Saw them in 1979 on their Monolith tour. What an epic concert. Saw them again on their 'Somewhere to Elsewhere' tour but it was pretty evident Steve's voice would never be the same again.
Kansas the Band website still shows them touring with the only member change being Joe Denizon in place of Ragsdale on violin. I saw this version (with Ragsdale) in Savannah just prior to Covid and they sounded almost as good as the original members. I attended the 'No Place Like Home' concert in Topeka and Steve Walsh's voice wasn't as strong as his younger years, but the harmonies and music were as tight as ever. Ronnie Platt has the range and power of Walsh in his younger years, but I don't think his voice has the same quality on the recordings. As Freddie Mercury and Brian May said, Kansas is the best live band they've seen because they can play complex music as good live as in the studio. They should definitely be in RHOF.
John Elefante was a great replacement although the music they did was average at best IMO for those 2 albums which were heavily Christian influenced with both Kerry and John as Christians. John's solo efforts have been stellar though especially his album 'Revolution of Mind' with members of Kansas appearing on it. Jerome Mazza would have been a perfect replacement for Steve instead of Ronnie I think also. If you didn't know it you'd think it was Steve singing.
Oh, you're one of those "there's no AC/DC without Bon Scott" types. Blindly loyal to the past. I've been a fan from the start and of course Kansas are best with Steve, he's one of the best vocalists ever....but I'd rather have any Kansas that none at all. Have you heard The Prelude Implicit and The Absence of Presence? Both very worthy albums. Platt does a fine job and they still sound like Kansas.....even without Livgren as well. I will admit, Elefante sucked, which was likely your point.😉
@@stevemurrell6167 I never said John Elefante sucked. If that was the case I would never had mentioned his album 'Revolution of Mind' and his solo output the last being 'The Amazing Grace' from 2022. Have you listened to Revolution of Mind? And I'm not one of those "without" types either. If that was the case I would have stopped listening to Kansas long ago. I was giving my opinion about certain elements of Kansas. And I do have their 2 most recent albums. I've listened to Kansas since their first album and have seen Steve early in his career and later in his career. Great Band but a great band when all the original members were together and contributing to their sound. Their best albums were with the original six members. Not taking away from other incarnations when members left but they were at their best with the original six.
@@gkirms I didn't say you said anything about Elefante so obviously my concluding assumption was incorrect.....but I think he sucked. I do agree with you that their best albums involve the original six.
@@stevemurrell6167 Thank you but if think Elefante sucks you really should listen to what I suggested. Such a great album and with some Kansas alumni on it making it sound like classic Kansas. Absolutely nothing like the 2 albums he did in the 80's with them. You'll be pleasantly surprised.
I never knew that they were gone. And yes, you did skip 'Song for America'. Also, a brief introduction to Proto-Kaw would have been helpful. You segue-wayed into that like it was part of the Kansas line up. Mentions of Steve Walsh's other 3 solo albums would have been nice especially his last release 'Black Butterfly'. Mention of Kerry's last solo album also, Q.A.R.
Many if Kerrys songs had religious undertones, it didn't start with "Hold On". And in case you didn't know "Portrait He Knew was about Albert Einstein and not Jesus, as some people believed. "Closet Chronicles" was about Howard Hughs, in case anyone wanted to know.
The version with Original 6 was Kansas 3, that was when Kerry left Kansas 2 and joined the reunited White Clover when Phil came back from England. Robby Steinhardt did not join White Clover until this time, along with Walsh, prrior to that it was only Ehart, Williams and Hope and they spent some time in New Orleans before Phil left for England. Years later Kerry put the early version of Kansas back together for a couple albums and called it Proto-Kaw, with members of Kansas 1 and 2.
One addition, don't forget the 2009 release of "Native Window," which was KANSAS minus Walsh. This is every bit as much a KANSAS album as Proto-Kaw. Also, keep an eye on some of the Jon Elefante and Kerry Livgren solo material, as they bring in members of KANSAS for several songs. If you have never heard Jon Elefante's "This Is How The Story Goes (feat. Rich Williams & David Ragsdale of Kansas)," you have truly missed out on one of the greatest pieces of KANSAS material without the actual KANSAS name attached to it. Clocking in at 11 minutes, this is one great piece of music. Also, nab Robbie Steinhart's only solo album, "Not in Kansas Anymore." Sure, it's a bit late in the game, released shortly before he passed, but it's a worthy addition to the KANSAS library.
Good research work. Thank you. I work with Joe Deninzon, and want to help you pronounce his name better for next time. First syllable is "Den" like the Den in a house. Second syllable is "In" like the word between "Den" and "a house." and the third syllable is pronounced "Zone." like "Welcome to the Denin-Zone." The band that he's fronted all these years is pronounced like "Stratosphere-eee-us" Thanks again.
Infelizmente sou ruim em inglês, gostaria de saber tudo o que dizem, vejio que poderia aproveitar melhor o canal. Amo música. A todos viajantes do universo.
Whoever is using the "Kansas" name is selling a lie. That group ceased being that group at some point long ago, I'm not sure when. Whatever is out there after that is only a tribute band.
2 original members and Billy Greer with nearly 40 years in, and David Ragsdale with nearly 30 years in before he retired recently, is not a Tribute Band. Foreigner with no original members is a tribute band
I don't think your research is very good. You completely ignored the band's convoluted beginnings, which is crucial to understanding the band and how they came to play the kind of music they did. I generally find the videos you do to be quite monotonous. Sorry, no offence. I do appreciate your effort.
