Customer Reviews

Kansas: There's Know Place Like Home

5 star:		(59)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

One word - EPIC. This DVD is amazing. Kansas is amazing. Ehart, Williams, Walsh, Greer and Ragsdale joined forces with a 50-piece symphony for an unforgettable performance. Let's get down to business! Steve Walsh has shocked me and delivered an absolutely knock-out performance. He hits every single note and his voice sounds fresh and vibrant. This was the best I've heard him since 1990. He especially shines on "Ghosts, "Nobody's Home," "The Other Side," and "Dust..". Ehart's drumming is so powerful and it's such a pleasure to watch his technique. Greer was fantastic on bass and even more so on the backing vocals. When he harmonizes with Walsh a great blend is created. Rich Williams was really on his game, especially on "The Wall" and "Carry On". But the guy who was the most impressive and fun to watch was Ragsdale. This guy has such flair and showmanship. As good as Robby Steinhardt was, Ragsdale is a flashier and more exciting player. If this wasn't enough we get guest appearances from Kerry Livgren and Steve Morse. The latter plays such a fiery lead on "Musicatto" it's hard to believe he's human. Livgren was exceptional as well and it was cool to see him playing a pipe organ during "The Wall". Of course there are 50 other stars of the show - the symphony. Their performance added such beauty to all the epic songs and meshed so well with the band. It was truly a match made in heaven. "Nobody's Home" was especially moving. The conductor was fun to watch too. Quite simply, this DVD captures Kansas on one of their very best nights. It should also be noted that the camera work and lighting are spectacular. Without question this DVD not only blows Live At The Whiskey and Device-Voice-Drum away, it obliterates them. The setlist is comprised from 10 different albums, so there's something here for Kansas fans of any era. No fan should be without this gem. Highly recommended.

Wow, what a DVD. I really didn't expect this. A long time coming and never too late. I witnessed a well made and produced show. I also witnessed a band that should still be taken very seriously. First, I'm a hugh Kansas fan along with other Prog Groups like Dream Theater, Porcupine Tree, Spock's Beard, Neal Morse and others. I've collected all Kansas recordings, DVD's, along with these other groups. Device Voice Drum is a fantastic quality DVD in both picture and sound and wondered how they could outperform that and compete with live DVD shows from these other groups. They did, flat out. The lighting, picture quality, sound, camera angles, orchestra, guest players (Kerry Livgren, Steve Morse), song selection and group positioning, all make this a superior quality show for any Rock or Progressive Rock Fan. The Dream Theater Score DVD is exceptional, bigger than life,powerful,all encompasing and very emotional. This Kansas DVD in some ways matches this and in someways outperforms it. The show almost has a Trans-Siberian Show quality feel to it. If you've been to one of their shows you'll now what I mean. It's a production! With David Ragsdale as the front man the band has this youthful, high energy feel to it. In comes the legendary and visionary Kerry Livgren and what more could you ask for. Well you get one more thing, Steve Morse. Look and Listen to the Chemistry with Steve and David with the rest of the band. They absolutely look great together on stage. Talking about power,youthfulness and energy to go head to head with these other bands is envisioned. The original lineup could be fathers to players of some of these other groups but with David and Steve Morse up Front you have the link to really compete and raise the bar again with Prog Rock. By the way, Buy this DVD and listen to Musicatto and the Bonus Track Down The Road and you will see this enormous potential. I Hope Phil feels and sees what most of us Kansas and music fans would like to see, a new studio album with this lineup. You made this awesome DVD happen, .....NEXT!!!!

Having been a Kansas fan for 35 years, this is a true "treasure". Considering the budget involved, the audio and video quality is quite good. The band is spot on on all songs. Steve Walsh sounds the best he has in years. Billy Greer is also a very good vocalist and compliments Walsh extemely well. David Ragsdale is amazing on violin. Rich Williams provides a "thick" guitar rhythm section. Steve Morse is incredible on the few songs he plays on. Then there is Kerry Livgren. The MAIN writer of Kansas's greatest works. He is only on (3) songs. For reason's unknown to me-he DOES NOT play on "Icarus :Borne On Wings Of Steel". His piercing leads are clearly missing on this one. That being aside, it is a great complilation of a tremendous band's body of work over the past 35 years. I would highly recommend this to all Kansas fans.

