The band's classic lineup consisted of Steve Walsh (lead vocals and keyboards), Richard Williams (lead guitar), Kerry Livgren (keyboards and guitar), Robby Steinhardt (violin, lead and backing vocals), Dave Hope (bass) and Phil Ehart (drums). The band currently consists of Ehart and Williams alongside Ronnie Platt (lead vocals and keyboards), David Ragsdale (violin), Billy Greer (bass and vocals), and David Manion (keyboards and vocals).
The debut album, 'Kansas', was released in March 1974, nearly a year after it was recorded in New York. It defined the band's signature sound, being comprised of a mix of American-style boogie rock with complex, symphonic arrangements featuring changing time signatures similar to British art rockers. Steinhardt's violin was a distinctive element of the group's sound, which set them apart from other progressive rock groups of the era. The band slowly developed a cult following, due to promotion by pop/rock impresario Don Kirshner and extensive touring for their debut album. Two follow-ups, 'Song for America' and 'Masque', both came out in 1975 and brought them additional acclaim, the releases showing the band's philosophical-based lyricism in songs such as the myth-inspired "Icarus (Born On Wings Of Steel)".
Kansas released its fourth album, 'Leftoverture', in November 1976, which produced a massive hit single in "Carry On Wayward Son" and brought comparisons to other records such as Yes' 'Fragile'. The aforementioned tune has became a kind of 'signature song' for the band and been a staple of rock radio for years, also appearing in various TV shows and video games. Kansas' follow-up, 'Point of Know Return', was released in October 1977. Featuring the title track and "Dust in the Wind", both hit singles, it received critical praise from many reviewers.
'Leftoverture' and 'Point of Know Return' each have sold over four million copies in the U.S. Both "Carry On Wayward Son" and "Dust in the Wind" have also been RIAA certified as gold singles, selling over one million units each. In particular,"Dust in the Wind" was certified gold as a digital download in 2005, almost 30 years after its first run, having sold over one million copies as a single. Forming somewhat of a career high point, 'Leftoverture' was certified five times platinum by the RIAA in 2001.
During this period, Kansas became a major headlining act and sold out the largest venues available to rock bands at the time, including New York's Madison Square Garden. The band documented this era in 1978 with 'Two for the Show', a double live album of recordings from various performances from its 1977 and 1978 tours. The band gained a solid reputation for faithful live reproduction of their studio recordings. In 1978, the band was named UNICEF Deputy Ambassadors of Goodwill as well.
The follow-up studio album to Point of Know Return was Monolith (1979), which, like the live album, was self-produced. While the album produced a Top 40 single in "People of the South Wind"--the title refers to the meaning of the Kanza word 'Kansas'--it failed to garner the sales and radio airplay of its two predecessors. Nevertheless, the album went platinum. Kerry Livgren's platinum award for the album is on display at the Kansas History Museum.
Kansas' band members began to drift apart in the early 1980s. Livgren became a born-again Christian, and this was reflected in his lyrics on the next three albums, beginning with Audio-Visions. "Hold On," a Top 40 single from that album, displayed his newfound faith in a pop setting. Hope soon converted to Christianity as well. Walsh left in October 1981 to form a new band, Streets. In early 1982, Walsh was replaced by vocalist/keyboardist John Elefante. Initially unbeknownst to the other members of Kansas, Elefante was also a born-again Christian. Elefante was chosen over other applicants including Sammy Hagar and Doug Pinnick. John and brother Dino Elefante were later successful producers for contemporary Christian artists, including Sweet Comfort Band, Petra, Bride, Rick Cua, and Guardian.
Kansas' first album with Elefante, Vinyl Confessions, released in June 1982, was their most successful studio release since Point of Know Return. The record renewed interest in the group and generated the band's first Top 20 hit in several years, "Play the Game Tonight." The album's overtly Christian lyrics attracted an entirely new audience. Still, sales of the album fell short of gold status, and the album has yet to be certified gold.
