Full disclosure, I grew up a huge Kansas fan. I bought, wore out and purchased Leftoverture several times and in different media. I owned a few of their other albums, “Two for the Show” being my favorite along with Leftoverture. “Two for the Show” was a Greatest Hits live 2 album set and it was played frequently in my teenage years. Over the years, Kansas has evolved, disbanded and evolved some more, so I was very curious what the latest deviation of Kansas sounded like.
I went to the Kansas concert as a photographer, but lacking a writer, I inherited that responsibility also. Standard practice in concert photography is you can shoot the first 3 songs and then no more photography and if you don’t have a ticket, you need to leave the concert arena. I was given a concert ticket in addition to a photo pass, so had the ability to see the entire concert. I hadn’t been to a concert at Mystic Lake before and was impressed with the area. Comfy seats, theater seating and great sightlines – a photographer’s dream.
Kansas took the stage a little late and the crowd was getting edgy as 8:00 came and went. Although (what I felt was) a rather large number of people arrived late as well. The first song was “On the Other Side”, a great starter and got the crowd settled in. For the second song, they played “Point of Know Return”, one of their best and most popular songs. Any question of leaving early completely left my mind after this. It was played as well as I have ever heard it. This version of Kansas is very good. They mixed in B sides, greatest hits and one semi newer song – Summer from the 2016 album The Prelude Implicit. Lead singer Ronnie Platt said to buy or steal the album it has great music on it. I hadn’t heard any part of The Prelude Implicit album and will buy (not steal) a copy after hearing Summer, it was a good song.
After Playing “Miracles Out of Nowhere”, the band left the stage. The crowd stood on their feet cheering and clapping and a few butane lighters made an appearance. Don’t see many of those these days. The band came back and said the Minneapolis/St. Paul area is one of their favorite areas to play – the fans are great. They started playing “Carry on Wayward Son” and the crowd joined in singing, clapping and hugging. Despite their advanced age – Kansas is 45 years old, they put on a great concert. Next time they are back in town, make a point of seeing Kansas. Especially if you have enjoyed any of their music in the past.
Setlist:
- On the Other Side
- Point of Know Return
- Can I Tell You
- What’s On My Mind
- The Wall
- All I Wanted
- Hold On
- Dust in the Wind
- Stand Beside Me
- Icarus (Borne on Wings of Steel)
- Paradox
- Play the Game Tonight
- Summer
- Fight Fire with Fire
- Miracles Out of Nowhere / (‘Magnum Opus’ excerpt)
Encore:
Carry on Wayward Son.
