Kenny Gamble, one half of the Philly soul songwriting/production duo of Gamble & Huff, had known Michael Jackson since he was a boy. He was shocked and saddened by the recent death of the King Of Pop, and spoke today to Goldmine about his memories of the man and the artist.






"I met Michael I guess when he was about 8 or 9 years," says Gamble. "'Cause he used to come to Philadelphia, and he used to perform at the Uptown Theatre. In fact, he used to come over to my house. All of his brothers, yeah. And we used to have a lot of conversations together. They were just really getting started. Little did I know that later on in life we would have the opportunity to record them, 'cause I think everybody was in awe of that family."

Gamble is referring to the time after the Jacksons left Motown and signed to CBS, which allowed them to work with the Philadelphia International production crew. Gamble & Huff co-wrote and produced songs for The Jacksons' first two post-Motown records The Jacksons and Going Places.

We'll have more on Gamble & Huff's work with the Jacksons in a tribute to Michael planned for the July 31 print edition of Goldmine. Gamble was at his office when he heard that Michael had passed away. "It was just amazing because Michael was such a special person," says Gamble. "You know it's possible for any of us. We never know what the next minute is going to bring for us, but of course, it shocked us. So it made you sort of think about all the days we used to spend together."

And it made Gamble think back to happier times, when Michael would dance up a storm at the drop of a hat. Those electrifying moves that made him an icon left an impression on Gamble.

"You could be sitting down talking to him, and he'd jump up and do one of those spins and sit right back down (laughs). You'd say, 'Hey man, what was all that about?' I mean, it was like a bolt of lightning or something. He was dancing all the time. All the time. In the studio ... I mean, he's doing those spins and ... I mean, all the time. If he was walking down the street with you, he's doing some kind of step. He constantly practiced all the time. In fact, when I went to see him in New York [one time], they had a dance floor in his suite. They had a dance floor in there where he was practicing his dance steps, 'cause to dance like he danced, without having any kind of professional trainers or whatever, this was a gift. This was a tremendous gift."

Jackson left behind many memories like this. We'd love to hear yours. If you'd like to share them with us, leave them in the comments section or e-mail your thoughts on Jackson to joyce.greenholdt@fwmedia.com.

Going back to when Michael Jackson's popularity was at its peak in the '80s and early '90s, anything associated with the King Of Pop sold like gangbusters.

"Michael could do no wrong," says Garry Schrum of Heritage Auctions. "

Jackson's well-documented troubles with the law and his creative and commercial swoon afterward changed all that — at least in the U.S. "His collectability fell in the U.S., but in Europe they read media like a book. When you'd go to conventions there, people would also ask about the Top 5 — The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Madonna, Prince and Michael Jackson. People always wanted to put stuff up."

Now, with Jackson's death dominating the news, Schrum says, "There will be a spike. There are people in town here going to stores and buying up things like Michael Jackson 8-tracks."

Coincidentally, Heritage's next auction will feature a number of Jackson items, including a contract with the Screen Actors' Guild for Jackson's mega-selling LP Thriller, featuring Jackson's signature. There's also an American Airlines pass for the Jackson 5 with autographs from all five Jacksons on it. And, last but not least, there is a matted picture of Jackson with handwritten lyrics of "Billie Jean" with Jackson's autograph.

One final note: Talking about how collectable Jackson items are overseas, Jackson's foreign picture-sleeve singles — ones that are unique to each country — are always in high demand.

For more information on Heritage's upcoming auctions, visit www.ha.com.

The day before Michael Jackson died, Backstage Auctions hadn't even had a bid on a lot of 29 mostly promotional 45 RPM singles — as well as 9 "early day" records — from the King Of Pop. It had been in Backstage Auction's store for a year and nothing. Everything changed, however, on June 25.

As the world mourned the passing of one of the true giants in the world of music, the lot known as the Michael Jackson vinyl collection — with singles from 1972 to 1982, all in Near Mint condition — sold for $175 that night. And there was bidding on another lot that had been long neglected, namely one featuring promotional films made in the 1970s featuring Michael Jackson, the Jackson 5 and other artists of the time.

Interestingly, for all his fame, Jackson's memorabilia and records weren't as collectable as you might think until word came of his shocking death.

