Classic Rockers to Hit Westhampton Beach

Whether the iconic melody of "Carry On Wayward Son" brings you back to family road trips in a wood-paneled Country Squire station wagon or the first time you made the high score on Guitar Hero 2, three decades of music fans have fallen in love with Kansas’s 1977 hit.

But unlike other classic rock bands, whose celebrity status has faded like the distant sound of a clanging cowbell, Kansas’s consummate musicians continue to create music as well as perform live shows around the globe.

“We’re kinda like the Mt. Rushmore of rock,” said Kansas’s original guitarist Rich Williams. “We’ve been doing this a long time. Everybody knows us and our music.”

This year, Williams, along with original members Phil Ehart and Steve Walsh, as well as later band mates Billy Greer and Dave Ragsdale, have embarked on an international concert tour, playing 80 shows across the United States and Europe, including one at the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center on Saturday at 8 p.m.

 "This is their only New York stop on their tour," said Clare Bisceglia, executive director of the performing arts center.

Bisceglia said the performing arts center had a rare opportunity to host Kansas and they are looking forward to it.

"Who does not love 'Dust in the Wind?'" said Bisceglia.

According to Williams, the tour follows a DVD release of  "There’s No Place Like Home," a concert filmed in February 2009, which celebrated Kansas’ 35^th anniversary and a reuniting of original band members in their hometown of Topeka. 

The show featured a retrospective of the band’s songs, starting from their self-titled debut in 1973 through 2000, with Washburn University’s 50-piece orchestra accompanying  the rockers.

Williams said studio albums are great, but performing still gives him the biggest thrill.

“A live band with real musicians is becoming a kind of rarity, said Williams, who lives in Atlanta. “So much of entertainment isn’t about making music. For us going out and performing our material for fans ... well, that is where the real joy is."

Recalling the band's early days, before the multi-platinum albums and big money deals,  Williams said they were just a bunch of young guys who loved music, played in local bars and dreamed of scoring a record deal.

When legendary music producer Don Kirshner signed them to his label in 1977, things moved quickly.

With the release of the  band’s fourth album, Leftoverture, everything changed and Kansas was launched into the upper echelon of the rock-and-roll stratosphere with ‘Carry on Wayward Son’, which peaked at #11 on Billboard’s Hot 100 and help to sell five million albums in the U.S.

“When you see what's behind the curtain so many times, you don’t expect that much,” Williams said reflecting on his lengthy musical career. “Now, I enjoy music more than ever, because I'm in the moment. Back then it all happened so fast, I didn’t have time to enjoy it. “

For more information on Kansas’s upcoming show at the Westhampton Performing Arts Center, click here or for additional tour dates visit www.kansasband.com.