Rock icon Danny Seraphine

One of the architects of the iconic rock group Chicago, Danny Seraphine has never lost touch with his roots on Chicago’s Far Northwest Side.

Danny Seraphine first picked up a set of drumsticks at 9 years of age, beginning a musical roller-coaster ride that gave the world some of the best-loved pop hits of our lifetime.

Sixty years ago, the 17-year-old from the Far Northwest Side of Chicago was asked to be a drummer in Dick Clark’s road band, Jimmy Ford and the Executives. While in that band he met bassist extraordinaire Terry Kath and saxophonist Walt Parazaider. That chance encounter changed their lives — and rock music — forever. It also pulled Danny off the streets and out of a gang he was in.

Two years later, Danny approached Terry and Walt with the idea of adding horns to a rock band. They auditioned and then welcomed James Pankow on trombone and Lee Loughnane on trumpet, as well as Robert Lamm on keys and Peter Cetera on bass after Terry shifted to his first love, guitar.

They called themselves The Big Thing until James Guercio — the producer who helped skyrocket The Buckinghams to fame with five top hits in the same year — took the group on. The Big Thing soon morphed into The Chicago Transit Authority.

“Thank God for that,” Danny told me in a recent interview. “We hated to be called The Big Thing, wouldn’t you?”

After the name change in 1968, the Chicago natives moved to Los Angeles and put out their first album, a self-titled, double album that produced several hits, including the prophetic classic “Beginnings.” The album stayed on the Billboard charts for 171 weeks, breaking a previous record, and got the band nominated for a Grammy Award for Best New Artist of the Year. It ultimately went double platinum and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2014.

“One of my proudest moments was when we first came home to Chicago from LA after we hit it big,” Danny says. “It was two sold-out nights at The Auditorium Theatre. We played so many encores, we ran out of songs and repeated a few. All our friends, families and what felt like the rest of the city were there. We really felt like hometown rock stars!”

But then, a legal issue with the actual Chicago Transit Authority compelled the band to shorten its name to Chicago while still honoring its roots.

Danny not only set the tone with his masterful and highly physical drumming — the co-founding member also wrote or co-wrote several hits for the band, including “No Tell Lover,” “Lowdown,” “Street Player” and “Take Me Back to Chicago.”

Twenty years and 20 albums later, Danny had become one of the most respected drummers in the industry in addition to being one of the architects of the band Chicago. So it was a shock to him as well as millions of fans when he was asked to leave the band in 1990.

“After doing so much recording and touring, we started to have personnel changes and disagreements about the direction of the band, and who was calling the shots,” Danny says. “I was asked to leave by guys who I considered to be my brothers. It was heartbreaking.”

For the next 15 years, Danny barely performed. Then in 2006, he put a band together featuring guitarist Marc Bonilla, keyboardist Ed Roth, Tower of Power vocalist Larry Braggs and other top musicians, and California Transit Authority (CTA) was born.

The group played a jazzy combination of original tunes and Chicago classics. Demand for the band grew, and it still tours today with the aforementioned founding members.

During his exile from Chicago, Danny served as executive producer and music supervisor for successful Broadway musicals as well as the film “Lonely Street.” In 2010, he published his autobiography, “Street Player: My Chicago Story,” and released the biographical and instructional DVD, “The Art of Jazz Rock Drumming.” He kept busy.

When I was blessed to finally work with one of my musical heroes, I was tremendously excited. I hired CTA for the first time about 15 years ago. It was and still is a spectacular group of musicians playing the hits of my favorite band. At the forefront was my favorite drummer, Danny Seraphine.

I didn’t know what to expect. His book was a tell-all and I wasn’t sure if I was even supposed to mention his former band to him. I knew he was still quite sour about his separation from the band and I wondered, “Is he going to be a pretentious rocker?”

Well, Danny wound up being one of the warmest and most sincere music professionals I had ever met. His show was a throwback to the hit-after-hit-after-hit experience I was accustomed to when I attended any one of Chicago’s thrilling live concerts back in the day.

We have since worked together on countless projects, festivals, concerts and corporate events. But more importantly, he has become a mentor, a brother and a confidante. We talk regularly about life and the music biz.

In 2016, Chicago was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. I was elated! And to the credit of the band and its management, they invited Danny to participate in the festivities as a founding member. Danny, being the brother he had come to be to me, invited me to attend.

“I have been waiting 25 years for this,” Danny proclaimed as he held the trophy high above his head. His adrenaline-fueled use of expletives during his speech was met with mixed reviews, especially from a few members of the band. But he was so excited, he didn’t care.

A couple of years back, he came into town a few days before one of his shows just to hang out. He attended a concert I was producing at Park West in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. A couple of guys who had a bit too much liquid fun got in my face, threatening to get physical. Out of the shadows Danny stepped between me and the would-be assailants, strongly suggesting they back down. They did.

“Now THAT’S a ‘neighborhood guy!’” I thought.

Danny Seraphine has a stretch of Normandy Avenue named in honor of him in the Harlem Avenue neighborhood where he grew up. His Far Northwest Side Little Italy roots run deep, thanks to his Abruzzese and Neapolitan parents and Grandma Philomena, who created a truly Italian American household for Danny and his sister, Rosemary, to grow up in.

At 76, he lives in Las Vegas and still loves playing for the fans, with no intention of stopping anytime soon. He is a “Street Player” with a heart of gold. And how can you not love a guy who wrote the lyrics: “Take me back to Chicago, with street corners and Tastee Freez”?

Danny Seraphine and CTA will perform on May 17 at the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles, together with Shining Star, a Tribute to Earth, Wind & Fire. For reservations, click here.

The article above appears in the May 2025 issue of the print version of Fra Noi. Our gorgeous, monthly magazine contains a veritable feast of news and views, profiles and features, entertainment and culture. To subscribe, click here.