Tag: A. D.

Kerry Livgren – Seeds of Change – 1980

Kerry Livgren made the big announcement in 1980 that he had become a born-again Christian. That caused a bit of friction with some of his bandmates in Kansas, although they continued making albums together after that. The album cover features a baby in the womb of a diamond. Kansas albums were always big on imagery, and I think this could be discussed at length (by someone), but the baby seems to be a pretty clear reference to being born again. Notably though, Kerry did the majority of his Christian themed writing for his solo projects and with his new band, A. D. This record includes vocals from Christian rock artist Mylon Lefevre on a few tracks, as well as lead vocals by famed metal guitarist Ronnie James Dio on “Mask Of The Great Deceiver” and “To Live For The King.” This is a 7 song affair, with some marathon song lengths reaching over 8 minutes long. There is only 1 song under 5 minutes on the album. The musical offering here continues on from a consistent arc where Kerry left off with Kansas at the time. It’s a record that would not isolate any fans, and the high level of talent he had to make this album certainly shows. It’s a great transition album for him, aptly named “Seeds of Change.”

Tracklist
1 – Just One Way – 5:46
2 – Mask Of The Great Deceiver – 7:36
3 – How Can You Live – 4:13
4 – Whiskey Seed – 5:33
5 – To Live For The King – 4:55
6 – Down To The Core – 5:18
7 – Ground Zero – 8:36

Credits
Kerry Livgren – Producer, Songwriter, Guitars, Keyboards, Bass, Percussion, Vocals
Brad Aaron – Producer, Background Vocals
Barriemore Barlow – Drums
Bobby Campo – Trumpet
Ronnie James Dio – Vocals
Phil Ehart – Drums
John Fristoe – Background Vocals
Gary Gilbert – Bass
Paul Goddard – Bass
Joey Jelf – Background Vocals
Darryl Kutz – Harmonica
Mylon LeFevre – Vocals
Victoria Livgren – Background Vocals
Davey Moire – Vocals
David Pack – Vocals
Jeff Pollard – Vocals
Robby Steinhardt – Violin
John Thompson – Drums
Steve Venezia – Background Vocals
Steve Walsh – Vocals
Donna Williams – Background Vocals

Companies, etc.
Distributed By – CBS Records
Manufactured By – CBS Records
Phonographic Copyright (p) – CBS Inc.
Copyright (c) – Corn & Blood, Inc.
Recorded At – Axis Sound Studio
Mastered At – Sterling Sound
Published By – Don Kirshner Music
Published By – Blackwood Music Publishing

Kansas – Drastic Measures – 1983

When it became public that Kerry Livgren of Kansas had been “born again” nobody knew what was next for the iconic 70s band. Drastic Measures is their first recording after that and it is a stellar album by any measure. The sound on Drastic Measures is harder than the sound that Kansas was known for due to songs like Dust in the Wind. The 80s demanded a little more modern and hard rock sound, and they delivered, but not without bringing in the softer sounds needed to bring the lyrics home, or the mood of a song like “Andi.” The opening track “Fire With Fire” lets you know they mean business right away. Even though it’s at a slower pace, “Going Through The Motions” still carries a strong rock vibe with a strong rhythm in it. After this album, Kerry put his efforts into his new band “AD” which was mostly new members, other than Dave Hope.

Tracklist
1 – Fight Fire With Fire – 3:40
2 – Everybody’s My Friend – 4:09
3 – Mainstream – 6:36
4 – Andi – 4:15
5 – Going Through The Motions – 5:43
6 – Get Rich – 3:43
7 – Don’t Take Your Love Away – 3:44
8 – End Of The Age – 4:33
9 – Incident On A Bridge – 5:37

Credits
Art Direction – Drennon Studio
Backing Vocals – David Pack, Kyle Henderson, Terry Brock
Backing Vocals [Additional] – Boxcar PeeWee And The Megapeople (tracks: A3), The Gang Of Men (tracks: B1, B2), Women At Work (tracks: B1)
Bass – Dave Hope
Crew [Kansas Crew] – Buren Fowler, Clay Schell, Davy Moire*, Jerry Gilleland, John Thompson (15), Merle McLain
Drums – Phil Ehart
Engineer [Recording Engineer Assistance – Bullet Recording] – Danny Mundhenk
Engineer [Recording Engineer Assistance – Le Mobile] – Cliff Bonnell, Guy Charbonneau
Guitar – Rich Williams
Keyboards [Additional] – Neil Kernon (tracks: A2)
Keyboards, Guitar – Kerry Livgren
Keyboards, Vocals – John Elefante
Lacquer Cut By – HW*
Management – Budd Carr, The Carr Company
Mastered By – Howie Weinberg
Photography By – Glen Wexler
Producer – Kansas (2), Neil Kernon
Recorded By, Mixed By – Neil Kernon
Steel Guitar – Jim Vest (tracks: A4, B3)
Words By, Music By – Dino Elefante (tracks: A1, A2, B1 to B3), John Elefante (tracks: A1, A2, A4 to B3), Kerry Livgren (tracks: A3, B4, B5)

Companies, etc.
Copyright (c) – Corn & Blood, Inc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – CBS Inc.
Manufactured By – CBS Records
Distributed By – CBS Records
Recorded At – Lakewood Fairgrounds
Recorded By – Le Mobile
Recorded At – Bullet Recording
Mixed At – Bullet Recording
Recorded At – Son Of Other Room
Mastered At – Masterdisk
Pressed By – Columbia Records Pressing Plant, Carrollton, GA
Published By – Full Grown Man Music
Published By – Mastodon Music
Published By – Don Kirshner Music
Published By – Blackwood Music Publishing

A. D. – Reconstructions – 1986

This album was the second and last album using “AD” as the band name.

This album saw the departure of vocalist Warren Ham. Replacing him was Michael Gleason who had worked with Livgren in the past.

This album had more keyboards so it had a more 80’s techno sound but it wasn’t done too strong. Kerry engineered and produced this album and some reviewers actually criticized his skills in this area but personally I though the production was on par with his other albums.

Track Listing:
1 – All Fall Down – 4:27
2 – Life Of Crime – 4:16
3 – No Standing – 3:56
4 – Exiles – 4:15
5 – We Draw That Line – 3:43
6 – Walking The Wire – 3:44
7 – You Are The Distance – 4:06
8 – Highway To The Heart – 3:45
9 – One Golden Thread – 4:20

Credits:
Art Direction – Jean Hoefel
Backing Vocals – Terry Brock (tracks: A2, A4 to B2, B4, B5)
Bass Guitar – Dave Hope
Design [Jacket Design] – Jim Shanman
Guitar, Keyboards, Percussion – Kerry Livgren
Lead Vocals, Backing Vocals, Keyboards – Michael Gleason
Percussion – Dennis Holt
Producer, Engineer – Kerry Livgren
Written-By – Kerry Livgren (tracks: A1 to B1, B3, B5), Michael Gleason (tracks: A1, B2 to B4 )