You're the Inspiration - 2006 Remaster

From the band's last album with Peter Cetera, this song celebrates someone who has finally found the person who inspires him.

David Foster, who became one of the biggest hitmakers of the '80s and '90s, wrote this song with Peter Cetera and also produced the album. In working with Foster, the band made some adjustments to their sound in the interest of achieving more hits. Three members of the band were primarily horn players, and they had little to do on most of the Foster/Cetera songs. The upside was huge, however, as the band found a new audience and was able to continue unabated for three more decades. Bill Champlin, who joined the band in 1981, told Songfacts how the horn section felt about this new direction: "They were unhappy with it because a lot of these tunes just didn't call for horns. So, they were very unhappy with it, because they always saw themselves as the star of Chicago. And, at one point, when they first came out, they probably were. But, suddenly, the listeners and the fans of Chicago all listened to the singers and the guitar playing."

Cetera recorded an updated version in 1996 with the group Az Yet. David Foster recorded a carousel style version on his 1991 Rechordings album. Cetera and AZ Yet also did a new version of "Hard to Say I'm Sorry," which was their first big hit with David Foster.