Biography
Kerry Livgren helped establish the 1970s supergroup Kansas and supplied much of its early material. Classical composers, above all the Romantics Liszt and Wagner, shaped his childhood listening habits and steered his writing toward expansive, orchestral arrangements that favored grandeur and symphonic scale. During the late 1960s and early 1970s he performed in several ensembles, among them the first versions of Kansas that already included Dave Hope and Phil Ehart; in 1974 he entered White Clover, whose lineup featured vocalist Steve Walsh and violinist Robbie Steinhardt, and the band soon adopted the Kansas name. Within the group Livgren divided songwriting responsibilities with Walsh, yet the distinctive intricacy of the music and the lyrics that chronicled an ongoing quest for meaning increasingly traced back to him. In 1976, while Walsh struggled with writer’s block, Livgren composed nearly every track on Leftoverture, among them the hit single “Carry on Wayward Son.”
The following year Point of Know Return brought still greater commercial success, anchored by the existential Livgren composition “Dust in the Wind.” After exploring assorted spiritual traditions, Livgren embraced the pantheistic teachings of Urantia, and several songs on the subsequent Monolith album reflect those ideas. While touring in support of Monolith he converted to Christianity, an example later followed by Dave Hope. The Christian perspective became prominent on the next Kansas releases, especially the 1982 album Vinyl Confessions, and on Livgren’s debut solo effort Seeds of Change. During the Vinyl Confessions sessions additional Christian musicians gravitated toward the band, including John Elefante, Warren Ham (formerly of Bloodrock), and Michael Gleason.
Discontent with both the Drastic Measures album and the band’s evolving direction, and eager to express his faith openly, Livgren joined Hope, Ham, Gleason, and drummer Dennis Holt to form AD, a project that retained his elaborate compositional approach while adapting it to an 1980s production aesthetic and allowing explicit religious themes. AD issued three albums—Time Line, Art of the State, and Reconstructions (the last appearing after Warren Ham’s exit). Contractual restrictions confined Livgren to releasing music solely through Kansas, so the final two AD records appeared only in the Christian market; combined with tours limited largely to clubs and churches, the arrangement kept the group’s work largely invisible to mainstream audiences. Mounting debts forced the band’s quick dissolution. To settle those obligations Livgren and Ham hastily assembled Prime Mover, a set of previously unrecorded AD songs.
Livgren eventually turned to full-time farming, issuing albums only sporadically while continuing to compose and making occasional appearances with the reunited Kansas lineup. The 2000 album Somewhere to Elsewhere was tracked at his Kansas studio with all the original members plus bassist Billy Greer, and every song on the record was written by Livgren.
The following year Point of Know Return brought still greater commercial success, anchored by the existential Livgren composition “Dust in the Wind.” After exploring assorted spiritual traditions, Livgren embraced the pantheistic teachings of Urantia, and several songs on the subsequent Monolith album reflect those ideas. While touring in support of Monolith he converted to Christianity, an example later followed by Dave Hope. The Christian perspective became prominent on the next Kansas releases, especially the 1982 album Vinyl Confessions, and on Livgren’s debut solo effort Seeds of Change. During the Vinyl Confessions sessions additional Christian musicians gravitated toward the band, including John Elefante, Warren Ham (formerly of Bloodrock), and Michael Gleason.
Discontent with both the Drastic Measures album and the band’s evolving direction, and eager to express his faith openly, Livgren joined Hope, Ham, Gleason, and drummer Dennis Holt to form AD, a project that retained his elaborate compositional approach while adapting it to an 1980s production aesthetic and allowing explicit religious themes. AD issued three albums—Time Line, Art of the State, and Reconstructions (the last appearing after Warren Ham’s exit). Contractual restrictions confined Livgren to releasing music solely through Kansas, so the final two AD records appeared only in the Christian market; combined with tours limited largely to clubs and churches, the arrangement kept the group’s work largely invisible to mainstream audiences. Mounting debts forced the band’s quick dissolution. To settle those obligations Livgren and Ham hastily assembled Prime Mover, a set of previously unrecorded AD songs.
Livgren eventually turned to full-time farming, issuing albums only sporadically while continuing to compose and making occasional appearances with the reunited Kansas lineup. The 2000 album Somewhere to Elsewhere was tracked at his Kansas studio with all the original members plus bassist Billy Greer, and every song on the record was written by Livgren.
Albums
