"Saturday in the Park" is a song written by Robert Lamm and recorded by the group Chicago for their 1972 album Chicago V. It was successful upon release, reaching on the Billboard Hot 100, and became the band's highest-charting single at the time, helping lift the album to . Billboard ranked it as the No. 76 song for 1972. The single was certified Gold by the RIAA, selling over 1,000,000 units in the U.S. alone.
Background According to fellow Chicago member Walter Parazaider, Lamm was inspired to write the song during the recording of Chicago III in New York City on Saturday, July 4, 1970:
However, Lamm recalls the story differently, as he told Billboard magazine:
In the studio version of the song, the line "singing Italian songs" is followed by "Eh Cumpari" (the title of a song made famous by Julius La Rosa in 1953), and then Italian-sounding nonsense words, rendered in the printed lyrics as "?". Piano, guitar, and vocal sheet music arrangements have often read "improvised Italian lyrics" in parentheses after this line. However, in a film of Chicago performing "Saturday in the Park" at the Arie Crown Theater in Chicago in 1972, Robert Lamm clearly sings, "Eh Cumpari, ci vo sunari," the first line of "Eh, Cumpari!".
Reception Cash Box said that "The hornrockers paint a scene of inner city greenery that's sure to grow to Top 10 by summer's end." Record World called it "a medium-paced rocker with an appropriately summery feel" and with "crisp, tight instrumental arrangements."
Chart performance
Weekly charts Chart (1972)PeakpositionAustralia (KMR) 43Canada Top Singles (RPM)2US Easy Listening (Billboard)8US Cash Box Top 1003
Year-end charts Chart (1972)PositionCanada Top Singles (RPM)25US Billboard Hot 10076US Cash Box Top 10071
Certifications
Personnel Robert Lamm – lead vocals, piano Peter Cetera – lead vocals (chorus), backing vocals, bass guitar Terry Kath – lead guitar Lee Loughnane – trumpet James Pankow – trombone Walter Parazaider – alto saxophone Danny Seraphine – drums
See also "A Roller Skating Jam Named "Saturdays"" "Prisencolinensinainciusol", a song written by an Italian with nonsense American English-sounding lyrics
References
External links