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CALIFORNIA TRANSIT AUTHORITY Danny
Seraphine – drums If the name sounds vaguely familiar, it should. California Transit Authority is the new band anchored by Danny Seraphine, who from 1967 through 1990 and a string of platinum albums, drove the band Chicago with his steady-handed drumming. When it initially arrived on the scene, Chicago was known as Chicago Transit Authority or CTA. As such, California Transit Authority – also known as CTA -- is Seraphine’s trip back to the future, effectively tipping his hat to his past with his feet firmly planted in the here and now. Aptly titled FULL CIRCLE, CTA’s debut album brings Seraphine back to his roots. Yet the journey wouldn’t have been possible if it wasn’t for a series of unfortunate events that led the drummer to pack away his kit for 17 years as he battled his personal demons until he rediscovered his muse. On Mother’s Day in 1990, Seraphine was unceremoniously ousted from Chicago, a band he helped found and define for 23 years. The move left him devastated. A protracted legal battle followed and then a divorce. As Seraphine admits, “All the wheels fell off at once and it brought me to me knees.” Having relocated to Evergreen, Colorado, he lived off of his royalties from Chicago and kept himself busy by skiing and fly-fishing, but something was missing. “I am an artist, I am creative and that’s what I thrive on,” he says. “I really turned my back on that part of myself for 17 years.” It was longtime friend,
keyboardist Peter Fish--a six-time Emmy® winner--that provided
the impetus for Seraphine to dust off his drum kit. Fish called
his friend and said, “Before I die I’d like to be in
a band with Danny Seraphine.” After some soul searching, Seraphine
realized he missed playing, so he got his drum set from his garage
and woodshed, honing his chops and even taking a few lessons from
big band legend Joe Porcaro, the father of late Toto drummer Jeff
Porcaro. Once Seraphine regained his feel, he was invited to a jam
session put together by DW Drums founder/president Don Lombardi.
In attendance that fateful day was guitar wizard Marc Bonilla. “Marc
and I connected,” Seraphine recalls. “It was the kind
of connection that I hadn’t had since [late Chicago guitarist]
Terry Kath. It really moved me.” The seeds for CTA had been
sown. Spurred on by the success of that performance, CTA soon regrouped in a Los Angeles area studio to cut its debut effort. Working with Seraphine is a dream come true for Bonilla, an accomplished musician in his own right who released two acclaimed solo albums on Reprise Records in the early ‘90s before making a name for himself with his work in music for TV and films. While CTA revisits early Chicago classics “I’m A Man” (featuring Sheila E. on timbales, Alex Acuna--who’s performed with Paul McCartney, U2, Joni Mitchell and Ella Fitzgerald--on congas and Keith Emerson of Emerson, Lake and Palmer on the organ), “Make Me Smile” and “Colour My World” on FULL CIRCLE, CTA isn’t just a nostalgia trip. “I wouldn’t have been involved in it if it was a revival thing or tribute band,” guitarist Marc Bonilla says. “That’s why we wanted to take those songs, the early ones and rework them, rearrange them, and bring them up to date.” For example, “Make Me Smile” has been transformed into an instrumental, with Bonilla recreating the vocal lines on guitar. In addition, the guitarist has also re-imagined many of Chicago’s classic horn parts on his guitar. Another twist is vocalist Braggs, the voice of Tower of Power since 2000. “Terry’s singing had a lot of soul, blue-eyed soul, but it’s great to have Larry come in and do a new take on the songs with a different kind of soul,” Bonilla says. Aside from the re-workings of the Chicago tracks, FULL CIRCLE revisits Bonilla’s “Antonio’s Love Jungle,” which is given new life as Seraphine’s human touch replaces the original’s drum-machine rhythms, as well as “Something Different,” the Cannonball Adderley track composed by a young Chuck Mangione. A new original track, “Several Thousand,” features guest vocalist Wes Quave. Here’s the complete track listing: 1. Something Different www.ctatheband.com ### |
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