Jacques van Gool of Backstage Auctions weighed in on Jackson's collectability:

"I would say his overall collectability up till yesterday is what I would call moderately good. I don't think that Michael Jackson was necessarily let's say a Top 25 collectable artist. But at the same time, his items would always sell. They wouldn't necessarily, again, sell for the same money as a Led Zeppelin or a Beatles or a Stones or an Elvis Presley. But at the same time, it would always sell. There definitely were a few eras, if you wish, in Michael Jackson's collectability life span, if you wish. There's the '70s with the Jackson 5. Then there is obviously the '80s, which are the highlight of his solo career, and then there is the past 20 years. And you can really cut it up in those three parts from a collectibility point of view. I think obviously the stuff from the last 20 years is the least valuable. His solo years ... it's interesting, I would say that what I call the official merchandise is not as collectable as the 1970s Jackson 5 material. You know, things like posters or T-shirts, or vinyl or any official merchandise. At the same time, personal items from the '80s — when he was at his commercial and artistic peak — like a personal shirt that he wore or pens or a record award, things along those lines, are probably among the most valuable Michael Jackson pieces. When you go back to the '70s, and then, of course, preferably the early '70s, that's where I would say again, the official merchandise is the most valuable. You take for instance the Jackson 5 first tour book that came out in 1970, and again Michael was 12 years old at the time, I mean that tour program is worth $300. That's worth more than a Michael Jackson tour program from his solo days. So you can really cut it up in those three blocks, if you wish, and there's that parallel with Elvis, too."

Comparisons with Elvis and the buying frenzy that erupted in the aftermath of his death in 1977 are bound to be made. For his part, van Gool sees similarities and differences.

"I mean, there's Elvis stuff from the '50s, which is obviously the most rare. Then there is Elvis stuff from the '60s, when he really became a gi-normous cultural, commercial icon," explains van Gool. "And then there is the Elvis stuff from the '70s, the Vegas years, and let's say the years after Vegas, if you wish, where he really didn't perform that much anymore, where he ballooned up and all that. So, ironically, Elvis, too, has three separate or separable, let's say, stages that I would say separate value very clearly. I would not be the least bit surprised that the same would happen with Michael Jackson as it did with Elvis. Meaning that now that this is Day 1 of the post-mortem of the Jackson era, I think that all three of those collectible phases in his life will be completely re-evaluated. I think even the items from the last 20 years that people didn't really care too much about — like a magazine cover from 1992, you know, I mean ... or a poster from 10 years ago ... items that were even hard to sell will become desirable now — [will see their value change]. So there's no question in my mind that the overall value, regardless of what era it is [from], will significantly increase. And that will come down at some point, but it will definitely increase for probably the next few years, and I also anticipate seeing a tremendous flurry of Michael Jackson memorabilia coming to the market over the next six to 12 months. People, especially the smart collectors, they always anticipate something to happen at some point. Parting with good collectibles in a time where the value isn't really there yet just doesn't make a whole lot of sense. And as I said, I really anticipate, for the next couple of years, that value to go up tremendously. But that will coincide with a significant increase in availability of Michael Jackson collectables. There will be some very, very good stuff coming out because I mean this guy has been in the news for 40 years. So there's 40 years of stuff out there. And if you look at all the auction homes, they haven't traditionally carried much Michael Jackson and Jackson 5 material. So I fully anticipate that will change again in the next few years."

When Elvis died, the Internet was not around. And that automatically makes things different today, according to van Gool.

"I think what you saw when Elvis passed away in '77 is that between '77 and '78 in that one full year after he passed there was an enormous amount of new merchandise that came out. There were literally dozens and dozens and dozens of like magazine specials and poster specials and posters and necklaces and t-shirts, and then, of course, you've got all the quote-unquote commemorative memorabilia. But commemorative for the '70s. You know, like a commemorative coin or a commemorative pen ... you name it and it was made. But this is all pre-Internet. And so the only way to get that merchandise was through advertising in newspapers and magazines. And as you know, now with the era we live in now, things have a much healthier chance for longevity. The Internet is essentially timeless. You can advertise for free for as long as you want, so to speak. So I expect, let's say in a similar way, quote-unquote memorabilia to come out, but I suspect that it will last longer because we live in a different era. But at the same time, it will have, if you have just from a 30,000-foot altitude, there will be a lot of parallels with the pre- and the post- passing away life span of memorabilia between both Elvis and Michael Jackson."