Words cannot possibly do justice to the absolute joy I felt when first watching this DVD! As a RABID Kansas fanatic, I have everything from the band available and, while I was looking forward to this DVD already, like alot of people, I was somewhat "worried" how the voice of the great Steve Walsh would hold up after all these years (I would assess his voice at about 20% of its potential on "Live At the Whisky", about 20-40% on both "Freaks Of Nature" & "Always Never The Same", about 60% on "Somewhere to Elsewhere", and at around 60-80% on their last major DVD "Device Voice Drum" [although the strain and effort was still noticeable throughout all releases, even if is less noticeable on most of the new songs which one doesn't have the obvious option of comparing prior versions. Funny enough, Walsh sounds 100% live in concert, but I digress]). Well, I have to tell you, he sounds fantastic: 100% or darn close to it and, when one considers his age and the fact this is a LIVE document, not to mention his prior uneven recorded output as of late, I am even MORE impressed (so, yes: we can all get over our "vocal" obsessions with "Two For The Show" LOL)! As for the music and other musicians: outstanding, as always (and nice to see "Ghosts", "Rainmaker", and "Musicatto" in the set!). In fact, without the intentionally grainy film look of "Device Voice Drum" to 'hamper' things, I believe strongly that this is their greatest live document to date (honorable mention: the fantastic and out of print VHS only release "The Best of Kansas" from 1983 [Omaha, July 1982, John Elefante; A+ show]). And, with the guest appearances of the great Kerry Livgren and Steve Morse, what more could a fan ask for? Ok, it would have been nice to see John Elefante step out of the wings and perform "Play the Game Tonight" (and even have ole Robby come back for a song or two), but you can't have it all. Bottom line: get this asap!!!!

There have been plenty of comments made on the venue and memories of rock concerts past so I will not go there. For anyone with kids out there, this video should be mandatory viewing. While I think there is plenty of talent in today's musicians, overall there is an incredible lack of creativity and for lack of a better word texture. The music and lyrics of Kansas are thought provoking and timeless. The performance showed artistry with each player showing full command of their instruments. Without specifics and in all fairness - there is a mistake or two that musicians may notice but the gig is live and brilliant. The footage is edited well and shows the band really enjoying the night and the atmosphere. Steve Walsh and Billy Greer are in extremely fine voice and the harmonies (with David Ragsdale included) are spot on. While it is a bit sad to see this concert without Robby Steinhardt, David Ragsdale could not have been better and displays virtuouso chops. A few words about Steve Walsh - like everyone I remember what I believe to be one of the finest voices I have had the privilege to hear in my lifetime. He has openly admitted to some poor decisions in his past and the impact it had on his voice and his life. With that said, this performance is truly amazing and inspiring. There has been some innuendo about pitch correction technology on other sites and while I am no sound pro - I frankly could care less. There has been a steady improvement in his voice since Somewhere to Elsewhere (which was still amazing) and the inherent quality of his voice and talent is again at the forefront of the band. Listen to Cheyenne Anthem - if you are not moved - you are not human. I have said this to many reviews of the past - Steve Walsh at 70% is still remarkable. While he has developed some techniques to overcome years of "wear and tear" my thought is simply, Bravo. . . Would give anything to buy the guy a beer and thank him for sharing his gifts. As for the rest of the band and the guest appearances by Kerry Livgren and Steve Morse and of course the Washburn University Orchestra - it just does not get any better. Buy the DVD - top three concert video in my collection - wish I could have been there. . . .

