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James Pankow
Background information
Birth name	James Carter Pankow
Born	August 20, 1947 (age 59) St. Louis, Missouri, USA
Genre(s)	Rock Adult contemporary Jazz
Instrument(s)	Trombone
Years active	1967–present
Associated acts	Chicago

James Carter Pankow (born August 20, 1947 in St. Louis, Missouri, USA) is an American trombone player, songwriter and brass instrument arranger best known for being a founding member of the rock band Chicago.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Tenure in Chicago 3 Other musical contributions 4 Personal life 5 External links

Pankow moved with his family to Park Ridge, Illinois at the age of eight, where he started playing the trombone at St. Paul of the Cross Elementary School.

One of nine siblings, Pankow was influenced by his father, Wayne (who was also a musician), and by his Notre Dame High School band instructor, Father George Wiskirchen.

Pankow earned a full music scholarship to Quincy College, where he studied the bass trombone. After completing his freshman year, he returned home for the summer and formed a band that began to play some live local shows. Not wanting to give up this work, Pankow transferred to DePaul University.

At DePaul, Pankow met Walter Parazaider, who recruited him to join a band named The Big Thing -- which would eventually become Chicago. Pankow has remained a member of Chicago since its inception.

In addition to playing the trombone, Pankow has composed many songs for Chicago, including the hits "Make Me Smile" (from his suite Ballet For A Girl In Buchannon), "Just You 'N' Me," "(I've Been) Searchin' So Long," "Old Days," "Alive Again," "Bad Advice," "Follow Me," and (with Peter Cetera) "Feelin' Stronger Every Day."

He has also composed most of Chicago's brass arrangements over the years and, as a result, is perhaps the person most responsible for the "Chicago sound."

Although Pankow is not one of the band's principal vocalists, he sang lead vocals for two Chicago songs: "You Are On My Mind" (from Chicago X, 1976) and "Till the End of Time" (Chicago XI, 1977).

Pankow has appeared on several albums for the rock band Toto, including the 1982 Grammy Award winning Toto IV and their 2006 album Falling In Between, for which he composed the brass arrangements and performed on the song "Dying On My Feet."

Pankow has been married twice. His first marriage, to Karen (for whom he wrote "Just You 'N' Me"), lasted 20 years and ended in 1993. (A Pankow tune called "Here With Me" on the unreleased Stone of Sisyphus project acts as a sort of 'bookend' to this marriage).

He has recently remarried to Jeannie and the couple have two children. Between the two marriages, he has a total of four children.

His brother is actor John Pankow, best known as a co-star of the television series Mad About You.

• Chicago official website
• 2001 interview in the Honolulu Star Bulletin

Chicago
Robert Lamm | James Pankow | Lee Loughnane | Walter Parazaider | Bill Champlin Jason Scheff | Tris Imboden | Keith Howland Terry Kath | Peter Cetera | Danny Seraphine | Laudir DeOliveira | Donnie Dacus | Chris Pinnick | Dawayne Bailey
Discography
Studio albums: The Chicago Transit Authority | Chicago | Chicago III | Chicago V | Chicago VI |Chicago VII | Chicago VIII | Chicago X | Chicago XI | Hot Streets | Chicago 13 | Chicago XIV | Chicago 16 | Chicago 17 | Chicago 18 | Chicago 19 | Twenty 1 | Night & Day Big Band | Chicago XXX
Live albums: Chicago at Carnegie Hall | Chicago XXVI: Live in Concert
Compilations: Chicago IX - Chicago's Greatest Hits | Greatest Hits, Volume II | Greatest Hits 1982-1989 The Heart of Chicago 1967-1997 | The Heart of Chicago 1967-1998 Volume II | The Very Best of: Only the Beginning | Love Songs
Christmas albums: Chicago XXV: The Christmas Album | What's It Gonna Be, Santa?
Unreleased album: Stone of Sisyphus
Box sets: The Box