But what about the recession? Will that have any effect? Not according to van Gool.

"No, no. I really don't think so because there is going to be a lot of once-in-a-lifetime kind of stuff that is coming out and recession or not, this is not the time to worry about this particular investment. If something in the next 12 months becomes available that is truly unique and one-of-a-kind, you know that someone is going to buy that. And if it's not going to be you, then it will be someone else. And the chances of that piece still being available let's say 24 or 36 months from now is going to be very, very slim. And I'm not talking about the low-end stuff and I'm not talking so much about the commemorative items, but I'm talking about all the authentic memorabilia that will become available in the coming two years. I think that those will be recession-proof."

As the man who brought the mellotron to the Moody Blues — essentially changing, for good, the band's sound from a gritty R&B-fueled romp to a more symphonic, dreamy kind of progressive-rock/psychedelic/folk hybrid — Mike Pinder has every right to beat his chest over what he and the band have accomplished.






From majestic albums like Days Of Future Passed and On The Threshold Of A Dream to mist-shrouded hits such as "Nights In White Satin" and "Tuesday Afternoon," the Moody Blues take a back seat to no one — well, almost no one — from the 1960s and '70s in terms of commercial success and artistic achievement.

And yet, for Pinder, what he sees as his biggest contribution to music has nothing to do with the Moody Blues.

"One of the biggest kicks of the whole mellotron thing was that I actually got to turn the Beatles on to the mellotron," says Pinder. "And I told them about it. They immediately all got one. I went by a few of the Sgt. Pepper sessions, and they were starting to use it. And I heard them play 'Strawberry Fields.' And it was, 'wow.' Yeah, I did a good thing that day. I did a very good thing (laughs). I'm probably really the most proud of the fact that I actually was a factor in their music."

That's not the only Beatles connection for Pinder and the Moody Blues. The band opened for the Fab Four on their final tour of Britain. And as Pinder would discover, he had the same quirky sense of humor as one of them. We'll let Pinder tell it:

"Here's a little story for you: We were playing the Top 10 club in Hamburg, and you get a little bit crazy because you're doing a few shows a day, and there's not much you can do but go to the bar or the coffee-shop kind of thing. They weren't great gigs that we had. But we're onstage one night, and we're just getting ready to open the curtain, and I see this white toilet seat on the left there behind the curtains. And I grabbed it and put it around my head for the opening number (laughs). And then I found out later when I became friends with The Beatles after doing their last English tour together — we opened for them on their last English tour; we did 14 shows and then they got on a plane the next day and went to Shea Stadium and that was it ... but, back to the toilet seat. I was talking to John Lennon about doing that show in Germany and that white toilet seat, and [he said], 'Oh, it's the one I left there.' (laughs) He'd done exactly the same thing."

Of course, that hardly jives with the image of the cerebral, very serious, musicianly Moody Blues that's grown up around them over the years.

"That was before we were the suited guys," laughs Pinder.

On May 26, Eagle Vision released a DVD titled "The Moody Blues: Live At The Isle Of Wight Festival 1970," which, as the title indicates, presents the legendary performance that many believe stands up to others at the historic event by the likes of The Doors, The Who and Jimi Hendrix, among others.

Never released before on film, although it's been available in audio form, the transcendent 11-song set was captured by famed filmmaker Murray Lerner.

To find out more about the release, visit www.eaglerockent.com. And watch for more with Pinder, and possibly Lerner, in a future print edition of Goldmine.

With two infectious new bits of ear candy out, "Ordinary Girls" and "Too Bad," and a few well-received reunion shows to their credit, the late 1970s/early '80s all-female punk outfit Cheap Perfume is gathering momentum for a big comeback this year.






Nancy Heyman, the rhythm guitarist/keyboardist/vocalist who was Nancy Street back when Cheap Perfume was tearing up CBGBs and Max's Kansas City, took time out recently to catch us up on what was happening with the band (which you can read about in my blog from June 22). She would delve deeper into the Cheap Perfume story in our talk, providing some background information on a group that was much-beloved in the Lower East Side of Manhattan and served as a precursor to the Go-Gos and The Bangles.