TOTALLY amazing!!!the best steve walsh of the last 20 years,trully remarkable.he is near 60 and after all these difficulties in his life he sings like that,UNBELIEVABLE!!!ALSO it's great that morse and kerry played in the show.very good songs that were included (on the other side,hold on,and ghosts along with rainmaker,that was trully amazing)i hope kansas will make a dvd for their 40 years anniversary!!!
chris from greece

I don't often feel impelled to write a review, especially since so many on this "Kansas" DVD have been done, but the sound, visual & perfommance quality are so excellent on this disc I felt I wanted to add my "two cents". I have lived in Topeka since 1960 and went to High School with a couple of the Kansas group, so even though I don't know them personally, I feel akin to them as former classmates and neighbors. This concert (and I have a collection of many other rock concerts by other bands/groups) is by far one of the best you will see. The camera work is especially appealing to me (and I think it will be agreeable to most) and the music quality and performance is first class all the way. I disagree with the review written by a friend from Salina, KS....the Washburn University Symphony only adds to the concert and does not distract, and I also think Steve Walsh is in fine voice and the harmonies are excellent. But that's just my opinion. I Hope you choose to find out for yourself and be pleasantly surprised at this awesome concert on Blu-Ray DVD (or if you don't have Blu-Ray, get the regular DVD). Dorothy said it right: There's no place like home!

I am old, and I am from Kansas. I heard this band when they were new and saw them play many times over the years. While I appreciate their embrace of their Kansas roots by producing a live DVD in Topeka's Washburn University auditiorium, and I thank them for past greatness and transcendent moments of musicality, this release is troubling. Granted, Steve Walsh was one of the great rock voices in his day, but the magic is long gone. You just wince to hear how his voice has changed. The symphony seems superfluous to music that already sounds syphonic as a six-piece ensemble, and I feel it dulls the edge of the rock sound in spots. The video direction disappoints as well, with the director cutting to a wide shot just as Kerry Livgren launches into on of the most powerful, understated guitar solos of all time during "Hold On". (Someday I'd like to see a concert video that truly recreates the experience of sitting in the best seat, seeing the whole show at once, rather than some director's shot choices.)
The best track of this release is the bonus track of "Down The Road" which they recorded during the afternoon sound check. This is the Kansas I love, rocking out hard and unencumbered by a huge symphony and the strain of making "The DVD". Steve Morse seems to scare violinist Ragsdale during this song! One could argue that this track, alone, makes it worth the price of the disc. If you're a fan of the group, sans Robbie and Dave with only a cameo from Kerry, you need to see the show. I'm glad they made it, and I suppose having seen them in the old days is a handicap for us geezers on this one. Any Kansas performance is a gift in these musically-starved times.

I'm very happy I bought this blu-ray Kansas concert DVD. The video and sound quality are outstanding. Most likely due to the fact that it was recorded in 2009. The show takes place in a smaller college auditorium and provides for great acoustics and an intimate setting. The occumpanying orchestra is also a nice addition and works well with the selected songs. The band itself plays extremely well and provides a very entertaining show. Another band that has proven that their musical talents don't go away with age. Most of the tracks are from their older albums, which suited me fine as I feel this was their best work. There are a few newer songs too that I hadn't heard before, but I came to appreciate them as well. I especially enjoyed the bonus track of an "audio check" of the empty auditorium, which becomes a very good rendition of the song "Down the Road". I believe other Kansas fans also would not be disappointed with this DVD. One thing to note for surround sound listeners is that for some reason the default audio setting is stereo only. You'll have to go into the audio options on the DVD menu before playing the DVD to be able get the 5.1 Surround sound audio. This is especially odd because the "preview menu" is in surround sound without having to select it like you do for the show. Perhaps its just my blu-ray player, but I don't think so.

Being a closet fan for years, I had received a Bluray player for Christmas. I started looking for any concert Blurays discs on the market. I came across this DVD and decided to buy it. I am so glad I did. I have many, many concert DVDs and this is the best one. The video is unbelievable, audio is great, the band is playing inspired and then to have the orchestra behind them was the icing on the cake.

If you like one Kansas song, buy this DVD. The bonus down the road song is my favorite.