Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Kansas
Label: Epic Records
Release: 1974
Rating: 4/5
While progressive rock in Britain was enjoying its golden age and commercial peak in the early 70s, and our western neighbors were churning out a pretty impressive pile of cult prog bands, the same could hardly be said for the traditional cradle of rock music, the USA, where their almost uniformly obscure prog bands were struggling in vain for a commercial break. Aside from its reverence for most of the British prog titans, the American audience was pretty deaf to its homegrown progressives, who had to keep scraping by on stale scraps and playing in all sorts of dives. This stepmotherly treatment persisted despite the fact that America had contributed quite a few important prog pioneers in the 60s, led by Hendrix, Vanilla Fudge and Iron Butterfly, and had eventually, thanks to Miles Davis, become the main hatchery of innovative jazz rock fusion bands, not to mention the immortal feats of the great Frank Zappa, for some even the godfather of progressive rock. Prog thus remained a traditionally British genre right up to the mid-70s, and nothing suggested that the biggest music market in the world would manage to produce a band that could stand toe to toe with its British peers in innovation, virtuosity and originality.
Into this rather unfriendly environment for homegrown innovators, a sextet from Topeka, a town dusted over with desert grit, burst in completely out of the blue, having taken its name from its home state in the Midwest. Until then, the state had been best known for assorted westerns and the film The Wizard of Oz (the name Kansas actually comes from the Native American Kansa tribe, who were nicknamed the “people of the south wind”; that later became the title of one of the Kansas classics, “People Of The South Wind”).
The lineup that recorded the self-titled debut was actually already their third, and over the years it has come to be the most beloved among their followers. It was a kind of blend of the earlier version of Kansas, led by guitar virtuoso Kerry Livgren (many years later, that second version of Kansas gave rise to Livgren’s current band Proto-Kaw), and the band White Clover, led by keyboardist and singer Steve Walsh. White Clover was closer to traditional Southern rock in the vein of Lynyrd Skynyrd than to progressive rock, but Walsh’s heritage still turned out to be a bonus. When it came to writing and creating symphonic arrangements, Livgren and Walsh traded off from the very start, since both were very good keyboardists. While Walsh gradually took over the reins as the main keyboardist, Livgren also got strong backing from rhythm guitarist Rich Williams. Livgren’s longtime comrades, drummer Phil Ehart and bassist Dave Hope, who formed one of the most dynamic rhythm sections in American rock at the time, were joined by Robbie Steinhardt, a master of the electric violin, who brought in the key element that made Kansas recognizable from a mile away and also incredibly British-sounding.
In their music, Kansas mixed various influences from the classic British symphonic progressives of the early 70s, led by Genesis and Emerson, Lake & Palmer, some blues rock and hard rock finesse (where the key influence is surely Deep Purple) and, to a lesser extent, some homegrown boogie influences. From the British greats they learned how to craft majestic symphonic arrangements, complexity and unusual time changes, and mixed them with some rock influences from back home. The Kansas sound also stood out because they knew how to use the violin in their music in a way few of their prog contemporaries pulled off, making it a fully equal, if not key, instrument in their sonic palette (they learned a thing or two here from King Crimson and Mahavishnu Orchestra, too). Livgren and Walsh immediately established themselves as the key writers of the music and lyrics. The difference between their styles of approaching music was clearly noticeable on “Kansas” throughout, though later the line got blurrier and blurrier. While Walsh was still noticeably under the “cowboy” influence of his previous band here and leaned toward shorter pieces, Livgren’s creations were noticeably more “British,” meaning more complex and longer, and his lyrics were dominated by a streak of mysticism and Eastern religious influences, quite uncharacteristic of the American mentality. Livgren had studied the latter with enthusiasm before his conversion to “born-again Christian.”
The self-titled debut already laid out their utterly recognizable style, built on a bold and vivid combination of Livgren’s razor-sharp guitar, the classical sounds of Steinhardt’s violin and Walsh’s majestic symphonic keyboard arrangements, not to mention his mighty and expressive vocals, which in terms of range were surely among the finest prog rock vocals of all time. A band that started out as an ambitious boogie/hard rock outfit and had to play in backwater cowboy dives for years was ready to conquer its home turf and, later, Europe. The early boogie influences can still be heard here and there, though they’re always in the background behind the juicy symphonic arrangements, energetic guitar riffing and majestic vocal harmonies.
The opening “Can I Tell You”, a group composition, nicely showcases their unique mix of symphonic prog, which radiates mainly from Steinhardt’s violin passages and the sound of the Hammond, with hard rock-blues, teasing vocal harmonies and punchy guitar riffs. The band members immediately presented themselves as exceptional virtuosos with plenty of witty solos on individual instruments. It’s a solid opener, but it only serves as a warm-up for the best stuff in the second half. “Bringing It Back” is a clever cover of the well-known blues musician J.J. Cale, with Kansas thoroughly airing out the structure with fiery solos on violin and keyboards. Walsh, who found himself in the atypical role of a blues singer here, pulled it off very well. They never gave up on this kind of hard rock/blues experiment later, and it’s a fine testament to their stylistic variety. “Lonely Wild” was the first of those heart-wrenching Walsh prog ballads that eventually became one of the band’s trademarks and reached their peak with the immortal “Dust In The Wind”. His mighty, emotion-charged vocals are further enriched by tasteful symphonic arrangements and vocal harmonies. Over its course, the song goes through quite a few shifts in atmosphere.
