Kansas

[ProfessorPeart]

I was always a loose fan of Kansas. I only had the Best of Kansas for years and then I found this set which cost me $55 at the time I bought it. Pretty good deal.


   

[Orbert]

Yeah, I suppose you're right about it being folk influenced.  For me, it rocks so much that calling it folk music is a bit of a stretch, but whatever.

No one's saying it's folk music.  Kansas music, like any prog, is a blend of many influences, and folk is just one of them, but to me it's pretty clear.

[pg1067]

I guess we just have different opinions of what makes for folk music. For me, it's more like The Devil Went Down to Georgia, or Chicken in the Bread Pan.

I would put "Down the Road" from Song for America in exactly the same genre as "The Devil Went Down to Georgia".  I don't know what that genre is, but the folk influence in both songs seem pretty obvious to me.  Hard rocking, and he's playing a fiddle, not a violin.

What's the difference between a fiddle and a violin?

Answer #1:  Nothing but the type of music that is played.

Answer #2:  A violin ain't never had beer spilled on it.

[Orbert]

That's my point.  Because of how he's playing it, Steinhardt's playing a fiddle on "Down the Road", not a violin.  Same physicial instrument, different handles.

[Podaar]

No one's saying it's folk music.

You might not be, but I don't know how to interpret Lowdz post in any other way, which is what I was responding to.

I'm not the biggest Kansas fan - I hate folk music, like nails down a blackboard to me, but I enjoyed Prelude very much, and Power is a great album.

Last word coming in, 3, 2, 1...

[TAC]

I was always a loose fan of Kansas. I only had the Best of Kansas for years and then I found this set which cost me $55 at the time I bought it. Pretty good deal.


   

You think if I send back the last three albums of the set, they could charge me like $40? 

[devieira73]

Audio Visions and Vinyl Confessions have a lot of critcism, but I think they are good albums. Although VC is a bit too much comercial, both are worth the Kansas name. Drastic Messures and the Steve Morse albums to me are the only albums that don't fit at all in their discography.
The new song is better than the singles from Prelude, so I'm hoping the new album is even better than the last!

[T-ski]

new song!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMOX5rSFb18

[ytserush]

There was a remaster of that Greatest hits with 4 songs added.  This dummy bought both.  LOL

I'm proof you are not the only dummy.

I'd have ditched the original but I think it sounds better and the remaster has the extra songs.

[ytserush]

I've got a box set that cool.  Has an extra song "Wheels" that I saw them play live.  Never was on an album.

Only Kansas box set I have is the Sail On Collection with the DVD.

[ytserush]

I guess we just have different opinions of what makes for folk music. For me, it's more like The Devil Went Down to Georgia, or Chicken in the Bread Pan.

I would put "Down the Road" from Song for America in exactly the same genre as "The Devil Went Down to Georgia".  I don't know what that genre is, but the folk influence in both songs seem pretty obvious to me.  Hard rocking, and he's playing a fiddle, not a violin.

What's the difference between a fiddle and a violin?

Answer #1:  Nothing but the type of music that is played.

Answer #2:  A violin ain't never had beer spilled on it.

Answer #3:  Depends on who is playing the violin.

[ytserush]

Audio Visions and Vinyl Confessions have a lot of critcism, but I think they are good albums. Although VC is a bit too much comercial, both are worth the Kansas name. Drastic Messures and the Steve Morse albums to me are the only albums that don't fit at all in their discography.
The new song is better than the singles from Prelude, so I'm hoping the new album is even better than the last!

I'm a fan of both the the Elefante years and the Morse years.

[devieira73]

Audio Visions and Vinyl Confessions have a lot of critcism, but I think they are good albums. Although VC is a bit too much comercial, both are worth the Kansas name. Drastic Messures and the Steve Morse albums to me are the only albums that don't fit at all in their discography.
The new song is better than the singles from Prelude, so I'm hoping the new album is even better than the last!

I'm a fan of both the the Elefante years and the Morse years.

