In 1985, Kansas was no more. Steve Walsh and Robbie Steinhardt had left for philosophical reasons, and Kerry Livgren and Dave Hope had left and formed a new band. The Elefante experiment had been a disastrous failure, and the once mighty name of Kansas was left in ruins.
In the meantime, Walsh had formed a band called Streets. They had some limited success, but ultimately it just didn’t work out. So Walsh decided to reform Kansas.
He called up former Kansas bandmates Rich Williams and Phil Ehart to play guitar and drums in this new incarnation. For bass, he brought over Billy Greer, who had played bass with Walsh in Streets. And on lead guitar, Walsh was able to recruit the great Steve Morse, who Walsh had first met when Morse contributed some guitar work for Walsh’s 1980 solo album Schemer-Dreamer. They got together and recorded a new album,
Power, which was released in November 1986.
POWER (1986)
“Sometimes the answers you fear are there on the face in the mirror
Something the world needs to hear but no one is even listening”1. Silhouettes in Disguise (Morse, Walsh) 4:26
2. Power (Goodrum, Morse, Walsh) 4:25
3. All I Wanted (Morse, Walsh) 3:20
4. Secret Service (Aclin, Miller, Morse, Walsh) 4:42
5. We’re Not Alone Anymore (Morse, Walsh) 4:16
6. Musicatto (Morse, Walsh) 3:30
7. Taking in the View (Morse, Walsh) 3:06
8. Three Pretenders (Greer, Morse, Walsh) 3:50
9. Tomb 19 (Morse, Walsh) 3:46
10. Can’t Cry Anymore (Smith, Temple) 4:01
The first track, “Silhouettes in Disguise,” gives a good indication of the musical direction of this new version of Kansas. For the most part, it isn’t really progressive rock, in quite the same way that marked so many of the compositions of the first 3 albums, or the more focused pop prog of Leftoverture and Point of Know Return. Instead, this is a perhaps more accessible form of rock music, featuring hints and elements of prog rock, somewhat like the music of Toto (although it didn’t sound like Toto). Rock music with a flair. And this song definitely shows that, featuring blistering work by Morse. Different, but very nice.
“Power” begins very mellow, almost like a ballad, but the chorus takes into more palatable rock territory. The chorus has a pleasing hook and nice vocal work by Walsh. The bridge is cool as well. Lyrically, the song is basically a huge motivational speech, but a nicely done one. Another welcome addition.
The album’s third track, “All I Wanted,” sounds like a generic 80s ballad at first listen, but that can be deceptive. The lyrics are really nice, and although “lite rock” sounding, the music is quite nice, and the chord progressions are interesting. Kansas wasn’t previously known for doing love songs, but as those go, this one wasn’t bad. It was released as the album’s first single, and hit number 19 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, the last Kansas single to hit the Top 40.
Up next is “Secret Service.” This is a more mid-tempo rocker. Lyrically, I have no idea what the hell is going on here. This is the first song on this album that doesn’t quite do it for me. There is some really interesting stuff going on in the instrumental section, but unfortunately, there isn’t a better song wrapped around that section. Overall, it’s OK, I suppose.
And that song leads directly into the next track, “We’re Not Alone Anymore.” I would expect something with that title to be another ballad, but that isn’t the case here. This is a tasty piece of rock music, a nice uptempo rocker. For what it is, this song is really done well. Nothing to complain about here.
“Musicatto” is a rare Kansas instrumental track. This is a really cool piece, showcasing the talents of Morse on guitar. It also features elements of the older progressive Kansas sound. Definitely one of my favorite tracks from this album.
“Taking in the View” begins with gorgeous acoustic guitar and Walsh’s voice. The lyrics are mysterious and enigmatic, and the chord progressions are interesting and unusual. The bridge features children singing. All in all, a nice piece, somewhat of a pallet cleanser.
“Three Pretenders” is a medium tempo rock song. Nice instrumentation and arrangement, with an interesting instrumental section. Lyrically, I have no idea what this song is about. But it’s a fun song, well done.
Up next is “Tomb 19”, the lyrical precursor to “The Dark Eternal Night.” This is seemingly a strange topic for Kansas lyrics, but hey, the song isn’t bad. It’s not great, but it has some good features. Walsh sounds great on this, really getting to sing in his upper register. He has some cool keyboard work here as well.
The album closes with “Can’t Cry Anymore”, a keyboard-based song of lamenting lost love. Again, this is unusual lyrical territory for Kansas, but it isn’t badly done. Another band would have produced a generic power ballad with this material, but Kansas is here able to take it up a notch with a really nice instrumental section that sets it apart. It actually also features a key change, and the whole thing has a bit of the majestic feel that was a feature of older Kansas. A nice way to close out the album.
Overall,
Power was fairly well-received critically, but it certainly didn’t set any sales records. It is clear that the name “Kansas” didn’t carry the same weight that it once had; too much damage had been done to the brand. And while the argument could certainly be made that this incarnation is just as much “Kansas in name only” as the Elefante version due to the absence (in this case) of Kerry Livgren, this album is definitely a step up from that version of the band, so I will take it. And while it doesn’t feature as much of the trademark Kansas sound from days of old as many would like, this is a solid rock album with good songwriting and wonderful musicianship. Again, definitely an improvement in quality over the last two albums.
After the success of “All I Wanted”, “Power” was the album’s second single release. It only made it to # 84 on the Billboard Hot 100, and would be the last Kansas song to rank on that chart. “Can’t Cry Anymore” was also later released, but failed to chart at all.
Topic: The Kansas Discography Thread - THAT'S ALL, FOLKS (For Now) (Read 45226 times)