Next comes Livgren’s symphonic-pompous treat “Belexes”, which over time, and entirely deservedly, established itself as one of those Kansas classics that must not be missing from any of their shows. The composition is adorned with fiery instrumental passages and outstanding vocal harmonies (the latter are Steinhardt’s domain), the kind usually characteristic of Uriah Heep. It’s hard to single out individual virtuoso contributions, since everyone indulges in a few incredible solos, especially on guitar and violin. Three tracks follow where Livgren and Walsh joined their creative forces in the best possible way and created some of the prog highlights of their careers. The dramatic “Journey From Mariabronn” is one of those magnificent symphonic prog epics that you know from the very first listen are among the key milestones in the band’s history. Here all the influences of the British progressives show up in the best light, and Kansas prove themselves to be incredibly good students. They managed to fuse Genesis’ drama and epic scope with energetic guitar riffing, which later had a major influence on the development of prog metal too. Baroque keyboard and violin arrangements are once again in endless supply. And Walsh’s vocal performance couldn’t have conjured up the impressions of a dramatic journey any better. In my view, this was the first officially released work on which Kansas truly shone as serious challengers to their European teachers and as masters of innovation and a special prog direction that eventually led to the birth of arena rock.
The intro to the excellent and fairly cheerful “The Pilgrimage” also lets you marvel at some jazz rock fusion improvisation, which later gives way to a galloping rhythm, piano sounds and, as usual, a vocal performance lived in to the very end. Steinhardt and Livgren literally pass solos back and forth while a dynamic rhythm accompanies them in the background, occasionally veering into more boogie territory. If I had to look for a European influence here, it would undoubtedly be Wishbone Ash. With “Apercu”, the longest symphonic epic on the album and the first part of the two-part closing suite, Kansas challenge ELP for the title of the most pompous prog band of that year. Here Walsh once again shows himself to be a singer who switches range and vocal color at an incredible speed, and Steinhardt’s excellent harmonizing adds its own touch (he occasionally swaps in on lead vocals too). The latter again spoils the listener with his fiery violin passages, which would surely have pleased even my greatest master of that instrument, Jean-Luc Ponty. Time changes swap at the speed of light, and all of a sudden the composition tips over into the next epic. On the closing masterpiece, the ecologically conscious epic “Death Of Mother Nature Suite”, which continues directly from the previous composition, Kansas finally confirm that they were the best thing prog ever got out of America and that they more than earned their place on the prog rock Olympus. Here Kansas once again combine some of the best elements of prog rock in an incredibly effective mix and conjure up a special mystical atmosphere. Elements of classical music and plenty of energetic instrumental passages, which later influenced progressive metal, especially Livgren’s aggressive riffing, melt into one another in wonderful harmony. A perfect ten and one of the prog rock highlights of their career, which can be compared almost on equal terms with the unrivaled “Magnum Opus” (Leftoverture, 1976).
“Kansas” was an excellent debut that proved to all the doubters that Yankees, too, can make superb progressive rock, provided the right people find each other and have the right visions, as Messrs. Livgren and Walsh did in this case. Alongside the classics “Song For America” (1975), “Leftoverture” and “Point Of Know Return” (1977), “Kansas” definitely ranks among the four best albums of their career. Sadly, it often gets forgotten when people list their best releases, partly because it wasn’t as commercially successful as its successors. Even though the band hit its prog peak at the turn of the 70s with the release of “Leftoverture”, “Kansas” remains an overlooked masterpiece and one of the best prog debuts, one that managed to present an ambitious and innovative band right away, the kind America hadn’t yet managed to produce, let alone for the long haul. The album cover was at least as iconic as the content, depicting the legendary American abolitionist John Brown, shown calling on slaves to rise up against their oppressors (he later appeared on the covers of various Kansas compilations several more times). This inspiring historical figure, who once raised slaves to their feet and became one of the band’s trademarks, could also serve as a fine comparison to the American prog rock scene of the day, which Kansas, as the most successful American prog band, gradually lifted out of total obscurity. The American scene was also brought closer to Europe with the help of more or less cult bands like Dixie Dregs, Starcastle, Happy The Man and, in the end, (early) Styx (though the prog factor of the latter has been the subject of heated debate for ages). It took many years before any American band sounded as British and as polished as Kansas did from the very start. Just ask their diligent students, among whom Dream Theater and Spock’s Beard stand out.
Lineup
Steve Walsh – vocals, keyboards
Kerry Livgren – guitar, acoustic guitar, synthesizer
Robbie Steinhardt – violin, vocals
Rich Williams – rhythm guitar
Dave Hope – bass guitar
Phil Ehart – drums
Production
Wally Gold
Track list
1. Can I tell you (3:31)
2. Bringing it back (3:33)
3. Lonely wind (4:15)
4. Belexes (4:22)
5. Journey from Mariabronn (7:55)
6. The Pilgrimage (3:42)
7. Apercu (9:43)
8. Death of Mother Nature suite (7:43)
Album length: 44:44