Actually I'm a big fan of Vinyl Confessions, but I don't like almost all of Drastic Measures (Fight fire with fire I think it's cool). Of course, the album title is totally honest with what happened with their music  . I like the most part of Power and 3, 4 songs from Spirits... What bugs me most from the Steve Morse era is that Dixie Dregs had a lot of similarities musically with the classic Kansas and when they teamed up, they did something more like a regular 80's arena rock, which disappointed me a lot.

[KevShmev]

new song!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMOX5rSFb18

Not a bad song at all. The last album didn't really stick with me outside of a few songs, but we'll see about this one. 

[Fritzinger]

Cool song! I'd like to repeat what I said about the trailer: This band rocks! They don't sound old or slow, they sound like they're really having fun. Sure, they might not compose 10 minute prog masterpieces all the time, but it's a complex hard rock song with cool hooks and the typical Kansas violin (fiddle? haha).

[ytserush]

Audio Visions and Vinyl Confessions have a lot of critcism, but I think they are good albums. Although VC is a bit too much comercial, both are worth the Kansas name. Drastic Messures and the Steve Morse albums to me are the only albums that don't fit at all in their discography.
The new song is better than the singles from Prelude, so I'm hoping the new album is even better than the last!

I'm a fan of both the the Elefante years and the Morse years.

Actually I'm a big fan of Vinyl Confessions, but I don't like almost all of Drastic Measures (Fight fire with fire I think it's cool). Of course, the album title is totally honest with what happened with their music  . I like the most part of Power and 3, 4 songs from Spirits... What bugs me most from the Steve Morse era is that Dixie Dregs had a lot of similarities musically with the classic Kansas and when they teamed up, they did something more like a regular 80's arena rock, which disappointed me a lot.

I think the style of those two albums were pressured by record company interests. I love Steve's work but I don't think he was brought in to deliver that kind of music in that era (I much as we would have loved it.) I'm not familiar what went down after In The Spirit of Things. I know there was a Kansas hiatus at that point but I don't recall any of the details of that.

[MinistroRaven]

New video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0tEhzcMBxE

 

[MinistroRaven]

KANSAS – launch video for ‘Jets Overhead’; third single from ‘The Absence Of Presence’
KANSAS, America’s legendary progressive rock band, has released another new song and music video for their song “Jets Overhead” taken from the band’s highly anticipated new studio album “The Absence of Presence” out June 26, 2020 through Inside Out Music. Fans can listen and watch the music video at this link: https://bit.ly/2BswEXn

“Jets Overhead” has become one of my favorite songs on the album", says KANSAS Guitarist Zak Rizvi, who wrote the music for the song. "Tom Brislin wrote some fantastic lyrics, David Ragsdale's violin solo is absolutely smoking, and Ronnie Platt nailed the vocals."

“Jets Overhead” follows the release of “Memories Down the Line”, which was released on May 15. Fans can stream the song and watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0tEhzcMBxE

In April they released the song and music video for “Throwing Mountains”, which can be seen here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMOX5rSFb18.

The band gave fans a sneak preview of what they can expect to hear on the album with this sampler video: https://bit.ly/KSTAOPprev.
.
“We are really excited for our fans to be able to get a taste of what is to come from ‘The Absence of Presence,’” says KANSAS lead vocalist Ronnie Platt. “I think people will really be surprised by the album. ‘The Absence of Presence’ shows the band firing on all cylinders.”

[HOF]

I don’t own any Kansas music (for reasons I can’t entirely explain other than I guess their radio stuff never really hooked me). These are all really cheap on Amazon right now. I’m thinking I should at least pick up the one that has Carry on Wayward Son, right?

[Fritzinger]

I don’t own any Kansas music (for reasons I can’t entirely explain other than I guess their radio stuff never really hooked me). These are all really cheap on Amazon right now. I’m thinking I should at least pick up the one that has Carry on Wayward Son, right?

