Greatest Hits Archive.org

[Holly Coffell]

Released by Columbia Records in 1975, the 9th Chicago album debuted as the band's first ever greatest hits collection. It had trumendous success and would be their only album to showcase the band members on the cover. The legendary John Berg, who oversaw a great many album designs during his time as Art Director, drew the inital sketch of (what he considers the first of its kind) the Chicago band logo. Taking a look into Berg's design practice as it is modeled through his work with Chicago reflects a great deal of what '70s graphic design is all about.

Chicago IX is recognizably '70s with its inlcusion of the classic yellow-orange pallette, curvy flowing script (inspired by the Coca-Coala logo) with tight kerning, lots of white space, and a handmade/everyday humor and feel. As part of the greater Chicago album collective directed by John Berg, it is one of many iterations of the same layout reimagined over and over. Berg states it was often his goal to spur artists to work with unfamiliar mediums as a way to continually find fresh perspectives and takes on familiar subjects. He pursued graphic integrity and intriuge above all else and reached the audience through compelling visual narrative.

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