Paper Lace – The Night Chicago Died

Introduction

In the realm of pop music, few songs have captured the essence of a tumultuous era quite like “The Night Chicago Died” by the British pop group Paper Lace. Released in 1974, the song reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and became an enduring anthem of the 1970s. Despite its catchy melody and sing-along chorus, “The Night Chicago Died” is a dark and gritty ballad that paints a vivid picture of urban violence and the impact of organized crime on innocent lives.

The song’s narrative is set in the Prohibition Era of the 1920s, a time when Chicago was rife with gang warfare and Al Capone’s criminal empire held the city in its grip. The lyrics follow the perspective of a young boy who witnesses a violent shootout between rival gangs, leaving a lasting impression on his young mind.

Did You Know?

• “The Night Chicago Died” was inspired by the real-life St. Valentine’s Day Massacre of 1929, in which seven members of the North Side Gang were murdered by Al Capone’s men.
• The song’s lyrics, written by Peter Callander and Mitch Murray, are filled with vivid imagery and evocative language, capturing the fear, chaos, and aftermath of the violence.
• Despite its dark subject matter, “The Night Chicago Died” was a commercial success, topping charts worldwide and becoming one of the most recognizable songs of the 1970s.

The song opens with a haunting synthesizer melody, setting the stage for the narrator’s chilling tale. He sings, “I was only a boy when I heard the guns / The night Chicago died.”

The chorus is a stark and memorable refrain, capturing the sense of shock and awe felt by the young narrator. He sings, “Oh, the night Chicago died / When the gangsters came to town / Oh, the night Chicago died / Shot ’em down, shot ’em down.”

The verses paint a vivid picture of the violence that unfolds, with the narrator describing the gunfire, the screams, and the sight of bodies lying in the streets. He sings, “I saw the blood pour down the streets / I heard the sirens wail / I saw the bodies lying there / And I knew that nothing would ever be the same again.”

“The Night Chicago Died” concludes with a somber reflection on the impact of violence, as the narrator acknowledges the lasting scars left on his young mind. He sings, “I’ll never forget the night Chicago died / It’s a night that will never leave my side.”

The song’s enduring popularity lies in its ability to capture the fear and fascination that surround the dark side of urban history. “The Night Chicago Died” is a cautionary tale about the destructive power of violence, but it also serves as a reminder of the resilience of the human spirit in the face of adversity.

Video

Lyrics

Daddy was a cop on the east side of Chicago
Back in the USA, back in the bad old days

In the heat of a summer night
In the land of the dollar bill
When the town of Chicago died
And they talk about it still

When a man named Al Capone
Tried to make that town his own
And he called his gang to war
With the forces of the law

I heard my mama cry
I heard her pray the night Chicago died
Brother, what a night it really was
Brother, what a fight it really was
Glory be

I heard my mama cry
I heard her pray the night Chicago died
Brother, what a night the people saw
Brother, what a fight the people saw
Yes, indeed

And the sound of the battle rang
Through the streets of the old east side
‘Til the last of the hoodlum gang
Had surrendered up or died

There was shouting in the street
And the sound of running feet
And I asked someone who said
“‘Bout a hundred cops are dead!”

I heard my mama cry
I heard her pray the night Chicago died
Brother, what a night it really was
Brother, what a fight it really was
Glory be

I heard my mama cry
I heard her pray the night Chicago died
Brother, what a night the people saw
Brother, what a fight the people saw
Yes, indeed

Then there was no sound at all
But the clock up on the wall
Then the door burst open wide
And my daddy stepped inside
And he kissed my mama’s face
And he brushed her tears away

The night Chicago died
(Na-na-na, na-na-na, na-na, na-na-na)
The night Chicago died
Brother, what a night the people saw
Brother, what a fight the people saw
Yes, indeed

The night Chicago died
(Na-na-na, na-na-na, na-na, na-na-na)
The night Chicago died
Brother, what a night it really was
Brother, what a fight it really was
Glory be

The night Chicago died
(Na-na-na, na-na-na, na-na, na-na-na)
The night Chicago died
Brother what a night the people saw
Brother what a fight the people saw