Audio Visions

Kansas | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 1, 2008)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sbme Special Mkts.
• ASIN: B0012GMZTA
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,446 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Relentless

2. Anything for You

3. Hold On

4. Loner

5. Curtain of Iron

6. Got to Rock On

7. Don't Open Your Eyes

8. No One Together

9. No Room for a Stranger

10. Back Door

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great last effort by the original Kansas, September 5, 2005

By 

M. A. Scott "Rock and Classical music fan" (Kansas, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Audio Visions (Audio CD)

I've heard some of your other reviewers put down some of these tracks, but I really like every song. I kind of agree that some of the songs have cheesy lyrics, but when this was first released I didn't feel that way at all. I was such a diehard fan I ate up everything they recorded. I think that the first track "Relentless" should have been put out as a single. It is such a heart felt jamming song that I never tire of hearing it. Track two "Anything for you" is a great sounding song instrumentally, but a few of the lyrics are kind of cheesy. The song "No one together" is just an incredible progressive song that I cannot get enough of. "Curtain of iron" is right up their with "No one together", and "Relentless" as my favorite songs on this album. I think Walsh did some good writing on this album. I think he wrote or co-wrote seven of the ten tracks. Little did I know when I saw the AUDIO VISIONS tour in early 1981, that that would be the last time I would ever see the originals all together in concert. At this point in their careers they were no longer a cohesive team like they had been before. I think Walsh didn't like the lyrics about God, and thought they were turning into a Christian group, so he left and formed STREETS where he could write and perform what he wanted.
I would like to thank the sound engineers for making a superb sounding album. When I want to show off my great home stereo I just put this cd on. I don't think they will ever really need to remaster this, but I think Monolith sure could use one. Audio-Visions" is the very last album with the original six that I'm sure your customers should really enjoy.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Shoulda, woulda, coulda, August 26, 2004

By 

Dr. Emil "Tom" Shuffhausen (Central Gulf Coast) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Audio Visions (Audio CD)

This one "shoulda been a contender" and it "woulda" had it been more consistent lyrically and musically...I "coulda" done without a couple of the cheesy tracks here. If you listen, you can hear the sound of the band spltting apart between Walsh's more straight-ahead rock and roll proclivities and Livgren's deeper, complex, spiritual yearnings. I saw them on tour during this period, and while they still retained their legendary stage might, they were not as cohesive. Enough psychoanalysis...what about these songs? Well, "Relentless" is a fantastic, driving rocker with superb lyrics and great, passionate performances all around. "Anything for You" is an unqualified clunker, a real stinker, an amazing letdown that has few equals in the Kansas canon. Dumb lyrics and half-baked music doom this one from the get-go. Thankfully, the band moves quickly back to a peak with "Hold On," a magnificent, gorgeous ballad that is a unique love song: a plea from Livgren to his wife to listen to the call of Christ. This song is both stately and impassioned which explains a lot about its enduring appeal. Walsh's vocal work here ranks with his best ever. So, can the band maintain the momentum gained by "Hold On"? Well, "Loner" makes a valiant attempt. It is a blazing little track, quite unlike anything else the band has done, with Walsh singing his guts out. The whole band really cooks here. And "Curtain of Iron" kicks it up a notch--it has the feel of those classic epics of yore. The lyrics are very prescient, with memorable instrumental passages in a suite-style presentation. But then...catastrophe strikes..."Got to Rock On" is another chessy bit of hokum, and the less said about it, the better. Fortunately, "Don't Open Your Eyes" sets things right--a wild frightmare of a ride that is reminiscent of "Mysteries and Mayhem" from MASQUE, albeit not quite as heavy. Kerry Livgren really steps up with the next track, the classic "No One Together," which is a superb prog presentation...stellar arranging, superb playing, uplifting lyrics, intriguing mood shifts. "No Room for a Stranger" is instantly forgettable and makes one grateful for the fast-forward button. However, the closing track, "Back Door" is a real winner, with a lovely melody, heartfelt words, and an innovative sound--is that bagpipes at the end? Epic/Legacy did a nice job of presenting this CD package and it sounds great. Overall, several tracks here rank among the absolute best that Kansas has ever done...but there are a couple of mis-steps to avoid that knock this one down a star.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The last "real" Kansas album, July 24, 2005

By 

Darth Pariah (North America) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Audio Visions (Audio CD)

Don't get me wrong. "Vinyl Confessions" had its moments, "Drastic Measures" at least had "Fight Fire With Fire", and the post-1986 Steve Walsh-led incarnations certainly were no slouches, but this is the last "real" Kansas album with the original lineup.

Many have mentioned the tension between Walsh and Kerry Livgren. That's noticeable, and sometimes it leads to good music, but other times it leads nowhere. Some of Kansas' best songs are on here: "Relentless", "Curtain of Iron" (the only real epic on offer here) and "Back Door", but there are also sub-par songs like "No Room For A Stranger" and "Got To Rock On" (though I have good memories of WLS in Chicago playing this to death throughout my freshman year of high school).

Basically, what you get here is a Kansas album, albeit a divided one. One can tell that the band was splitting into two camps: the Livgren/Dave Hope "Christian rock band" and the Steve Walsh "we're just a band" camps.

The sound and production are good, Phil Ehart's drums sound BIG, and the guitars are well upfront most of the time. However, they have certainly done better songs.

It's ironic that the personnel roster was headed by "Kansas is STILL:", because after this, Kansas as we knew it would be no more.