Chicago: Urban Renewal At Amphitheatre Concert

When a lead singer splits from an established group, disaster often follows. But Peter Cetera’s decision to leave Chicago a few years ago has helped both parties. Cetera has released several hit ballads, and Chicago has a renewed focus and energy. The veteran group has been best known in the last decade for a series of pretty but sometimes wimpy ballads, but its concert Thursday at the Universal Amphitheatre revealed a tougher, more dynamic sensibility. When the band closed the show with its 1973 rocker “Feelin’ Stronger Every Day,” it wasn’t an idle boast.

The two-hour set was evenly divided between hits from the early ‘70s, when Chicago was the hottest rock band in the country, and songs from the past five years. Although nearly every song in the show was a Top 20 single, it never seemed like an oldies revue, thanks to the injection of new hits and to the band’s sharp execution of the old material. They opened up some of the arrangements, giving the players a chance to stretch in their solos.

A key reason for the success of the show was the durability of the old songs, including the vibrant “Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is” and the heartfelt “Make Me Smile.” The recent hits aren’t in that league, but the best of them--”Look Away” and the new “You’re Not Alone”--pack more of a percussive punch than Chicago’s late-’70s and early-’80s material.

Little America, a local rock quartet, opened with a set that echoed the Byrds in its artful blend of strong melodies, smooth harmonies, searing guitar work and powerful back beat.