Drastic Measures followed in 1983. Because Livgren was holding back some Christian-oriented songs for another solo album, he contributed only three songs to the album. The rest were penned by the Elefante brothers, and without the violin of Steinhardt (who left the group before the recording sessions), the result was a more mainstream pop-rock album. The single, "Fight Fire with Fire," did not crack the Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 but reached #3 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart, making it the highest chart position of any Kansas release on any chart.
During the band's time with Elefante as lead vocalist, Livgren became increasingly uncomfortable with Kansas representing his Christian worldview. After a final New Year's Eve performance on December 31, 1983, Livgren and Hope left to form AD with former Bloodrock member Warren Ham, who had toured as a sideman with Kansas in 1982, and Michael Gleason, who had done the same in 1983. They were joined by drummer Dennis Holt. Elefante, Ehart, and Williams sought to continue as Kansas, and recorded one more song, "Perfect Lover," which appeared on the retrospective The Best of Kansas (1984). That was to be the final Kansas recording with Elefante, and the group disbanded after its release. Since leaving Kansas, Elefante has become a popular contemporary Christian music artist but has never again performed with the group.
n 1985 Ehart and Williams reformed the band with Walsh, but without Livgren, Hope or Steinhardt. The new line-up included bassist Billy Greer (of Streets) and guitarist Steve Morse (formerly of the Dixie Dregs). The re-formed band released Power in November 1986. The first single, "All I Wanted," became the last Kansas single to hit the Billboard Top 40 chart, peaking at #19. Two more singles, the title track and "Can't Cry Anymore," were less successful. The new lineup released a second album, In the Spirit of Things, in 1988, but it was met with weak sales and Morse left the band at the end of the tour in 1989.
In 1990, a German promoter arranged to reunite all the original members of Kansas III (except for Steinhardt) for a European tour. Greer joined them, along with keyboardist Greg Robert, who had first joined Kansas on tour in 1986. At the end of the tour, Hope left again, but Livgren remained on into 1991. That year, violinist David Ragsdale joined the group and the return of the violin allowed Kansas to perform earlier material in arrangements closer to the originals. Livgren left during the 1991 tour, to be replaced temporarily by Steve Morse again. After the tour, Morse left and Ragsdale took over the extra guitar parts, leaving Williams as the primary guitar player. The resulting lineup of Ehart, Greer, Ragsdale, Robert, Walsh, and Williams lasted from 1991 to 1997. This period saw one live album and accompanying video, Live at the Whisky (1992) and one studio album Freaks of Nature (1995). On July 28, 1996, Kansas was inducted into the Rock Walk of Fame in Hollywood.
In early 1997, Robert and Ragsdale left the band and Steinhardt returned. The following year Kansas released Always Never the Same, which featured Larry Baird conducting the London Symphony Orchestra. The album was a mix of older Kansas material (with new arrangements by Baird), several new songs, and a cover of "Eleanor Rigby". Somewhere to Elsewhere, released in July 2000, featured all the original members of Kansas, plus Greer, with all songs written by Livgren.
In 2000 Kansas was the opening act for Yes during their "Masterworks" tour. In 2002, Kansas II (the lineup prior to the recording and release of Kansas' first album) released an album under the group name Proto-Kaw, featuring demos and live material recorded from 1971 to 1973. This led to a new studio album, Before Became After (2004), with most of the Kansas II members participating. Proto-Kaw released a third album, The Wait of Glory, in 2006.
Kansas has continued to tour every year. The 2006 tour was delayed for a few weeks due to Steinhardt's second departure, and Ragsdale subsequently returned to the lineup. In 2008, the Kansas website announced that four of the five current members (Ehart, Ragsdale, Williams and Greer) had formed a recording group called Native Window, and they released their self-titled debut album in June 2009.
In February 2009, Kansas recorded a concert in Topeka, Kansas featuring a full symphony orchestra, with Larry Baird conducting. Morse and Livgren appeared as special guests on several songs. The performance was released on CD, DVD and Blu-ray and the DVD hit #5 on Billboard's Music Video Chart the week after its release.
