Two for the Show (Kansas album)

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Two for the Show
Kansas - Two for the Show.jpg
Cover photo inspired by Norman Rockwell's painting "The Charwomen"
Live album by
Kansas
ReleasedOctober 1978
Recorded1977, 1978 with Record Plant Mobile Recording Unit
Venue The Palladium, New York City,
Pine Knob Music Theatre, Clarkson, Michigan,
Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, Maryland
Genre Progressive rock, hard rock
Length80:12 (original album)
148:22 (2008 expanded and remastered edition)
Label Kirshner/CBS, Epic
Producer Kansas
Kansas chronology
Point of Know Return
(1977)		Two for the Show
(1978)		 Monolith
(1979)
Singles from Two for the Show
  1. "Lonely Wind"
    Released: January 1979 [1]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [2]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide Star full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [3]

Two for the Show is the first live album by American progressive rock band Kansas, released in 1978. The album was recorded over the course of the band's three previous tours in 1977 and 1978. It was certified Gold and then Platinum shortly after its release. [4] In 2008, a remastered and expanded edition was released to commemorate the album's 30th anniversary.

Contents

One single, "Lonely Wind," was released from the album. The single version was edited to under 3 minutes, and included a small amount of the piano solo that precedes it on the album. It received a reasonable amount of airplay and rose to No. 60 on the pop charts. [5] Record World called it "a characteristic Kansas ballad with a lush high harmony hook." [6]

In addition, Kirshner Records issued a promotional album of edited selections from the release, entitled Kansas Mini Concert on the spine and label, and Two for the Show Special Limited Edition on the cover. It features "Lonely Wind," "Dust in the Wind," "Song for America," and "The Wall." The same songs appear on both sides, and the first side is unbanded, meaning there is no indication on the vinyl of where each song begins. This promo album was issued with both a black and a white cover.

Track listing

Original 1978 LP version

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Original AlbumLength
1."Song for America" Kerry Livgren Song for America (1975)7:31
2."Point of Know Return" Steve Walsh, Phil Ehart, Robby Steinhardt Point of Know Return (1977)3:07
3."Paradox"Livgren, WalshPoint of Know Return4:09
4."Icarus - Borne on Wings of Steel"Livgren Masque (1975)5:58
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Original AlbumLength
5."Portrait (He Knew)"Livgren, WalshPoint of Know Return5:19
6."Carry On Wayward Son"Livgren Leftoverture (1976)4:38
7."Journey from Mariabronn"Livgren, Walsh Kansas (1974)8:55
Side three
No.TitleWriter(s)Original AlbumLength
1."Dust in the Wind" (featuring Rich Williams acoustic guitar solo)LivgrenPoint of Know Return6:19
2."Lonely Wind" (featuring Kerry Livgren piano solo)WalshKansas4:29
3."Mysteries and Mayhem"Livgren, WalshMasque4:01
4."Excerpt from Lamplight Symphony"LivgrenSong for America2:39
5."The Wall"Livgren, WalshLeftoverture4:54
Side four
No.TitleWriter(s)Original AlbumLength
6."Closet Chronicles"Walsh, LivgrenPoint of Know Return6:55
7."Magnum Opus"
  • a. "Father Padilla Meets the Perfect Gnat"
  • b. "Howling at the Moon"
  • c. "Man Overboard"
  • d. "Industry on Parade"
  • e. "Release the Beavers"
  • f. "Gnat Attack"
Livgren, Walsh, Rich Williams, Dave Hope, Ehart, SteinhardtLeftoverture11:18

* "Closet Chronicles" was omitted from the original CD release due to time constraints but appears on the remastered version of The Best of Kansas released in 1999, and appears on the second CD of the remastered version of Two for the Show.

2008 remastered version

Two for the Show was re-released as a 2-CD set in 2008 to commemorate the 30th Anniversary of the album with a second disc of songs that did not appear on the original album (except "Closet Chronicles" which was included on the original vinyl, excluded from the original CD release, and appears here on the second CD along with the bonus material) and a 24-page booklet.

