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Song For America
''Song for America'' is the second studio album by United States, American progressive rock band Kansas (band), Kansas, released in 1975. The album was reissued in remastered format on CD in 2004. The 10-minute title track was edited down to three minutes for release as a single. The 45 R.P.M. edit resurfaced 29 years later as a bonus track on the remastered release, which provided improved sound as well as expanded liner notes, rare photos, and a live version of "Down the Road". Reception AllMusic, in a retrospective review, praised the "intense energy" of the album's shorter songs, but contended that the longer songs require too much active listening to appreciate. They concluded that the album is "a good (if not adolescent) recording for a group of this genre." Conversely, Gary Graff described the title track as "one of prog-rock's sonic gems," recommending the album to "Those interested in Kansas at its most bombastic." Steve Pettengill, writing for Sea of Tranquility we ...
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Kansas (band)
Kansas is an American rock band that became popular during the 1970s initially on album-oriented rock charts and later with hit singles such as "Carry On Wayward Son" and "Dust in the Wind". The band has produced nine gold albums, three multi-platinum albums (''Leftoverture'' 4×, ''Point of Know Return'' 4×, and ''The Best of Kansas'' 4×), one other platinum studio album (''Monolith''), one platinum live double album ('' Two for the Show''), and a million-selling single, "Dust in the Wind". Kansas appeared on the US ''Billboard'' charts for over 200 weeks throughout the 1970s and 1980s and played to sold-out arenas and stadiums throughout North America, Europe and Japan. "Carry On Wayward Son" was the second-most-played track on US classic rock radio in 1995 and No. 1 in 1997. History 1970–1973: Early years In 1969, Don Montre and Kerry Livgren (guitars, keyboards, synthesizers) were performing in a band called the Reasons Why in their hometown of Topeka, Kansas. After lea ...
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Visible Ink Press
Visible Ink Press, LLC is a publisher of popular reference works. Its headquarters are in Canton Charter Township, Michigan in Metro Detroit. It was founded in 1989 as an imprint of Gale and later spun-off as an independent company in 2000. The Handy Answer Book Series is published by Visible Ink, as were the MusicHound Essential Album Guides. Robert Jackson of the ''Rocky Mountain News'' said in 1994 that Visible Ink Press had an annual tradition of "releasing quality books that deal with people of color".Jackson, Robert.VISIBLE INK GOES TO PRESS FOR BLACKS" ''Rocky Mountain News The ''Rocky Mountain News'' (nicknamed the ''Rocky'') was a daily newspaper published in Denver, Colorado, United States, from April 23, 1859, until February 27, 2009. It was owned by the E. W. Scripps Company from 1926 until its closing. As ...''. April 21, 1994. Retrieved on September 24, 2012. "Visible Ink Press in Detroit continues its yearly tradition of releasing quality books that deal wi ...
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Phil Ehart
Phillip W. Ehart (born February 4, 1950) is the drummer in the progressive rock band Kansas. He and Rich Williams are the only two members who have appeared on every Kansas album. Though his songwriting contributions to the group were few, he co-wrote two of their biggest hits, "Point of Know Return" and " Play the Game Tonight". He has also taken on the band's management responsibilities in recent years. Early life Born in Coffeyville, Kansas on February 4, 1950, Ehart took up the drums in grade school. He lived all over the world as his Air Force father was stationed in such places as England, the Philippines and Japan. Career Ehart contacted Kerry Livgren about joining a band named White Clover after hearing that Livgren's band Kansas (the second band of that name) had recently disbanded. With White Clover he performed at the New Orleans Pop Festival in 1969, which had a huge impact on him. White Clover in time renamed itself "Kansas." This third Kansas is the band that bec ...
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Rich Williams
Richard John Williams (born February 1, 1950) is an American guitarist, primarily known for being one of the only consistent original members of the rock band Kansas alongside drummer Phil Ehart. Both have appeared on every Kansas album to date. Career Williams shared guitar duties with keyboardist/guitarist Kerry Livgren until 1984 when Kansas first broke up, and later from 1990 to 1991 as well as 1999–2000. From 1985 to 1991, he shared guitar-playing with Steve Morse, and later with Zak Rizvi from 2016 to 2021. Since April 2021, Williams has served as the bands only dedicated guitarist, as he also did from 1991 to 1999, and 2000–2016. David Ragsdale will sometimes serve as a second guitarist when the band plays songs with little or no violin, such as "Portrait (He Knew)", "Fight Fire With Fire", and "Carry On Wayward Son". Williams and Phil Ehart are the only two founding members of Kansas who have never left the band and have played on all Kansas albums. Among the songs ...
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Dave Hope
Dave Hope (born October 7, 1949) is an American bass guitarist who played with the American progressive rock band Kansas from 1970 (original version) until the band's first split in 1983. When he was in high school, he played defensive center for his football team as well as performing on the tuba in his high school band. Through both activities he became friends with many of the members who are still part of the band today. When he was in Kansas, he was known for his signature handlebar mustache and his nickname to many was "Smokin' Dave," as he was usually photographed with a cigarette dangling from his lips. After the band's split, Hope started the Christian band AD with Kerry Livgren and others. In 1990, a German promoter decided to reunite the original Kansas band for a special European tour. Everyone but Robby Steinhardt returned. The band decided to tour America as the original lineup again, but Hope left the band. In 2000, Kerry Livgren of Kansas reunited the original li ...
