EXTENDED VERSIONS

I almost feel as though albums from this BMG line of compilations, with their ludicrously deceptive headline of "Extended Versions," shouldn't exist except for the glimmer of hope that someone will catch one of these for two or three bucks in the discount bargain bin at a drug store or a gas station and find something beyond the radio hits that would be the impetus for their further appreciation. However, when the label releases material from what is in essence one of the most lackluster performances of the band, from a tour supporting one of their most lackluster albums, that hope isn't held very high. The music comes from the King Biscuit Flower Hour show, a decent performance, but instead of being "extended," the tracks are truncated and rearranged for reasons that can only make sense to a crew with money on their minds and with no appreciation for artistic decisions or accuracy. The performance was mediocre enough to begin with, and then to take that, cut it down, rearrange it, and then package it as "Extended Versions" is just laughable- I would not even recommend this disc to those new to Kansas- save the few bucks and put it toward a real album.