 13 and think this kills everything else. this is my favorite song of all time.

[Keijz74]

The "regular version" is good but this one's GREAT :o)# <3

[unzari55]

Reminds me of my least favourite section of The Song Remains the Same. Corrrrny.

[timzorrr]

Whoa... haha what a corny video. Interesting from a 'what they did that day perspective' though... but wow..I wonder what the story is behind this video!

[NobbyOlder]

I'd rather see the great Terry Kath playing the lead please.Thanks

[JennaP46]

25 or 6 to 4 is a drug song....it's all about doing cocaine~~~

[perilousRelish]

This is sick. The horns are on fire, Seraphine is crazy hot, and Cetera's vocals have a twist and sense of irony that the studio version doesn't quite match. Awesome.

[enderwigginsx]

My dad got me into this stuff. I'm so glad he did.

[truthman50]

Great band, but could someone tell me what 25 or 6 to 4 means?

[luke3jes]

Robert Lamm was having trouble coming up with ideas while writing a song late at night. So, he wrote a song about that.

He looks at the clock and, since he's bleary-eyed, can't tell if it's 25 minutes to 4:00 or 26 minutes to 4:00. Simple as that.

[1969MustangMACH1]

Lots of people say the song is about acid and drugs....but it's simply about him writing about a song and not being able to tell what time it is lol

[eleeking]

Its from a roll of 2 inch tape for a 16 track tape recorder. "'25 or 624?" I say 624 because a tape machine MUST is biased for a certain kind of tape. If you go to another studio with a 16 track tape and it's biased for 625 it will not record or play back as well. The question is "Is your tape machine biased for Ampex 625 or 624?" or "25 or 6 to 4?"

[jhnstn1]

Cool!!!!!! had ever heard that before.

[orphaliman1]

It means "25 or 26 minutes until it is 4 am". It is all about LSD. " Anyone who has done acid at night will know what "flashing lights against the sky" means when you're tripping and trying to sleep. The song is slightly a downer in tone. "Shouldve tried to do some more"; to me this means he is upset he isnt tripping hard enough. "Feeling like I aught to sleep" is a feeling everyone gets on acid..... really if you havent done psychedelics you will have no idea.

[eleeking]

Well, lucky me then. I'm not a drug idiot, but one of the band members in an interview said that the song wasn't drug related.

[Sharkbite531]

According to Robert Lamm (the songwriter) the title is "a reference to the time of day," and that "the song is about writing a song. It's not mystical." Mr. Lamm's exact words. In an interview in '83 he said the song is about having writer's block, the lyric was his frustration with trying to write a song on a sleepless night and being, in his words "stuck for a lyric." The title came from not being able to see the clock clearly because his eyes were so tired. "it was either 25 or 6 to 4:00."

[Sharkbite531]

The "lyric, flashing lights against the sky, is not from an acid trip. According to the songwriter "I was living in the Hollywood Hills and I could look out over the city late at night. I wanted to try to describe the process of writing the song that I was writing. So, 'waiting for the break of day, searching for something to say, flashing lights against the sky' - there was a neon sign across the city." (Songwriter's exact words.) I think most people will take his word for it.

[at90percent]

True. This song, written in the late 1960's, an era when Las Vegas wasn't the only place it was common to see flashing neon signs.

[Xetian91]

It's about song writing. "Searching for something to say!" Should I try to write some more? He's up too late writing.

[TebooTedMarshall]

Your an idiot, The song is about writing song lyrics you dork

[Suses]

I love when tards post "your" an idiot!

[ganyi]

arriba chicago,pedazo de banda,se echa de menos cosas asi hoy en dia practicamente la guitarra ritmica no existe ya