Dialogue (Part I & II)

"Dialogue (Part I & II)"
Single by Chicago
from the album Chicago V
B-side "Now That You've Gone"
Released October 1972
Format 7"
Recorded September 1971
Genre Funk rock, pop rock
Length
  • 5:00 (single version)
  • 2:56 (Part I)
  • 4:13 (Part II)
  • 7:11 (Parts I & II album)
Label Columbia
Writer(s) Robert Lamm
Producer(s) James William Guercio
Chicago singles chronology
"Saturday in the Park"
(1972)		 "Dialogue
(Part I & II)"
(1972)		 "Feelin' Stronger Every Day"
(1973)

"Dialogue" is a song written by Robert Lamm for the group Chicago and recorded for their album Chicago V (1972). On the album the song is over 7 minutes long and is divided into two tracks. An edited version of the song was released as a single in October 1972, eventually reaching #24 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.[1]

In Part I, the song's lyrics are a dialogue between two young people with different views. The first person (whose lines are sung by Terry Kath) is very concerned about events of the early 1970s, such as war, starvation, and "repression... closing in around." The second person (whose lines are sung by Peter Cetera) maintains that "everything is fine." Musically, the song is also a dialogue between Terry Kath's rhythm guitar and Peter Cetera's bass, which is all the more interesting as the songwriting credit went to keyboardist Robert Lamm. As Part I comes to a close, Terry Kath's character embraces the other character's worldview, saying "you know you really eased my mind; / I was troubled by the shapes of things to come." The response: "Well, if you had my outlook your feelings would be numb - you'd always think that everything was fine"

Part II contains more optimistic lyrics sung by the whole band, including "we can make it better" and "we can change the world now" and points the way by noting "we can save the children."

Personnel

References

  1. ↑ "Chicago Awards". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-08-17.