Kansas

A Topeka band that fused progressive rock, violin and Midwestern hard rock into "Carry On Wayward Son" and "Dust in the Wind", and sold millions of records in the late 1970s.

Origin: Topeka, Kansas
Years active: 1973-1984, 1985-present
Genres: progressive rock, art rock, hard rock, arena rock
Labels: Kirshner, Epic, MCA, Magna Carta, Inside Out Music

Topeka and the road to a record deal

Kansas grew out of several Topeka bands of the late 1960s and early 1970s: The Reasons Why, Saratoga, a first Kansas, a second Kansas that played mostly Kerry Livgren's original material with a saxophone, and White Clover. The second Kansas later became known as Proto-Kaw, a name taken from the 2002 release of its early recordings. In 1970 the first Kansas merged with members of White Clover, including the bassist Dave Hope and the drummer Phil Ehart, and in early 1973 Livgren joined them. Wally Gold, an assistant to the producer and publisher Don Kirshner, saw the group in March 1973 in Ellinwood, Kansas, which led to a deal with Kirshner's label.

The classic line-up, from 1973 to 1981, was Livgren on guitars and keyboards, Hope on bass, Ehart on drums, Robby Steinhardt on violin and vocals, Steve Walsh on vocals and keyboards, and Rich Williams on guitars. Their influences included Yes and Genesis. Livgren has said critics told them they should not sound like that if they came from Kansas.

The records

The debut, Kansas, was recorded in September and December 1973 at the Record Plant in New York and released on March 8, 1974, promoted with the line "Kansas is Koming". Song for America followed in February 1975, then Masque in the fall of 1975, the first they made with the producer Jeff Glixman alone. Leftoverture, released on October 21, 1976, reached number five in the United States and is certified four times platinum by one Wikipedia page and five times by another. Point of Know Return, in October 1977, reached number four, and the live Two for the Show came out in October 1978.

The 1979 album Monolith was produced by the band themselves. Livgren moved from an interest in Eastern ideas and The Urantia Book to evangelical Christianity around 1979 or 1980, depending on the source, and Christian themes entered the lyrics. Audio-Visions followed in 1980. Walsh left in October 1981 and John Elefante joined in early 1982 for Vinyl Confessions; Steinhardt left before Drastic Measures in 1983, and Livgren and Hope left after a New Year's Eve show that December. The band was inactive for a short time and reformed in 1985 around Ehart, Williams and Walsh, with Billy Greer on bass and Steve Morse of the Dixie Dregs on guitar.

Reunions and later years

Later records include Power (1986), In the Spirit of Things (1988), Freaks of Nature (1995), Always Never the Same (1998), Somewhere to Elsewhere (2000, with the original members and every song by Livgren), The Prelude Implicit (2016) and The Absence of Presence (2020). Steinhardt returned in 1997 and left again in 2006. Walsh retired in July 2014 and Ronnie Platt took over the vocals. Steinhardt died on July 17, 2021, aged 71.

Greer played his last show in September 2024 after thirty-nine years. In February 2024 Ehart had a heart attack and stepped back from live performance. The band played a fiftieth anniversary tour in 2023 and was inducted on the Rock Walk of Fame in 1995. Livgren's side projects include AD (with Hope and others), and the band members' Proto-Kaw and Native Window projects, and the 2015 documentary Miracles Out of Nowhere tells the story of the group.

On stage and in the culture

Kansas have played an enormous number of shows, with roughly 2,600 logged setlists. They opened for Yes on the Masterworks tour in the summer of 2000, and toured for the USO in 1984, 1985 and 1986. Live albums include Two for the Show (1978), Live at the Whisky (1992), Device-Voice-Drum (2002) and There's Know Place Like Home (2009), recorded with an orchestra in Topeka.

"Carry On Wayward Son" is widely associated with the television series Supernatural, and "Point of Know Return" was used in The Suicide Squad. Critical opinion has stayed divided: the Rolling Stone Album Guide and Robert Christgau were cool on the records, while AllMusic and many fans are warmer.

Members

Kerry Livgren guitars, keyboards, synthesizers (1973-1983)
Steve Walsh vocals, keyboards (1973-1981, 1985-2014)
Robby Steinhardt vocals, violin, viola, cello (1973-1982, 1997-2006)
Rich Williams guitars (1973-present)
Dave Hope bass (1973-1983)
Phil Ehart drums, percussion (1973-present)

Records

Kansas 1974 · Kirshner
The debut, made in New York with a Kirshner producer, with a suite on mother nature and a J.J. Cale cover.
Masque 1975 · Kirshner
The third album, made in a Louisiana studio in the bayous, with "Icarus" and "Child of Innocence".
Leftoverture 1976 · Kirshner
The breakthrough, number five in the United States, which opens with "Carry On Wayward Son".
Point of Know Return 1977 · Kirshner
The 1977 follow-up, much of it recorded in Nashville after equipment failure, and the home of "Dust in the Wind".

Songs

Lonely Wind Kansas · 1974
A Steve Walsh ballad from the first album, released as a single in 1975 and a live hit four years later.
Child of Innocence Masque · 1975
A Livgren song from Masque, sung by Walsh and Steinhardt.
Death of Mother Nature Suite Kansas · 1974
Livgren's seven-minute suite that closes the first album, sung by Steinhardt.
Cheyenne Anthem Leftoverture · 1976
The closer of Leftoverture, written by Livgren and sung with children's voices.
Icarus (Borne on Wings of Steel) Masque · 1975
A retelling of the Icarus myth from Masque, one of the songs the band has played most.
Dust in the Wind Point of Know Return · 1977
Kerry Livgren's fingerpicked song about mortality, the band's biggest hit and a staple of film and television.

Yes, Styx, Starcastle

Where to go next

Official

Kansas Tour dates, history and news.

Reference

Kansas (band) on Wikipedia The deepest overview of line-ups and discography.
List of Kansas band members A year-by-year member timeline.
Proto-Kaw The band's second incarnation and prehistory.
Kerry Livgren on Wikipedia The principal writer's biography.

Writing and criticism

Ultimate Classic Rock: Top 10 Kansas Songs A short critical take on the key songs.

Interviews

In The Studio: Kansas interviews A multi-member interview page.

Live performance archives

setlist.fm: Kansas About 2,600 setlists.

Sources

Kansas (band), Wikipedia
List of Kansas band members, Wikipedia
Proto-Kaw, Wikipedia
Kerry Livgren, Wikipedia
Kansas (Kansas album), Wikipedia
Leftoverture, Wikipedia
Point of Know Return, Wikipedia
Dust in the Wind, Wikipedia