Disc One

No.TitleWriter(s)Original AlbumLength
1."Song for America"LivgrenSong for America7:29
2."Point of Know Return"Walsh, Ehart, SteinhardtPoint of Know Return3:07
3."Paradox"Livgren, WalshPoint of Know Return4:09
4."Icarus - Borne on Wings of Steel"LivgrenMasque5:58
5."Portrait (He Knew)"Livgren, WalshPoint of Know Return5:18
6."Carry On Wayward Son"LivgrenLeftoverture4:38
7."Journey from Mariabronn"Livgren, WalshKansas8:55
8."Dust in the Wind" (featuring Rich Williams acoustic guitar solo)LivgrenPoint of Know Return6:17
9."Lonely Wind" (featuring Kerry Livgren piano solo)WalshKansas4:29
10."Mysteries and Mayhem"Livgren, WalshMasque4:00
11."Excerpt from Lamplight Symphony"LivgrenSong for America2:38
12."The Wall"Livgren, WalshLeftoverture4:58
13."Magnum Opus
  • a. Father Padilla Meets the Perfect Gnat
  • b. Howling at the Moon
  • c. Man Overboard
  • d. Industry on Parade
  • e. Release the Beavers
  • f. Gnat Attack"
Livgren, Walsh, Williams, Hope, Ehart, SteinhardtLeftoverture11:14

Disc Two

No.TitleWriter(s)Original AlbumLength
1."Incomudro - Hymn to the Atman (Intro)/Hopelessly Human"LivgrenSong for America/Point of Know Return8:42
2."Child of Innocence"LivgrenMasque7:47
3."Belexes"LivgrenKansas4:34
4."Cheyenne Anthem"LivgrenLeftoverture6:55
5."Lonely Street"Walsh, Hope, Williams, EhartSong for America8:20
6."Miracles Out of Nowhere"LivgrenLeftoverture7:59
7."The Spider" (featuring Phil Ehart drum solo)WalshPoint of Know Return7:41
8."Closet Chronicles"Walsh, LivgrenPoint of Know Return6:55
9."Down the Road"Walsh, LivgrenSong for America3:44
10."Sparks of the Tempest"Livgren, WalshPoint of Know Return5:19
11."Bringing It Back" J.J. Cale Kansas7:07

All of the bonus tracks were recorded at the time of the recording of the album but omitted from the original album for various reasons including time constraints. Different live versions of "Bringing It Back," "Down the Road," "Cheyenne Anthem," and "Sparks of the Tempest" appeared as bonus tracks on the remastered versions of Kansas,Song for America,Leftoverture, and Point of Know Return respectively. A different, earlier live version of "Lonely Street" appears as a bonus track on the later recorded U.S. version Live at the Whiskey (a different live version of "Belexes" and "Journey from Mariabronn" appear as a single bonus track on the German version of this release, available on iTunes and Apple Music)

In 2010, Legacy released the Kansas entry in Legacy's Boxed Set series known as The Music of Kansas. The 3rd of 3 discs from this Boxed Set is culled entirely from the double CD version of this album, featuring live cuts from both the original and expanded release, marking the first compilation to feature any of the previously unreleased tracks. A 4 disc version of this release was also issued a year later.

Personnel

Kansas
Production
2008 remastering

Charts

Chart (1978)Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report) [8] 95
Canada Top Albums/CDs ( RPM ) [9] 29
US Billboard 200 [10] 32

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA) [11] Platinum1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

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References

  1. ↑ Strong, Martin Charles (1995). The Great Rock Discography. p. 449. ISBN   9780862415419.
  2. ↑ Rivadavia, Eduardo. Two for the Show at AllMusic
  3. ↑ Cross, Charles R. (2004). "Kansas". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp.  446. ISBN   0-7432-0169-8.
  4. ↑ "RIAA Gold & Platinum Database: Search for Kansas". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved December 26, 2017.
  5. ↑ "Kansas Chart History: Hot 100". Billboard.com. Billboard . Retrieved December 24, 2017.
  6. ↑ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. January 13, 1979. p. 1. Retrieved February 12, 2023.
  7. 1 2 "Two for the Show - Kansas | Credits | AllMusic".
  8. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
  9. ↑ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0071a". RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 4, 2021.
  10. ↑ "Kansas Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 4, 2021.
  11. ↑ "American album certifications – Kansas – Two for the Show". Recording Industry Association of America.
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