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Kerry Livgren
Kerry Allen Livgren (born September 18, 1949) is an American musician, best known as one of the founding members and primary songwriters for the American rock band Kansas. Biography Livgren was raised in Topeka, Kansas, by his father Allen Leroy, an industrial engineer, and his mother Betty ( McElhiney). He was drawn to music at a young age, and his first musical interests developed with classical and jazz influences. His first equipment included an electric guitar he built using a cheap Stella guitar, a Sears amplifier and a low-quality Astatic microphone. Along with learning guitar, Livgren also focused on learning to write songs due to his desire for more creative expression and originality. He attended Washburn University for some time. Early years: 1960s–1973 Livgren was a member of numerous bands in the late 1960s and early 1970s and developed a reputation for complex compositions and poetic lyrics that explored spiritual themes. His investigations into various reli ...
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Steve Walsh (musician)
Steve Walsh (born June 15, 1951) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter best known for his work as a longtime member of the progressive rock band Kansas; he retired from the band in 2014. He sings lead on four of Kansas' best-known hits: "Carry On Wayward Son," "Dust in the Wind", "Point of Know Return", and " All I Wanted", the last two of which he co-wrote. Career Walsh was in a number of local groups prior to his joining Kansas, most notably the group White Clover that later merged with another band to form Kansas. White Clover toured frequently and developed their sound. They merged with another local band, also called Kansas, and were signed to Don Kirshner's label with the name Kansas. During Walsh's time with the band, Kansas recorded two commercially successful albums, 1976's ''Leftoverture'' and 1977's ''Point of Know Return''. With Kansas, Walsh has released 12 studio albums, six live albums, and numerous singles. He has released three solo albums thus f ...
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Recording Industry Association Of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/or distribute approximately 85% of all legally sold recorded music in the United States". RIAA is headquartered in Washington, D.C. RIAA was formed in 1952. Its original mission was to administer recording copyright fees and problems, work with trade unions, and do research relating to the record industry and government regulations. Early RIAA standards included the RIAA equalization curve, the format of the stereophonic record groove and the dimensions of 33 1/3, 45, and 78 rpm records. RIAA says its current mission includes: #to protect intellectual property rights and the First Amendment rights of artists #to perform research about the music industry #to monitor and review relevant laws, regulations, and policies Between 2001 and 202 ...
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RIAA
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/or distribute approximately 85% of all legally sold recorded music in the United States". RIAA is headquartered in Washington, D.C. RIAA was formed in 1952. Its original mission was to administer recording copyright fees and problems, work with trade unions, and do research relating to the record industry and government regulations. Early RIAA standards included the RIAA equalization curve, the format of the stereophonic record groove and the dimensions of 33 1/3, 45, and 78 rpm records. RIAA says its current mission includes: #to protect intellectual property rights and the First Amendment rights of artists #to perform research about the music industry #to monitor and review relevant laws, regulations, and policies Between 2001 and 202 ...
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Point Of Know Return
''Point of Know Return'' is the fifth studio album by American rock band Kansas, released in 1977. The album was reissued in remastered format on CD in 2002. Composition and recording The recording sessions for ''Point of Know Return'' commenced in June 1977 at Studio in the Country, the Bogalusa, Louisiana facility where Kansas' precedent two albums were recorded: due to the band encountering equipment failure at Studio in the Country, Kansas shifted recording sites, the majority of the recording of ''Point of Know Return'' being done at Woodland Studios in Nashville over the month of July. Singer/songwriter Steve Walsh left the group briefly during the recording of this album. In an interview on the weekly ''In the Studio with Redbeard'' radio show, he would admit that, at this point, he had been something of a prima donna and was attracted by the chance of a solo career. "Dust in the Wind" is known for its sparse acoustic nature. The guitar line for the song was written b ...
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Leftoverture
''Leftoverture'' is the fourth studio album by American rock band Kansas, released in 1976. The album was reissued in remastered format on CD in 2001. It was the band's first album to be certified by the RIAA, and remains their highest selling album, having been certified 5 times platinum in the United States. Background Steve Walsh began to experience writer's block prior to the recording, and his contribution to the album would ultimately be limited to co-authoring three songs. It fell on Kerry Livgren to fill the void. The new compositions retained much of the classically inspired complexity of Livgren's previous work. Kansas recorded the album at Studio in the Country in Bogalusa, Louisiana. The Studio in the Country was so named because, as Livgren described on ''In the Studio with Redbeard'' radio show in the episode spotlighting ''Leftoverture'', "it was in the middle of a swamp. We'd walk out of the studio and there would be gators in front of the studio, mosquitos the ...
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Billboard 200
The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine and is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists. Often, a recording act will be remembered by its " number ones", those of their albums that outperformed all others during at least one week. The chart grew from a weekly top 10 list in 1956 to become a top 200 list in May 1967, and acquired its current name in March 1992. Its previous names include the ''Billboard'' Top LPs (1961–1972), ''Billboard'' Top LPs & Tape (1972–1984), ''Billboard'' Top 200 Albums (1984–1985) and ''Billboard'' Top Pop Albums (1985–1992). The chart is based mostly on sales – both at retail and digital – of albums in the United States. The weekly sales period was originally Monday to Sunday when Nielsen started tracking sales in 1991, but since July 2015, tracking week begins on Friday (to coinc ...
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