Chicago - 25 or 6 to 4

If you love live monster guitar jams; cue in at 3:00 on the video - one of the best. At one point it is truly a "one man show;" with the rest of the band waiting for it to end to cue up on time.

“25 or 6 to 4” is one of Chicago’s most iconic songs, written by keyboardist Robert Lamm and recorded in August 1969 for their second album, Chicago. Released as a single in June 1970, the song climbed to number four on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, becoming the band’s first top-five hit. The title refers to the time of day—either 3:35 or 3:34 a.m., expressed as 25 or 26 minutes before 4 o’clock—when Lamm was struggling to write a song late at night in his Hollywood Hills home. Looking out over Los Angeles, he decided to simply describe the creative process itself, capturing the experience of searching for inspiration in the early morning hours. The song features Peter Cetera’s distinctive lead vocals, recorded while his jaw was wired shut following an altercation at a baseball game, which gave the performance its characteristic clenched, urgent quality. Terry Kath’s legendary wah-wah guitar solo became one of the defining elements of the track, later ranked among the greatest wah solos of all time by Guitar World. Despite Lamm’s straightforward explanation that the song is about writing a song, rumors persisted that it referenced drug use, leading Singapore to ban it in 1970. The track has endured as a cultural touchstone, becoming a staple for marching bands across America, appearing in films and video games, and remaining a centerpiece of Chicago’s live performances for over five decades. In 2019, Billboard critics ranked it as the number one Chicago song of all time.

Chicago - 25 or 6 to 4 Lyrics

Searching for the break of day
Searching for something to say
Dancing lights against the sky
Giving up, I close my eyes
Sitting cross-legged on the floor
25 or six to four

Staring blindly into space
Getting up to splash my face
Wanting just to stay awake
Wondering how much I can take
Should have tried to do some more
25 or six to four

Feeling like I ought to sleep
Spinning room is sinking deep
Searching for something to say
Waiting for the break of day
25 or six to four
25 or six to four