About two decades ago, Kansas, the rock group from Topeka, was formed and began a musical venture that resulted in a series of hits and extensive concert tours with such bands as Queen, Boston and Bad Company.
But rock 'n' roll business can be cruel, and yesterday's stars often seem to fade rapidly in today's light. Same here.Although Kansas continually released new records until a couple of years ago, personnel changes and the arrival of new music styles (i.e., heavy metal, new age, thrash and what have you) put an end to the band's fame somewhere in the early 1980s.
"You guys missed the Kansas of the '80s," lead singer and keyboard player Steve Walsh told the audience at the sold-out Zephyr, adding that "it wasn't pretty."
Walsh, who never stood still at any one given point throughout the entire show, left Kansas in 1981. Five years later, however, he and other former members re-formed the lineup.
Wednesday at the Zephyr Club, four original musicians of the re-established Kansas - Walsh; Billy Greer, bass; Richard Williams, guitar; and Phil Ehart, drums - played their hearts out.
The two "new guys," David Ranksdale, violin and guitar, and keyboard player Greg Robert, blended in perfectly. In fact, Walsh and Williams often competed against Ranksdale, whose stage performance was gently all-consuming.
Perhaps it had to do with Ranksdale's appearance: He wore a white tuxedo with tails, and whenever he played his violin or guitar solos, his musical power made him the ruler of the evening.
Williams, for instance, had to hide in the dark and listen in on one of Ranksdale's guitar solos. When Williams came back to the front of the stage, a cigarette was sticking out of his mouth. If he got nervous about possibly losing his job, he did so rightfully.
Walsh, on the other hand, took over the stage by kicking his legs wildly about, sometimes reaching heights that even ballet dancers would have trouble attaining.
Occasionally, he chose to stand on his hands, supported by a metal bar he had mounted to his keyboard gear.
Well, that's rock'n'roll and the Kansas of the '90s for you.
But the real thrill was the music, although it was mostly the music of Kansas of the '70s.
Inch by inch, Kansas' hard-rock riffs and melodious harmonies pushed the smoke-filled air toward the back of the club, while the audience sang along, mostly verbatim, to the songs they must have heard over the airwaves countless times since their teenage-days.
"Point of Know Return," "Dust in the Wind," and "Carry on Wayward Son" transformed the club into something comparable to a sorcerer's boiling crock pot.
Nevertheless, Kansas kept up the true spirit of rock 'n' roll, which means having fun while doing it, and performed each song with as much carefulness and craftsmanship as was used on the recordings.
In other words, the music was appealing because it was accompanied by a group of musicians who treated their material and their audience with respect.
Possibly the members of Kansas realized that the band's heydays are over, yes, but today's music scene still has use and appreciation for "the old masters."
By the way, before the rock veterans conquered the stage, a Sandy based rock trio named Gamma Rays brought its lifeless material - when compared with Kansas - before the audience.
An occasional funny one-liner and street language gave their music some pizazz, but their slightly off-beat tunes only seemed to reinforce their lyrics: "It's hard to live in Sandy when you're strange." And in Salt Lake City, too.