Album of the Day

Kansas, by Kansas (1974): American prog frequently gets slammed as either derivative of what went on overseas or as living in an unholy union with AOR/Arena Rock. I suppose both criticisms could be fired at Kansas, although neither would be really fair. True, their debut album came out the same year as the prog biggies in Europe were hitting their peak (last Gabriel-era Genesis album, last great Yes album, last King Crimson album for seven years), but it's hardly a cheap rip-off in terms of style. And while there are some more straight forward rockers here, the last half of the album (from "Journey from Mariabronn On") are top -notch prog.