James William Guercio - Other Accomplishments

Other Accomplishments

Guercio became interested in motion picture production, and he was given the opportunity to produce and direct the 1973 film Electra Glide in Blue; he also wrote and produced the film's musical soundtrack. The film starred Robert Blake and featured Peter Cetera and other members of Chicago in bit parts. Although the film was well received by critics and has subsequently become a cult classic, it saw only modest commercial success. Guercio produced one other Robert Blake film, Second-Hand Hearts, which was released in 1981. Guercio is an alumnus of DePaul University.

Guercio was the founder of Caribou Ranch, a popular recording studio in Colorado's Rocky Mountains. The first true radio hit recorded at Caribou was Joe Walsh's "Rocky Mountain Way". In addition to Chicago (starting with Chicago VI), the studio has been used by numerous other artists: Elton John (for his Caribou album as well as Captain Fantastic and Rock of the Westies), Billy Joel, Rod Stewart, Carole King, Stephen Stills, Waylon Jennings, Amy Grant, Supertramp, and The Beach Boys. Unfortunately, the studio complex was shut down and never used again after a March 1985 fire destroyed the control room and caused about $3 million in damage.

After the split-up with Chicago and the Caribou Ranch fire, Guercio became disenchanted with the recording industry and shifted gears, pursuing a successful career in large-scale cattle ranching, property development, and oil and gas exploration, drilling and production, particularly coalbed methane wells. In the late 1980s, Guercio purchased the Country Music Television (CMT) channel. In one of his more well-publicized transactions, in the early 1990s he sold CMT to media tycoon Ed Gaylord and Westinghouse Broadcasting.