In the Spirit of Things

Infobox Album |
Name = In the Spirit of Things
Type = Album
Artist = Kansas


Released = 1988
Recorded = 1988
Genre = Progressive Rock
Length = 52:54
Label = MCA
Producer = Phil Ehart,
Bob Ezrin,
Greg Ladanyi,
Paul Maxon
Reviews =
* Allmusic Rating|3|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:g3520r3ac48x~T1 link]
Last album = "Power"
(1986)
This album = "In the Spirit of Things"
(1988)
Next album = "Live at the Whisky"
(1992)

"In the Spirit of Things" is the 11th studio album, and 13th overall, by American rock band Kansas, released in 1988 (see 1988 in music). It is a very loosely organized concept album telling the story of a flood hitting the real Kansas town of Neosho Falls in the early 1950s. The album is often cited by lead vocalist, keyboardist, and songwriter Steve Walsh as his favorite Kansas album. Its odd mixture of hard rock, progressive rock, and '80s pop ballads (forced on the band by MCA Records, which selected outside songwriters in an attempt to generate hit singles) failed to catch on with a mass audience but it remains a cult favorite among Kansas fans.

The album was Kansas's last studio effort for a major label. It didn't receive much by way of promotion, as MCA dropped a slew of "older" artists shortly after its release and famously switched its attention to current younger acts such as Tiffany. Kansas got caught in that decision and the album was a commercial failure. The label did produce several promotional materials for the record, though, including a glossy video for "Stand Beside Me," which was played regularly on MTV and allowed the single to hit the album rock charts, the very last Kansas single to chart in any format. Other songs were released in odd formats, such as a 12" promotional single of "I Counted on Love," an import CD single of "House on Fire," and a small CD single of "Stand Beside Me." The album also marked the last Kansas release to appear in vinyl format.

A tour in support of this album included a broadcast by the King Biscuit Flower Hour, which many years later released the show as a CD.

Track listing

#"Ghosts" (Walsh, Morse, Bob Ezrin) – 4:18
#"One Big Sky" (Michael Ehmig, Howard Kleinfeld, Walsh, Ezrin, Ehart) – 5:17
#"Inside of Me" (Morse, Walsh) – 4:42
#"One Man, One Heart" (Mark Spiro, Dann Huff) – 4:20
#"House on Fire" (Walsh, Morse, Ezrin, Ehart) – 4:42
#"Once in a Lifetime" (Antonia Armato, Dennis Morgan, Albert Hammond) – 4:14
#"Stand Beside Me" (Marc Jordan, Bruce Gaitsch) – 3:28
#"I Counted on Love" (Morse, Walsh) – 3:33
#"The Preacher" (Morse, Walsh) – 4:18
#"Rainmaker" (Walsh, Morse, Ezrin) – 6:44
#"T.O. Witcher [instrumental] " (Morse, Walsh) – 1:39
#"Bells of Saint James" (Walsh, Morse) – 5:39

Personnel

*Phil Ehart - drums
*Billy Greer - bass, vocals
*Steve Morse - guitar, vocals
*Steve Walsh - keyboard, vocals
*Rich Williams - guitar

Additional personnel
*Terry Brock - vocals, background vocals
*Rev. James Cleveland - vocals, background vocals
*Steve Croes - keyboard, synclavier
*Bob Ezrin - percussion, vocals, background vocals
*Ricky Keller - synthesizer
*John Pierce - bass, fretless bass
*Greg Robert - keyboard, vocals, background vocals
*Southern California Community Choir - chorus
*Christopher Yavelow - synthesizer, Kurzweil synthesizer

Production

*Producers: Phil Ehart, Bob Ezrin, Greg Ladanyi, Paul Maxon
*Engineers: Bob Ezrin, Stan Katayama, Greg Ladanyi, Bob Loftus, Brendan O'Brien, Garth Richardson
*Assistant engineers: Lawrence Fried, Stan Katayama, Edd Miller
*Mixing: Bob Ezrin, Greg Ladanyi, Garth Richardson
*Mastering: Stephen Marcussen, Doug Sax
*Drum programming: Ricky Keller
*Keyboard programming: Ricky Keller, Greg Robert
*Production supervisor: Robert Hrycyna
*Technical supervisor: Robert Hrycyna
*Equipment assistant: Jack Adams
*Arrangers: Bob Ezrin, Kansas
*Art direction: Storm Thorgerson
*Photography: Paul Maxon, Tony May, Glenn Wexler, front cover Derek Burnett
*Stylist: Jon Crossland

Charts

Album - Billboard (North America)

Singles - Billboard (North America)