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Which original members of Chicago have left the band?
Executive summary
Chicago was formed in February 1967 with seven core founding members: Terry Kath, Robert Lamm, Danny Seraphine, Walter Parazaider, Lee Loughnane, James Pankow and (added in December 1967) Peter Cetera; as of recent reporting three of those originals — Lamm, Pankow and Loughnane — remain active [1] [2]. Over the band’s six-decade run several original members have left — by death, dismissal, or solo careers — including Terry Kath (died 1978), Peter Cetera (left 1985), and Danny Seraphine (departed later); current sources list three originals still touring with the group [2] [3] [4].
1. The original seven — who they were and when they formed
Chicago began as The Big Thing in February 1967; the original lineup consisted of Terry Kath (guitar/vocals), Robert Lamm (keyboards/vocals), Danny Seraphine (drums), Walter Parazaider (saxophone), Lee Loughnane (trumpet) and James Pankow (trombone), with Peter Cetera added on bass in December 1967 before the band shortened its name to Chicago [1] [4]. This is the roster most histories treat as “the original members” because Cetera joined in the band’s first year and features on the classic early albums [1].
2. Who among those originals have left — deaths and departures
Terry Kath, a founding guitarist and vocalist, died accidentally in 1978; that event effectively removed an original member and precipitated lineup changes [5]. Peter Cetera, the bassist and a major lead vocalist in the 1970s and early ’80s, left the band in 1985 to pursue a solo career [6]. Danny Seraphine, the band’s founding drummer, is also a former member — sources list him among those who no longer play with Chicago, though recent coverage emphasizes the three originals still performing are Lamm, Pankow and Loughnane [2] [3] [4]. Available sources do not provide a single line listing every exit date for each original member in this packet beyond the high‑level notes cited above; more detailed timelines appear in full member lists [1] [5].
3. Who remains from the founding era — “the three originals”
Multiple recent accounts identify three original members still active with Chicago: Robert Lamm, James Pankow and Lee Loughnane [2] [3]. Ultimate Classic Rock reported that as of early 2025 those three were the remaining originals as the band approached its 60th anniversary [2]. CultureSonar likewise names Lamm, Pankow and Loughnane as the surviving, active founders in its 2024 profile [3].
4. Other notable departures and personnel turnover
Beyond the seven “originals,” Chicago has seen many members, additions, touring substitutes and studio contributors leave over decades: percussionist Laudir de Oliveira and multi‑instrumentalist Marty Grebb departed after contributing in the 1970s and early ’80s [7] [6]; guitarists and sidemen such as Donnie Dacus (replaced Kath briefly) and later Chris Pinnick, Dawayne Bailey and others cycled through [5] [8]. More recent departures include longtime drummer Tris Imboden (announced leaving in January 2018) and bassist/vocalist Jeff Coffey (January 2018); Chicago replaced and rotated members regularly during touring [7] [9].
5. How sources differ and what to watch for
Contemporary reporting and band pages sometimes treat “original member” differently — some lists emphasize the six who formed in February 1967 and note Cetera as an early addition in December 1967, while others call the group’s “original seven” the canonical founders [1] [4]. Popular pieces highlight the three remaining founders as of 2024–2025 [2] [3], but full personnel timelines (Wikipedia/List of members and Wikiwand mirror) offer a more granular chronology of who left when [1] [5]. If you need exact exit dates for each founder beyond the high-level departures above, those timeline pages contain the detailed entries referenced here [1] [5].
6. Bottom line for the question “Which original members have left the band?”
From the set usually called the original members (Kath, Lamm, Seraphine, Parazaider, Loughnane, Pankow, Cetera): Terry Kath is deceased (died 1978), Peter Cetera left in 1985 to go solo, and Danny Seraphine is no longer in the band; several other early contributors and near‑originals (for example Laudir de Oliveira, Marty Grebb) also departed over time [5] [6] [4]. Current reporting emphasizes that Robert Lamm, James Pankow and Lee Loughnane remain active with Chicago [2] [3].
Limitations: this summary relies on the provided source excerpts; full member timelines and precise departure dates are available in the detailed membership lists and biographies cited [1] [5].