Leftoverture (the one that has Carry On) is one of their best albums. I'd say the other two Kansas-albums you should know are Point Of Know Return and Song For America. I think you might be surprised by the band if you only know their hits 

[Max Kuehnau]

I don’t own any Kansas music (for reasons I can’t entirely explain other than I guess their radio stuff never really hooked me). These are all really cheap on Amazon right now. I’m thinking I should at least pick up the one that has Carry on Wayward Son, right?

Leftoverture (the one that has Carry On) is one of their best albums. I'd say the other two Kansas-albums you should know are Point Of Know Return and Song For America. I think you might be surprised by the band if you only know their hits 

you should add in Two For The Show as well, that's their first live album. Get the 2CD version if you can, 148 minutes of goodness.

[Fritzinger]

I don’t own any Kansas music (for reasons I can’t entirely explain other than I guess their radio stuff never really hooked me). These are all really cheap on Amazon right now. I’m thinking I should at least pick up the one that has Carry on Wayward Son, right?

Leftoverture (the one that has Carry On) is one of their best albums. I'd say the other two Kansas-albums you should know are Point Of Know Return and Song For America. I think you might be surprised by the band if you only know their hits 

you should add in Two For The Show as well, that's their first live album. Get the 2CD version if you can, 148 minutes of goodness.

I always forget about live albums, damn. But of course you're right, Two For The Show is majestic.

[Orbert]

I second all of that.  Leftoverture for the album where it all came together, as far as I'm concerned; Point of Know Return for what they did next, which is still awesome and even takes a few new chances; and Song for America for the earlier sound, slightly more proggy in some ways but also showing other sides of the band that got left behind a bit.  Same lineup, same six guys.  And the live album Two for the Show is also great, but I would wait until you're more familiar with the studio versions, which IMO are generally superior.  Their music can be intricate and layered, and we lose some of that on the live album.  It's made up for with the energy of live performance, and it's a great album (especially the newer 2-CD version, as mentioned), but I don't go back to it very often.  I consider it a "fans only" kind of release, and I generally love a good live album.

[KevShmev]

I don’t own any Kansas music (for reasons I can’t entirely explain other than I guess their radio stuff never really hooked me). These are all really cheap on Amazon right now. I’m thinking I should at least pick up the one that has Carry on Wayward Son, right?

Absolutely.  Leftoverture is a masterpiece in every sense of the word.  If you are like me, your jaw will be on the floor the first time you hear Miracles out of Nowhere and Cheyenne Anthem.

[The Letter M]

According to Inside-out, the release of The Absence Of Presence has been pushed back to July 17th.

-Marc.

[KevShmev]

HOF, how is the Kansas journey going? 

[SoundscapeMN]

Pete Pardo of Sea of Tranquility chose his 5 favorite Kansas *Deep Cuts*

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpLjZRRVnjw

[Orbert]

Nice CD collection.

[KevShmev]

He starts off by listing two songs as his first pick. 

That aside, his videos are usually a good watch.  He did "10 favorite songs" videos for a shit ton of bands a while back. 

[HOF]

HOF, how is the Kansas journey going? 

So I did pick up Leftoverture and Point of Know Return. I’m listening to Leftoverture again now, and have given it several good listens but haven’t played POKR more than once (I’ve bought way to much new stuff lately and have had to divide my listening time quite a bit).

In general, I like but don’t love it yet. I find myself disagreeing with the vocal melodies (or them disagreeing with me) for whatever reason. I do like Steve Walsh’s voice (and he does sound like one of my favorite singers, Ted Leonard), but for some reason I don’t love the melodies if that makes sense. I also don’t totally dig the violin for some reason. Other prog bands I like feature it (Big Big Train, PFM, King Crimson), so it’s something about the style/melody rather than the instrument itself. Can’t quite describe why.

I do think Cheyenne Anthem and Magnum Opus make the album (along with Carry On Weyward Son). Those are the two I find myself really liking.

One thing that surprised me a bit was how many places reminded me of Spock’s Bears/Neal Morse (on both albums). I don’t really recall Kansas being cited as a big influence for Neal, although I know Kerry Livgren did play on Testimony so it makes sense.

