{"id":660,"date":"2002-04-04T02:08:00","date_gmt":"2002-04-04T02:08:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/acloserlookmedia.com\/?p=660"},"modified":"2024-03-27T02:09:03","modified_gmt":"2024-03-27T02:09:03","slug":"heroes-of-fm-radios-glory-days-go-casino","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/acloserlookmedia.com\/?p=660","title":{"rendered":"Heroes of FM radio\u2019s glory days go casino"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I was too young to experience the enormity of stadium shows in the \u201970s. It was during this time that the lads of Kansas<\/strong> experienced monstrous exposure with two classic-rock radio staples, \u201cDust in the Wind\u201d and \u201cCarry On Wayward Son.\u201d However, despite its classic-rock reputation, Kansas was not a classic-rock act, but rather a progressive-leaning ensemble with a penchant for the lengthy opus and a multitude of stringed instruments, particularly the violin. Anyone attending the band\u2019s concerts would soon realize the breadth of musical knowledge found within.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although Kansas was signed to Kirshner, promoter\/mogul Don Kirshner\u2019s custom label through Epic, its first couple of albums went relatively unnoticed. It wasn\u2019t until such albums as Leftoverture<\/em> and the multi-platinum Point of Know Return<\/em> that the band hit its stride. From clubs to stadiums, arenas to ballrooms, Kansas has consistently delivered quality music and stellar musicianship above everything else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A recent Saturday show at Caesar\u2019s Tahoe featured all original members sans original bassist, Dave Hope\u2014replaced by the able Billy Greer<\/strong>\u2014and the welcome return of original guitarist\/songwriter Kerry Livgren<\/strong>. From the night\u2019s opener, \u201cBelexes,\u201d an obscure track from the band\u2019s self-titled 1974 debut, to the closing etude of \u201cThe Pinnacle\u201d from Masque<\/em>, the night\u2019s set list couldn\u2019t have been any more spectacular. Singer Steve Walsh<\/strong> held fast at the keyboard and remained reserved while violinist\/singer Robby Steinhardt<\/strong> commandeered the showroom stage with reckless aplomb. Phil Ehart<\/strong> played tracks like \u201cThe Wall\u201d with considerable taste and reverence for the original versions, while bassist Greer provided a solid foundation and spot-on background vocals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The band\u2019s humble beginnings mirrored that of an early Peter Gabriel-fronted Genesis or Tales of Topographic Oceans<\/em>-era Yes, where 10-minute-plus songs were commonplace. Like Yes, this show could\u2019ve been Kansas\u2019 version of The Masterworks<\/em> tour, where Yes played only its most daring, over-the-top, extended songs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The show, one of a handful of U.S. dates listed on the band\u2019s Web site, was an anomaly in its tour schedule. Were it not for a billboard sign and weekend billing, Kansas might have been hard-pressed to fill the 1,500-capacity showroom. As it stood, the band played to a full house of boomer-aged fans hell bent on hearing the night\u2019s closers, the hits. Perhaps the majority of the crowd didn\u2019t appreciate the subtleties of the \u201cIcarus\u201d suite as much as I did. After all, progressive music isn\u2019t setting the retail world on fire these days. Perhaps just seeing some living legends produce their vintage, unabridged versions didn\u2019t make the grade. Nevertheless, I had a splendid evening and was able to experience, for a brief moment, a slice of their past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(SN&R)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I was too young to experience the enormity of stadium shows in the \u201970s. It was during this time that the lads of Kansas experienced monstrous exposure with two classic-rock radio staples, \u201cDust in the Wind\u201d and \u201cCarry On Wayward Son.\u201d However, despite its classic-rock reputation, Kansas was not a classic-rock act, but rather a progressive-leaning ensemble […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-660","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-media"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/acloserlookmedia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/660","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/acloserlookmedia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/acloserlookmedia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acloserlookmedia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acloserlookmedia.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=660"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/acloserlookmedia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/660\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":661,"href":"https:\/\/acloserlookmedia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/660\/revisions\/661"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/acloserlookmedia.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=660"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acloserlookmedia.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=660"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acloserlookmedia.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=660"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}