14. Finally Next Year – The Ides of March

The Ides of March began in Berwyn, Illinois (a western suburb of Chicago) on October 16th, 1964 as “The Shon-Dels.” After changing their name in 1966 to the Ides of March (a reference to William Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar”), the band released their single “You Wouldn’t Listen.” The song reached #7 in Chicago and #42 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the spring of 1966. The Ides of March went on an extended hiatus between 1973 and 1990 during which member Jim Peterik founded the famous 80’s band Survivor and co-wrote all of their platinum hits, such as “Eye of the Tiger,” “The Search is Over,” “High on You,” and “I Can’t Hold Back.” In 1998 the newly re-formed Ides of March wrote and released “Finally Next Year,” a song about the Cubs and their 1998 season. During their 1998 season, the Cubs and the Giants made history, as they tied for the Wild Card and were forced to play a one- game playoff for the first time in baseball (which the Cubs won) to decide the Wild Card recipient. The game was played at Wrigley Field on September 28th, 1998.

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