SONG FOR AMERICA

The second album from Kansas marks the maturation of Kerry Livgren's compositional abilities, as well as the band's capacity for playing more extravagant pieces. Their debut album gave us three extended and splendid songs; Song for America treats us to three more.

"Down the Road" Opening the album is a gritty, foot-stomping song interspersed with Robby Steinhardt's vocals and organ, violin, and guitar soloing. This song sounds like it belongs in a dingy, smoke-filled bar. It's largely a tightly knit jam session, but it clearly demonstrates the musical prowess of the boys from Topeka.

"Song for America" Undoubtedly the highlight of the album, "Song for America" grants us a magnificent three minute instrumental introduction before launching into the first verse. From the initial guitar riff to the chords of the first verse, there is nothing less than musical grandeur. The words go far beyond typical environmental awareness, giving first a picturesque panorama of America as it must have been before the fifteenth century. The lyrical interlude describes what took place on this "virgin land of forest green" soon after, and the lyrics in the end describe the growing plight of suffocating crowds and soulless commercialism, with a mysterious mention of the fallen and all but forgotten Native American tribes who are prepared to make their second advent. And as for the reoccurrence of the violin theme at the end- there is simply no better way to bring this one to a close. This is a symphonic rock lover's dream; "Song for America" is chock full of key and time signature changes (including 9/16 and 11/16) tastefully woven together. Kansas may have never produced a twenty minute masterpiece like Yes or Genesis, but this, along with a few efforts to come, is as epic as it gets for this group. This album should have begun with this phenomenal piece; it is one of Livgren's tightest compositions.

"Lamplight Symphony" A ghost story about a widower seeing the specter of his long lost bride, "Lamplight Symphony" evokes a strange mixture of despair and hope, even by the end. The lyrics have something of the effect of "Turn of the Century" by Yes, albeit not nearly as potent. The music is heavily driven by piano runs, warbling organ, and chunky bass riffs (after a memorable synthesizer theme that serves as an introduction). Following two verses there is a lyrical bridge, and when Steinhardt sings his four lines, it is enough to induce shivers down one's backbone. While the musical interlude that follows is certainly good, it admittedly doesn't seem to fit the mood of the piece- listening to the cacophonic drive makes one think the subject of the song is descending into madness rather than actually experiencing a supernatural event. However, the short segment that follows brings us back to sad beauty of the piece, full of elaborate piano runs and a melancholic violin over them. My only other criticism to this otherwise remarkable song is the abrupt ending. The final chord is stately enough, but the build up to it is far too brief, if not uninspired.

"Lonely Street" While by far the weakest track present, this is a very good attempt at a bass-driven blues number in an odd time signature. The guitar fills are decent enough, as are the solos, but it's Dave Hope's work here that stands out. The lyrics are grimy, about being down and out and taking revenge on those who've done wrong, but they are clearly out of place, especially on this album. Incidentally, I believe this is the only Kansas song containing the word "whore."

"The Devil Game" This is an adventurous five minute song with an interesting start; Electric guitar and violin interact in an original way. The writers juxtapose an upbeat tempo and colorful melodies with lyrics about resisting the devil. Just after two minutes in, there is a segment that is reminiscent of the introduction of "Journey from Mariabronn." Richard Williams and Kerry Livgren let the guitars rip on this one almost all the way through. Needless to say, this is by far the best of the shorts on this album. At the risk of displaying some bias, I initially believed Livgren penned this one; as it turns out, he had no direct hand in writing it. Bassist Dave Hope and keyboardist Steve Walsh collaborated on this one, and it makes one wonder what the latter's output might have been (considering that he was responsible for the short instrumental "The Spider") had the tenor possessed a desire to write symphonic rock music instead of his questionable attempts at pop.

"Incomudro- Hymn to the Atman" This sprawling and somewhat disjointed piece is an otherwise outstanding way to conclude Song for America. The structure of the introduction is similar to that of "Lamplight Symphony," with a synthesizer carrying yet another memorable melody. At times, however, this one sounds a bit less structured; after the rather naked sounding violin part, the verse comes in, and there are jazzy guitar licks tossed in here and there throughout. I can't say I enjoy the delay effect placed on Walsh's voice, but this may be due to me having first heard this on a live recording. The lyrics again reflect reincarnation, but do so in an even more mystical and poetic way than "Apercu" from the previous album. Every musician gets his opportunity to shine on this finisher, including Ehart. Dave Hope has his diminished bass runs, Steinhardt plays his violin, there's fitting guitar, and organ and keyboard solos galore. Four and a half minutes in, there is a synthesizer solo that is suggestive of Camel's "Lunar Sea." And then there's an ominous gong. This percussive interruption, which may make one think that Cthulhu has arrived to feed, is actually the harbinger of a different monster- that of Ehart and his thousand (drum) heads. He brings the song back around to set it up for a second verse (nine minutes in, no less). Ehart is also the creature responsible for building up the amazing ending, one with a screaming guitar solo and a rising chorus of instruments that culminate in a finale of a prolonged sound of thunder. This is when the listener may breathe.