GC384QH ROCK BAND #42 - KANSAS (Traditional Cache) in Virginia, United States created by Jtmlam59

This cache has been archived.

Jtmlam59: Rock band series is done. Tired of negative logs from fellow catchers. We have not been as active over the past 18 months due to family medical issues requiring a lot of travel out of state (father dying of cancer), moving parents into assisted living, helping dad who is on hospice care, and getting their home cleaned out and ready to sell. We have had no time to maintain caches, so I am just going to archive all of them. 😡

To other catchers who know what we have been going through and those who have enjoyed this series, we appreciate your visits and wish you the best. Cache on! 😎

GC384QH ▼

A cache by Jtmlam59 Message this owner

Hidden : 11/21/2011

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Size: Size: micro (micro)

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Geocache Description:

Typical hide. Kansas is one of LAM & my favorite progressive rock bands. We have seen them in concert many times in the past 12 years. They put on a lively show and their musical talent is still there after all these years.
As you are heading out to get this one, why don't you just grab that Ipod and put on "Song for America", "Icarus", or "Miracles out of nowhere" because you will need a miracle to find this one. :-)

Kansas is an American rock band that became popular in the 1970s initially on Album-Oriented Rock charts, and later with hit singles such as "Carry On Wayward Son" and "Dust in the Wind". They tour in North America and Europe.
Dave Hope (bass), Phil Ehart (drums, percussion), and Kerry Livgren (guitars, keyboards, synthesizers) formed a progressive rock group in 1970 in their hometown of Topeka, Kansas (Steve Walsh is from St. Joseph, Missouri), along with vocalists Lynn Meredith and Joel Warne, and keyboardist Don Montre, keyboardist Dan Wright, and saxophonist Larry Baker.

A year earlier, Meredith, Montre, Wright and Livgren were performing in a band called The Reasons Why. After changing the band's name to Saratoga, they started playing Livgren's original material with Scott Kessler playing bass and Zeke Lowe on drums. In 1970, they changed the band's name again to Kansas and merged with members of rival Topeka progressive rock outfit White Clover. This early Kansas group, which lasted until 1971 when Ehart and Hope and some of the others left to reform White Clover, is sometimes referred to as Kansas I.

Ehart was replaced by Zeke Lowe and later Brad Schulz, Hope was replaced by Rod Mikinski on bass, and Baker was replaced by John Bolton on saxophone and flute. (This lineup is sometimes referred to as Kansas II, and 30 years later would re-form under the name Proto-Kaw.) In 1972, after Ehart returned from England (where he had gone to look for other musicians), he and Hope once again reformed White Clover with Robby Steinhardt (vocals, violin, viola, cello), Steve Walsh (vocals, keyboards, synthesizers, percussion) and Rich Williams (guitars). In 1973 they recruited Livgren from the second Kansas group, which then folded. Eventually they received a recording contract with Don Kirshner's eponymous label and decided to adopt the Kansas name.

1974–1979: Rise to national prominenceThe 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, a mix of American-style boogie-rock and complex, symphonic arrangements with changing time signatures. Steinhardt's violin was a distinctive element of the group's sound and set them apart from other progressive rock groups of the era. The band slowly developed a cult following, due to promotion by Kirshner and extensive touring for the debut album and its two follow-ups, Song for America and Masque.

The band in 1976.Kansas released its fourth album, Leftoverture, in November 1976, which produced a hit single, "Carry On Wayward Son", in 1977. The follow-up, Point of Know Return, released in October 1977, featured the title track and "Dust in the Wind," both hit singles.

Leftoverture and Point each sold over four million copies in the U.S. Both "Carry On Wayward Son" and "Dust in the Wind" were certified gold singles, selling over one million units each. "Dust in the Wind" was certified gold as a digital download by the RIAA in 2005, almost 30 years after selling one million copies as a single. 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.

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 Kaw 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

1980–1984: Creative tensions
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 new-found 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, a born-again Christian who was chosen over other applicants including Sammy Hagar and Doug Pinnick. Elefante 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.

Here are some YouTube videos for Kansas: (visit link) (visit link) (visit link) (visit link)

Congrats to Steve-n-kim and southtexas for the co-FTF!

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Ovfba

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)