New Music Review: KANSAS ‘Another Fork In The Road – 50 Years Of Kansas’

KANSAS ‘Another Fork In The Road – 50 Years Of Kansas’ - Cover Photo

Review-In 2022, there seems to be an emphasis on “ classic rock”. If you are a wrestling fan and watching AEW, you can hear wrestlers using songs like “ Jane” by Jefferson Starship and “ Carry on Wayward Son” by Kansas. Most commercials use songs from Jethro Tull to Aerosmith. I mean, Jefferson Starship is proof that you do not need anything but one original member to carry on the name and play the circuit to the masses. Speaking of Kansas. This year the band celebrated their 50th anniversary. The band was actually Saratoga and merged with White Clover a few years earlier before changing their name in 1970. I will be honest, my feelings about Kansas are so mixed. I am clearly going to be a Steve Walsh fan. I feel when any fan has an opinion about Kansas and uses words like, “ mixed” or “ uneasy”, the next sentence will be the idol worship of Steve. While Kansas have released so many “ greatest hits” compilations, this one is the one that strikes me as a must have. I mean, we got a new version of “ Can I Tell You”, which came from the debut. It is with the current lineup. My biggest positive, it is not a note for note remake. It actually tries to outdo the original. This one is also hard. If you are a fan of the original, this one is quite the departure. Maybe, if you are open to change, you will dig it. 

Now, let us talk about that earlier gripe I have. Steve Walsh is a great singer. ( I understand he is retired from Kansas, or so he says.) This one is going to be very odd for me, but I have to say that John Elefante was also a great vocalist and did my favorite album by them, “ Drastic Measures”.  I was also a fan of “ Vinyl Confessions” and that big hit single for them, “ Play the Game Tonight”. This is why I love this triple disc so much. Kansas is one of those bands that you just hear a song and know where you first heard it and how much it means to you. My first song by Kansas had to be “ Carry on Wayward Son”. If you are a child of the 70’s, that was a staple. Maybe “ Dust in the WInd” or if you are a kid from the 80’s “ Fight Fire with Fire”. That intro is so massive. The vocals compliment the song almost like a kiss from a lost friend. This cd has 39 songs or as I see it, 39 memories that make me want to put the needle to the vinyl. There is no better feeling in the world, being in a room and watching the vinyl spin to “ Carry on Wayward Son”, and then getting to the opening lyrics. It is just magic. How can you not air guitar to this song?

I should talk about the cd? The first cd has the most current stuff by the band, which I am on the fence about. I get the band was trying to change the perception of what Kansas once was, but I feel that fans have to accept the fact that this is not the classic band but a band trying to go into new directions. I was open to Foghat, Jefferson Starship, Steppenwolf, Molly Hatchet and etc. doing it so why not give this a chance. I will admit, the songs are not going to be staples or favorites, but they also are not filler and do serve a momentary purpose. I feel like that statement may be taken out of context, so let me say this: If you were a fan of the last Night Ranger record, the last decade of Kansas could be good for you. The second disc is more in my vein. You got a selection of great songs from the Elefante time. I feel that this disc alone is worth the price of admission. If you are new to Kansas or under a rock, this second disc is a great start for you. The rumor at this time was that Mike Reno was leaving Loverboy after the success of “Almost Paradise” and that Elefante was in talks. If this is legit, picture this the “ Lovin’ Every Moment of It”, with Elefante on vocals or “ Keep it Up”. Somehow this review has gone from talking about Kansas to the rumor of one of their lead singers going to front Loverboy. There was also the rumor that Steve Walsh was supposed to replace John Kay in Steppenwolf. Steve Walsh, I heard that when John Kay was a dick and wanted to change the band name to John Kay and Steppenwolf that Michael Monarch wanted you to sing for them. At the time, Michael had a lot of credit in the industry as he played with Joplin and was tired of John Kay.

John Kay trying to pull a power move on someone from Big Brother and the Holding Company. John Kay’s solo works are the equivalent of drinking the gasoline before pumping it. I know this is a Kansas review, but since I opened the door on Kay. (If you read any other review and they list this stuff in it, I have been plagiarized) John Kay once said that bands like Led Zeppelin and The Rolling Stones were bad. What a shock, “ My Sportin’ Life” by John Kay is so groundbreaking and if it was not for Bob Dylan and John Fogerty, the music would not have had an identity. I say that but watch next month, the PR will send me an email, “ Steppenwolf to re-release first records as deluxe editions” and I will be the first to ask for a physical copy. 

Back to Kansas, did you know there are bootlegs that exist when Asia toured with Kansas? Talk about a fun show. This was during Elefante’s time also. Disc 3 has some live songs that if you own the live albums, you have heard the material. This is also the disc with all the staples of classic rock radio as well. It seems so odd, that this band only sold 30 million albums or so. I would have thought that albums like “ Point of Know Return” and “Leftoverture” would have sold more than they did. I want to say together they were almost 10 million sold. You would have thought so much more as they are still solid some 40 years later.

This triple disc serves such a purpose to remind the listener how important this band once was. No offense to Ronnie Platt, he is a good lead singer. I am still on the fence on the last two releases. “ The Prelude Impact” would have been better under a Yes tribute than trying to be Kansas. “ The Absence of Presence” is the sound of a band trying to fight its own legacy. Like I said, Ronnie Platt is a good singer, but this band has always had great singers, not good ones. Ronnie Platt could be the lead singer of a reunited Hooters. That could be his calling. This review went all over the place, but the gist is this: Kansas thru the Steve and Elefante era’s were such an important band. This could be a good reminder of the legacy of a band that should not be the band the fans question their decision to be named Kansas still in 2022.