Show #66: Mayhem Symphony (Kansas)

April 24th, 2006

Since Kansas will be playing here in Madison on Friday at the Orpheum, I’ve given them the nod this week.

The genesis of Kansas goes back to 1970 in, unsurprisingly, Topeka, Kansas, where they started out as a garage/bar band. The group saw members come and go until a permanent line-up was found. (See below.) They gigged and were eventually discovered by Wally Gold, an associate of record producer Don Kirshner. Kirshner was impressed and he signed the band to his own label. They released their debut, Kansas, in 1974.

Their sound was a Midwestern mix of British symphonic progressive rock and the hard rock of the 70s. The dual heavy guitar attack of Kerry Livgren & Rich Williams blended with singer Steve Walsh’s keys and there was also the lead violin of Robby Steinhardt. While the intricate melodies and odd time signatures certainly put them in the same category as Genesis and Yes, Kansas had a very different flavor. I’ve always thought of them as being the Aaron Copeland of progressive rock. A song like “Cheyenne Anthem”, dealing with the Native American tribe, could never have been done by any of the prog heavyweights across The Pond, for instance.

The band gained a significant following in Pennsylvania and opened for many big-name acts in the state including The Kinks and Queen. They built upon their success by recording four albums in 1974-76 and touring. Their 1976 effort, Leftoverture, spawned the hit single “Carry On Wayward Son” which is a staple of classic rock radio today. If I remember correctly, this was the last song written for the album. They’d written and rehearsed the rest of the tracks when Livgren came up with it just as they were about to record. Now, while this concert was recorded about a month into the tour in support of Leftoverture, I personally don’t want to hear “Carry On Wayward Son” for at least another 10 years because I’m so sick of hearing it. The band has plenty of other songs and many are much better, in my humble opinion, than “Carry On Wayward Son”. Ergo, I’ve excluded it here.

The performance today is from Halloween 1976 and was recorded at the Syria Mosque in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Line-up:

Steve Walsh –Lead Vocals, Keyboards
Kerry Livgren – Guitars, Keyboards
Rich Williams –Lead Guitars
Dave Hope –Bass Guitars
Phil Ehart–Drums & Percussion

The concert was broadcast on the radio and this recording comes from a copy of the original Pre-FM radio station tapes. Granted, you’ll be hearing a 64kb mp3 so that’s probably a moot point here. The recording was remastered by a group of intrepid and dedicated progressive rock fans who have audio engineers amongst them under the banner of the Progressive Rock Remaster Project. They take recordings and clean them up by removing pops & hiss, adjusting the EQ, and the like. This was their 18th release and is entitled Mayhem Symphony. For more info on this particular release, go here.

Setlist:

Lonely Wind
What’s On My Mind
Miracles Out Of Nowhere
Guitar Solo
Child Of Innocence
Keyboard Improv/ Drum Solo/Magnum Opus
Song For America
Violin Solo
Cheyenne Anthem
Belexes

Download show

Kansas

Related posts:

1. Show #59: Pavement
2. Show #22: Dawn of the Piper
3. Show #38: From the Mouth of the Monster
4. I Fell In Love With Samantha George at the Symphony
5. Milwaukee Symphony on iTunes