[KevShmev]

HOF, how is the Kansas journey going? 

So I did pick up Leftoverture and Point of Know Return. I’m listening to Leftoverture again now, and have given it several good listens but haven’t played POKR more than once (I’ve bought way to much new stuff lately and have had to divide my listening time quite a bit).

In general, I like but don’t love it yet. I find myself disagreeing with the vocal melodies (or them disagreeing with me) for whatever reason. I do like Steve Walsh’s voice (and he does sound like one of my favorite singers, Ted Leonard), but for some reason I don’t love the melodies if that makes sense. I also don’t totally dig the violin for some reason. Other prog bands I like feature it (Big Big Train, PFM, King Crimson), so it’s something about the style/melody rather than the instrument itself. Can’t quite describe why.

I do think Cheyenne Anthem and Magnum Opus make the album (along with Carry On Weyward Son). Those are the two I find myself really liking.

One thing that surprised me a bit was how many places reminded me of Spock’s Bears/Neal Morse (on both albums). I don’t really recall Kansas being cited as a big influence for Neal, although I know Kerry Livgren did play on Testimony so it makes sense.

Neal rarely covers Kansas (I suspect because Steve Walsh's vocal parts have to be difficult to cover, and while Neal is a really good singer, he doesn't really have the pipes to belt out the parts that need to be to do a Kansas song full justice...just my theory), but I believe he has referred to them before as being a band of which he is a big fan.

Back to the albums, if you don't dig the violin, then Kansas will be a difficult hill to climb. 

Interesting that the melodies aren't grabbing you since during my big Kansas discovery phase, there were times when I literally couldn't believe how awesome the melodies were.  Funny how we can hear things differently.

[LudwigVan]

There’s also that ‘spiritual’ side of things that Neal Morse apparently shares with Kerry Livgren.

I second Kev’s thoughts on the melodies. They’re pretty unique, as are the vocal harmonies. Steinhardt’s down to earth gruffness combined with Walsh’s soaring vocals can be magical.

Speaking of Kansas influences, I’m pretty sure that bits of The Wall found its way into Scenes From A Memory.

[HOF]

I’m not giving up on it just yet. As I said, I do like it and certainly don’t dislike it. Just having a hard time connecting with some of it. But there’s enough interesting stuff there that I’m glad I have it and it has a chance to grow on me in the future. It took a long time for 70s Yes to really connect with me. I think I had Relayer for about a year before it really hit me. All the ingredients are there for something I *should* like I think. The Spock’s Beard similarities are intriguing if nothing else. Will try to give Point of Know Return a closer listen soon.

I guess with the Neal Morse thing I’m less surprised that Kansas was an influence than I am that I never really connected them with Kansas as similar bands stylistically. People would say “oh, Spock’s is a modern Yes or Genesis,” and the Gentle Giant comparisons were also frequent. But it feels like Kansas  may have been more of the template than those bands even.

[LudwigVan]

I guess with the Neap Morse thing I’m less surprised that Kansas was an influence than I am that I never really connected them with Kansas as similar bands stylistically. People would say “oh, Spock’s is a modern Yes or Genesis,” and the Gentle Giant comparisons were also frequent. But it feels like Kansas  may have been more of the template than those bands even.

Absolutely. The Yes/Genesis/GG influences are overt and hard to miss, whereas the Kansas connection is more subtle. Melodically, harmonically and structurally, the Kansas template is there.

I mentioned The Wall, but I truly believe that Leftoverture as a whole was a template (along with Operation Mindcrime by Queensryche) for DT’s Scenes From a Memory.

[KevShmev]

Even though his voice was a lot deeper, I was always surprised at how much Steinhardt could sound like Walsh at times. There were many instances where I initially thought it was one singing and then it turned out to be the other guy. I think it was back when I assumed Steve Walsh did it all (before I really dug into the details of that kind of stuff), and they sounded similar enough at times to where it threw me off a bit.