As of July 13, 2010, Kansas had recently completed a 30-day "United We Rock" tour with fellow classic rock legends Styx and Foreigner.
Kansas will be touring September 2010 to January 2011. They will be performing with Symphonies of various colleges around the U.S. in an effort to raise money for the individual schools' music programs. The final show of the series, on January 28, 2011, is to be performed at McCain Auditorium on the campus of Kansas State University to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the state of Kansas being granted statehood. The concert will be filmed by PBS to be used in a future broadcast special in the region. Kansas will perform live on stage at the Glasgow, Kentucky Kentucky Plaza Theater on Friday May 13, 2011.
Lonely Street
Kansas Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The slumber of the earth is pure and deep
From a distant wood, drifts the echo of a beast
The old man stirs and wakens in the night
He stands before his window gazing at the grave
Forgotten dreams are flashing through his weary mind
And though his life is empty, he pretends that she's still there
With memories his one and only joy
All he has to give, he would give to bring back the life,
And raise the one who lies beneath the snow
He lights a lamp and looks at pictures of the past
The faces of their youth still glow with new-found love,
But the picture's faded, and time has stolen youth away
With a spoken word that he thought he heard from her lips,
He felt another presence in the room,
He was filled with fear but filled with joy he arose
And turned to face the image that he knew
She stood before him and her hand reached out for his
A peaceful light shone in her eyes
She said she'd come to soothe him, and someday they'd be as one
She began to fade and her image disappeared,
So he was left alone to face the night,
Never in his life, had he been so held in awe,
As he faced the apparition of his wife
He stood before the window gazing at the grave,
And with a lightened heart he saw the first of dawn,
He knew that she was waiting, that someday they'd be as one
The lyrics of "Lamplight Symphony" by Kansas tell a haunting and nostalgic story of an old man who is consumed with memories of his wife, who has passed away. The song is set on a winter's night when the stars are "cold and bright in the sky", and the slumber of the earth is "pure and deep". The old man awakens in the night and stands before his window, gazing at the grave of his wife. He longs for her to come back to life so that they can be together again, and he looks at pictures of their past life together to remember the happy times they shared.
As he looks at the pictures, he hears a spoken word that he thinks he hears from her lips. He turns around and sees her standing there, and she reaches out her hand to him. He is filled with fear and joy as he realizes that she has come to soothe him, and they will someday be reunited as one. However, her image fades and disappears, leaving the old man alone to face the night.
Line by Line Meaning
On a winter's night, stars are cold and bright in the sky
The song begins by painting an image of a winter night where the sky is filled with bright stars - a cold, yet beautiful sight.
The slumber of the earth is pure and deep
The quietness and stillness of the earth during the night is calming and peaceful.
From a distant wood, drifts the echo of a beast
In the distance, an animal can be heard making noise that adds to the overall atmosphere of the peaceful night.
The old man stirs and wakens in the night
The main character of the song, an old man, wakes up during the night causing him to reflect on the past.
He stands before his window gazing at the grave
The old man is standing before his window, looking out at a graveyard, where someone he loved is buried.
Forgotten dreams are flashing through his weary mind
The old man is remembering forgotten dreams from his past.
And though his life is empty, he pretends that she's still there
Even though the old man is lonely, he imagines that the person he lost is still with him.
With hunger in his soul, he yearns for life and love gone by
The old man's soul is empty, and he longs for the past when he had love and passion in his life.
With memories his one and only joy
Memories are the only thing that brings joy to the old man's life since they remind him of the life he once had.
All he has to give, he would give to bring back the life
The old man wishes he could bring back his past life and would do anything to make that happen.
And raise the one who lies beneath the snow
The person that the old man lost is buried under the snow, and he wishes he could bring them back to life.
He lights a lamp and looks at pictures of the past
The old man lights a lamp and spends time looking at old pictures from his past, remembering happier times.
The faces of their youth still glow with new-found love
The pictures show the old man and his loved one when they were younger and in love, and their youthful faces still shine with happiness.
