About The Song
“The Night Chicago Died” is a popular song by the British group Paper Lace, written by Peter Callander and Mitch Murray. The song was released in 1974, it quickly became one of Paper Lace’s most popular hits. The song reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for one week in 1974, and it also reached high positions in the UK (#3) and Canada (#2) charts.
The song is set in the Prohibition era of 1930s Chicago, during the reign of gangster Al Capone, and tells a story of violence and chaos, likely inspired by the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. The lyrics describe a heated confrontation between Capone’s gang and the police, resulting in numerous deaths. The song gained significant cultural recognition and remains Paper Lace’s most recognized work.
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 momma 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 momma 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
Till 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 momma 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 momma 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 upon the wall
Then the door burst open wide
And my daddy stepped inside
And he kissed my momma'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