The Very Best of Chicago: Only the Beginning


The Very Best of Chicago: Only the Beginning is the sixth greatest hits album by the American band Chicago, their twenty-seventh album overall. Released in 2002, this collection marked the beginning of a long-term partnership with Rhino Entertainment which, between 2002 and 2005, would remaster and re-release Chicago's 1969–1980 Columbia Records catalog.
In Europe, a greatest hits compilation was released as The Chicago Story: Complete Greatest Hits with a different track listing.
The Very Best of Chicago: Only the Beginning combines almost all of Chicago's greatest successes from their entire recording career up to that point, excerpting material from all of their regular studio albums with the exception of 1979's Chicago 13 and 1980's Chicago XIV. Several songs appear in an edited form, including "I'm a Man", which is missing the Danny Seraphine drum solo, and "Dialogue (Part I & II)", which is presented in its shortened single version. There is a new edit of “Make Me Smile”—which bridges the namesake part and the “Now More Than Ever” part of the “Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon” together as in the original single, but without omitting the full intro or guitar solo of the former or the full outro of the latter,—and a new version of “Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?”—which is a stereo version of the original single, including all but the free-form piano intro.

Track listing

Disc 1

  1. "Make Me Smile" – 4:26
  2. * New edit
  3. "25 or 6 to 4" – 4:50
  4. "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?" – 3:20
  5. * New edit
  6. "Beginnings" – 6:26
  7. * Greatest Hits edit
  8. "Questions 67 and 68" – 4:52
  9. * Edit
  10. "I'm a Man" – 5:44
  11. * New edit
  12. "Colour My World" – 3:00
  13. "Free" – 2:17
  14. "Lowdown" – 3:34
  15. "Saturday in the Park" – 3:56
  16. "Dialogue (Part I & II)" – 5:00
  17. * Single version
  18. "Just You 'n' Me" – 3:42
  19. "Feelin' Stronger Every Day" – 4:14
  20. "(I've Been) Searchin' So Long" – 4:29
  21. "Wishing You Were Here" – 4:36
  22. "Call on Me" – 4:02
  23. "Happy Man" – 3:15
  24. * Greatest Hits 2 edit
  25. "Another Rainy Day in New York City" – 3:00
  26. "If You Leave Me Now" – 3:57
Disc 1 length: 75:20

Disc 2

  1. "Old Days" – 3:31
  2. "Baby, What a Big Surprise" – 3:06
  3. "Take Me Back to Chicago" – 2:57
  4. * Single version
  5. "Alive Again" – 4:04
  6. "No Tell Lover" – 4:13
  7. "Love Me Tomorrow" – 3:58
  8. * Single version
  9. "Hard to Say I'm Sorry/Get Away" – 5:05
  10. "Stay the Night" – 3:50
  11. "Hard Habit to Break" – 4:45
  12. "You're the Inspiration" – 3:49
  13. "Along Comes a Woman" – 3:47
  14. * Single version
  15. "Will You Still Love Me?" – 4:12
  16. * Single version
  17. "If She Would Have Been Faithful..." – 3:51
  18. "Look Away" – 4:00
  19. * Single version
  20. "What Kind of Man Would I Be?" – 4:14
  21. * Single version
  22. "I Don't Wanna Live Without Your Love" – 3:57
  23. "We Can Last Forever" – 3:44
  24. "You're Not Alone" – 4:00
  25. * Single version
  26. "Chasin' the Wind" – 4:18
  27. "Sing, Sing, Sing" – with the Gipsy Kings – 3:20
Disc 2 total length: 75:21

Track listing (Europe and Australia)

Disc 1

  1. "If You Leave Me Now" – 3:57
  2. "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" – 3:51
  3. * Single version
  4. "You're the Inspiration" – 3:49
  5. "Hard Habit to Break" – 4:45
  6. "Will You Still Love Me?" – 4:12
  7. * Single version
  8. "Baby, What a Big Surprise" – 3:06
  9. "Look Away" – 4:00
  10. * Single version
  11. "What Kind of Man Would I Be?" – 4:14
  12. * Single version
  13. "I Don't Wanna Live Without Your Love" – 3:57
  14. "Love Me Tomorrow" – 3:58
  15. * Single version
  16. "Just You 'n' Me" – 3:42
  17. "Happy Man" – 3:15
  18. * Same edit as American issue
  19. "You're Not Alone" – 4:00
  20. * Single version
  21. "Chasin' the Wind" – 4:18
  22. "Wishing You Were Here" – 4:36
  23. "No Tell Lover" – 4:13
  24. " Searchin' So Long" – 4:29
  25. "Colour My World" – 3:00
  26. "You Come to My Senses" – 3:48
  27. "We Can Last Forever" – 3:44

Disc 2

  1. "25 or 6 to 4" – 4:50
  2. "Saturday in the Park" – 3:56
  3. "Questions 67 and 68" – 4:52
  4. * Same edit as American issue
  5. "I'm a Man" – 5:44
  6. * Same edit as American issue
  7. "Stay the Night" – 3:50
  8. "Only You" – 3:54
  9. * Originally issued on Chicago 17
  10. "Dialogue " – 5:00
  11. * Single version
  12. "Old Days" – 3:31
  13. "Beginnings" – 6:26
  14. * Same edit as American issue
  15. "Lowdown" – 3:34
  16. "Another Rainy Day in New York City" – 3:00
  17. "Call on Me" – 4:02
  18. "Feelin' Stronger Every Day" – 4:14
  19. "Take Me Back to Chicago" – 2:57
  20. * Single version
  21. "Sing, Sing, Sing" – with the Gipsy Kings – 3:20
  22. "Along Comes a Woman" – 3:47
  23. * Single version
  24. "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?" – 3:20
  25. * Single version
  26. "Make Me Smile" – 4:26
  27. * Same edit as American issue
  28. "Street Player" – 4:22
  29. * ''Single version''

Personnel

Musicians

Production

Charts

Chart Peak
position