But the picture's faded, and time has stolen youth away
The pictures are old and faded, as time has passed and the old man has aged, causing him to reflect on how time has taken away his youth.
With a spoken word that he thought he heard from her lips
The old man hears a word spoken that he thinks was from the person he lost talking to him.
He felt another presence in the room
The old man senses another presence in the room and feels like he is not alone anymore.
He was filled with fear but filled with joy he arose
The old man is afraid but also filled with joy for the possibility that the person he lost may still be with him.
And turned to face the image that he knew
The old man turns to look at the person's image in hopes that it is truly them and not just his imagination.
She stood before him and her hand reached out for his
The person that the old man lost appears before him, and they reach out a hand to him.
A peaceful light shone in her eyes
The person the old man lost has a peaceful look on their face, bringing comfort to the old man.
She said she'd come to soothe him, and someday they'd be as one
The person the old man lost talks to him and promises to soothe him and bring them together someday.
She began to fade and her image disappeared
The person the old man lost fades away, and the old man realizes it was only a brief visit.
So he was left alone to face the night
The old man is once again alone, and he has to face the night again.
Never in his life, had he been so held in awe
The experience of seeing the person he lost once again fills him with awe and amazement.
As he faced the apparition of his wife
The person the old man lost appeared to him in the form of an apparition, which brings him some comfort.
And with a lightened heart he saw the first of dawn
After seeing the apparition, the old man feels lighter and less burdened, and he sees the start of a new day.
He knew that she was waiting, that someday they'd be as one
The old man knows that the person he lost is waiting for him, and they will be together someday.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DAVID C HOPE, PHIL EHART, STEVE WALSH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
johnny zell
Sometimes when I'm walking down this lonely street,
Well, it sure don't seem like twenty years,
Since I went walking down this lonely street
And the smell of perfumed ladies filled the air
This street ain't got no name, dead end is in the river,
And I lived where I hated life day by day,
There wasn't nothing I could do to shake a cold night shiver,
'Cause to move up Lonely Street you had to have some say
Gambling is bad luck down on Lonely Street
And it sure ain't no place to be when a man gets sore
You know I killed a man and I paid all I can,
With twenty years on a chain gang,
For the flesh and the blood on that jailhouse floor
Sometimes when I'm walking down this lonely street
I get caught up in a dream that won't let me go
And as the bright lights flash up and down this lonely street
My mind rolls back the years long time ago
I see my baby stumblin' around with tears in her eyes
And as I reach out for her she falls on the floor
She mumbles through bloody lips about a bad man, robber, raper,
And in my gut I know I got one to score
The word was comin' down, down on Lonely Street
That the bad man was a dead man if he crossed my trail
Every night I'd walk up and down this Lonely Street
I get stinkin' drunk, and always in jail,
One night they threw me in with a man they called the mangler
He was caught on the street makin' some old whore,
I remember he was quite proud of that,
So half-crazed I shot him,
And I cried in the blood on that jailhouse floor.
Joe Meulemans
Phil Ehart is one of the most creative drummers Ive ever heard,some of his beats are damn near impossible to play along with,this guy is an underrated genius!
Elix Tido
same for John Densmore
Bruise Lee
Kansas throws it all out there and lays it all down with Lonely Street. Does not get much better than this one if you love Kansas!
61guitbox
Bruise Lee agreed 👍🏻
angel figueroa
The bad man in this song was a black man, it could have been a purple man.
theGorn68
Yeah! I love this song. Steve Walsh's voice at it's peak.
Jim Bennett
Thank you so much! Kansas did so much more then the radio played, its a shame. Most of there best songs have never been played on air!
Mark Serour
I would say ALL of their best never got air play.
keymaster 88
Jonp icarus, closet chronicles, it's you.
Jonp
"point of know return"
"song for america"
"and people of the south wind"
"fire with fire"
are just a few others off the top of my head that come to mind (the 70's are still mostly a haze ;) (disclaimer for the pedants: yes, i'm aware last cut is not the 70's... )