Released September 9, 1988 Recorded 1988 Length 4:02 | Format 7" Genre Rock | |
B-side "Come in from the Night" | ||
"Look Away" is a 1988 power ballad by American rock band Chicago. Written by Diane Warren, produced by Ron Nevison, and with Bill Champlin on lead vocals, it is the second single from the band's album Chicago 19. The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks in December 1988, matching the chart success of the group's "If You Leave Me Now" (1976) and "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" (1982). "Look Away" is Chicago's seventh song to have peaked at number one on the Adult Contemporary chart as well as the number one song on the 1989 year-end Billboard Hot 100 chart, even though it never held the #1 spot at all in 1989.
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The song, unlike hits from early in Chicago's career, does not prominently feature horns. It is also the band's first number-one single following the departure of Peter Cetera, who left the group in 1985.
Production
According to drummer Danny Seraphine, Chicago's manager Howard Kaufman suggested that the band bring in outside songwriting help. Kaufman recommended Diane Warren, who also composed the band's single "I Don't Wanna Live Without Your Love," and producer Ron Nevison, who had worked with Heart on the number one hits "These Dreams" and "Alone."
Warren wrote "Look Away" from the man's perspective and submitted a demo to Chicago's management company. "Diane's demos always sound really good," Nevison said. "Her demos are always very simple, but they always have great vocal performances." Bassist Jason Scheff remarked, "The songs that last for me are the ones I don't get at first," and added, "I remember hearing 'Look Away' and thinking it's okay, but not great. Thank God I'm not an A&R man."
Before being submitted to Chicago, the song was one of two ballads offered by Epic Records to Cheap Trick, who chose "The Flame" instead.
The song featured Bill Champlin on lead vocals and furthered Chicago's shift towards de-emphasizing the band's brass section compared to their earlier years. Scheff noted that with Peter Cetera having left the group and "making his own records, it was good for us to release some songs with a different sound (like) Bill's voice. Then we wouldn't be saturating radio with Chicago-sounding songs."
Reception
"Look Away" entered the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in September 1988 and reached number one, where it spent two weeks, in December. Champlin said he was unaware of the feat at the time. "Everybody said, 'I hear your song every day,'" he recalled. "I go, 'What song?' I was kind of oblivious to the whole thing, busy working on new stuff. That's what happens. As everybody else gets aware of what you're doing, you're usually about five or six tunes past it." The single was certified gold in January and ranked number one on the 1989 Billboard Year-End singles chart. It also reached number one on the Adult Contemporary chart. "Look Away" peaked at number one in Canada, number 10 in the Netherlands, number 15 in Sweden, and number 20 in Belgium.