Terry Kath

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Terry Kath

Born January 31, 1946
Died January 23, 1978
Genre(s) Rock
Affiliation(s) Chicago
Years active 1969-1978

Terry Alan Kath (January 31, 1946 – January 23, 1978), born in Chicago, Illinois, to parents Evelyn M. Haugen and Raymond Kath. Terry was the original guitarist and founding member (along with Walter Parazaider, Danny Seraphine, Lee Loughnane, James Pankow, Robert Lamm, and Peter Cetera) of the rock band Chicago. He died in 1978 at the age of 31 from an accidental self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Kath was an important contributor to Chicago, beginning with their first album The Chicago Transit Authority (#17) released in 1969, which includes his composition "Introduction", described as "Terry's masterpiece" by later Chicago guitarist DaWayne Bailey. The composition displays many varied musical styles, including jazz, blues, rock, and pop. His last appearance with Chicago would be on 1977's Chicago XI (#6), ending the album's final track with the ballad "Little One" (#44).

He was entirely self-taught as a musician, and he had little or no music-reading ability. (According to interviews, Kath would hum his original compositions to bandmates). The same debut album also includes an instrumental guitar piece entitled "Liberation", which is inspired by Jimi Hendrix albums from 1967 and 1968. The album liner notes indicate that this fourteen minute piece was recorded 'live' in the studio in one take, and Kath's signature solo guitar playing is heard throughout. It is Kath's ode to the psychedelic 60's.

The hit "Questions 67 & 68" (#71/#24 re-release) had lead guitar lines by Kath that became staples of the Chicago sound. Another hit success, "Beginnings" (#7), was underlined by solid 12-string rhythm guitar playing by Kath. The 12-string sound was later emulated by dozens of soft rock bands of the 1970s. But perhaps Kath's most popular musical highlight as a recording guitarist appears in the Chicago hit song "25 or 6 to 4", which reached (#4) on the singles charts in 1970. Kath's aggressive and energetic guitar work (both rhythm and lead guitar) throughout the song, and its interplay with Chicago's horn section and drums, make "25 or 6 to 4" an all-time rock classic. Kath's guitar solo (at 90 seconds) in the middle of "25 or 6 to 4" may be the longest guitar solo in a song to appear near the top of the singles charts.

Fascinated by gadgets, Kath once owned nearly twenty guitars, though his early staples were a Gibson SG and a Fender Stratocaster. He utilized no special tunings or modifications on either. He later famously used a specially decorated Fender Telecaster, and was associated with Pignose amps. He experimented with a wide variety of amplification and distortion devices. Kath was an avid user of wah-wah pedals. Although Kath was a great lead guitar player (as in "25 or 6 to 4"), his rhythm guitar playing may have been his ultimate strength. In fact most of his guitar work with Chicago is rhythm guitar.

Kath's singing was also an important feature of Chicago's sound, in a group of many song composers who often let other members of the band do the lead singing on their compositions. Kath's vocal warmth and passion in "Colour My World" (#7) and his exuberant vocal dynamicism in "Make Me Smile" (#9), both songs from Chicago (#4), were key elements in Chicago's first hits. His screaming in the live version of "Free" from Chicago at Carnegie Hall (#3), released in 1971, is another example of his passionate vocal style.

[edit] Death

Kath, who had married Camelia Ortiz in 1974, reportedly had a history of using alcohol and drugs, including cocaine, in his last few years. Chicago bandmates have indicated that he was also increasingly unhappy. Peter Cetera even went so far as to say that Kath would have been the first to quit Chicago had he lived (and, according to then-producer James William Guercio, Kath was working on a solo album before he died). But despite his personal problems, this was not the cause of his unfortunate and accidental death.

Around 5 p.m. on the evening of January 23, 1978, after a party at roadie Don Johnson's home at 5754 Fallbrook Avenue in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, Kath — being a gun enthusiast — took a 9 mm semi-automatic pistol and began cleaning it. When Johnson yelled from the kitchen for Terry to be careful, Kath removed the magazine to 'prove' that the gun was not loaded, pointed the gun in the air and pulled the trigger. However — in his inebriated state — he forgot that some semi-automatic pistols have a built-in safety feature that prevents the discharge of a chambered round when the magazine is removed (this is why the chamber should always be checked visually). When he reinserted the magazine, Kath put the gun to his temple and pulled the trigger, infamously saying, "Don't worry, it's not loaded", in another attempt to prove that everything was safe. Unfortunately, with the magazine reinserted, the chambered round discharged and killed him — a week shy of his 32nd birthday.

Terry Kath was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California. Terry and Camelia had a daughter, Michelle, born in 1976. His widow Camelia later married Kiefer Sutherland. Kath's death is mentioned in the Darwin Awards book The Darwin Awards II: Unnatural Selection.

[edit] Compositions by Terry Kath

  • "Introduction" and "Free Form Guitar": The Chicago Transit Authority (#17) (1969)
  • "The Road", "In The Country", "Prelude", "A.M. Mourning", "P.M. Mourning" and "Memories Of Love": Chicago (#4) (1970)
  • "I Don't Want Your Money" and "An Hour in the Shower": Chicago III (#2) (1971)
  • "Alma Mater": Chicago V (#1) (1972)
  • "Jenny": Chicago VI (#1) (1973); "Beyond All Our Sorrows" is a bonus track on the 2002 Rhino reissue
  • "Byblos" and "Song of the Evergreens": Chicago VII (#1) (1974)
  • "Till We Meet Again" and "Oh, Thank You Great Spirit": Chicago VIII (#1) (1975); "Sixth Sense" is a bonus track on the 2002 Rhino reissue
  • "Hope For Love" and "Once Or Twice": Chicago X (#3) (1976); "Your Love's An Attitude" is a bonus track on the 2003 Rhino reissue
  • "Mississippi Delta City Blues" and "Takin' It On Uptown": Chicago XI (#6) (1977)

A tribute album, The Innovative Guitar of Terry Kath, was compiled by Chicago in 1996 containing songs from the various aforementioned albums. Though it doesn't feature all of Kath's quintessential guitar work, it does feature some of his finest moments. The album is currently out of print, but available for download on the iTunes Music Store.

[edit] External links

Chicago
Robert Lamm | James Pankow | Lee Loughnane | Walter Parazaider | Bill Champlin
Jason Scheff | Tris Imboden | Keith Howland
Terry Kath | Peter Cetera | Danny Seraphine | Laudir DeOliveira | Donnie Dacus | Chris Pinnick | Dawayne Bailey
Discography
Studio albums: The Chicago Transit Authority | Chicago | Chicago III | Chicago V | Chicago VI |Chicago VII | Chicago VIII | Chicago X | Chicago XI | Hot Streets
Chicago 13 | Chicago XIV | Chicago 16 | Chicago 17 | Chicago 18 | Chicago 19 | Twenty 1 | Night & Day Big Band | Chicago XXX
Live albums: Chicago at Carnegie Hall | Chicago XXVI: Live in Concert
Compilations: Chicago IX - Chicago's Greatest Hits | Greatest Hits, Volume II | Greatest Hits 1982-1989
The Heart of Chicago 1967-1997 | The Heart of Chicago 1967-1998 Volume II | The Very Best of: Only the Beginning | Love Songs
Christmas albums: Chicago XXV: The Christmas Album | What's It Gonna Be, Santa?
Unreleased album: Stone of Sisyphus
Box sets: The Box
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