To hear what all the fuss is about, visit www.myspace.com/cheapperfumemusic, and if you like what you hear, go to Amazon or iTunes to purchase their latest songs.

How did Cheap Perfume come together?
Nancy Heyman: I’d met Lynn Odell back in Bethesda, Maryland (where I’m from), when she was dating Tommy Keene, who was in a band with my now-husband Richard X. Heyman and my brother Ricky called The Rage. I think she met Tommy at the University of Maryland. Lynn moved to New York to pursue her acting career. I moved to New York not long after to escape the suburbs! The first month I was here, I bumped into her on 8th Street and we started hanging out. One night we were over at her apartment in midtown when she put on a David Bowie record and started dancing around the room and lip-syncing the record. I was immediately floored by her charisma and exclaimed, “You should be in a band!” I took it upon myself to look for lead-singer ads in the Village Voice, and one day I saw one for an all-girl band seeking a lead singer. I called the number and spoke to Susan (Palermo, the bass player), telling her I wasn’t calling for myself, but for my friend Lynn who I knew would be perfect for the group.
 
I went with Lynn to the audition, and sure enough, she got the gig. I immediately started haranguing her to convince the band to let me join as rhythm guitarist. My brother Ricky made a special trip to New York to help me buy an electric guitar on 48th Street. Well, out of the goodness of their hearts, they did let me in the band, which consisted at that time of Brenda (Martinez) White on drums, Susan on bass and Alison Berger on lead guitar. Alison was dating a guy named Joey Cola, who was in a band called Sorrows, which my brother Ricky later joined on bass (they released two albums in the late '70s/early '80s on Pavillion Records, “Teenage Heartbreak” and “Love Too Late”). Alison was replaced after about a year by Bunny LeDesma.

What difficulties did you encounter as an all-female band trying to compete at places like CBGBs, Max’s Kansas City and some of the other New York punk venues? Were other bands of the time supportive?
Nancy:  As I recall, we didn’t encounter any difficulties — we were a novelty, in that there weren’t that many all-girl bands in the city at the time and especially not ones who could really play. We were universally loved for quite a while! We were friendly with a lot of the groups who were on the scene at the time.

Listening to “Ordinary Girls” and “Too Bad,” they’ve got great hooks, and though they’re not as trashy as what you might hear from the New York Dolls, they have that same primal rock ‘n’ roll feel. How big of an influence were the Dolls on you?
Nancy: Speaking for myself, The Dolls were no influence at all, although I liked them a lot. I used to see the David Johansen Band all the time. But I’m a Beatlemaniac from way back, and all I ever wanted was to be like John Lennon. That said, my writing was geared for Lynn’s voice and persona — edgy and sexy and aggressive. I know Bunny was very into The Dolls, especially Johnny Thunders. She even has one of his guitars.

You played a showcase gig in early 1979 at CBGB. What do you remember about that show?
Nancy: I was scared to death! I’d never played on stage with a band before. We’d done a lot of rehearsing, but I spent the entire set rooted to the spot and staring into space.  But it went very well, and we were soon weekend regulars at both CBGB and Max’s.

What happened in between 1979 and the point at which you broke up in 1981?
Nancy: We played a lot of shows, mostly in NYC, did a lot of partying, recorded a bunch of demos, changed personnel a lot, and finally gave up the ghost. We never released any records. It was much harder and more expensive in those days to do an independent release. Studio time was costly, as was mixing and mastering and pressing up the vinyl, not to mention the postage for mailing out all those records. We definitely caught the attention of various music-business types, but nothing ever materialized from that. Susan knows better than I do about that end of it.

Has Cheap Perfume gotten as much credit as they deserve for paving the way for bands like the Go-Gos and the Bangles?
Nancy: I would say definitely not. The people who knew us and loved us back in those days still remember us — our reunion shows were mobbed. But outside of the club scene of that era in New York City, we weren’t widely known.

Why did you break up?
Nancy: The band had run its course. There were too many personnel changes; it had gotten too far away from what it was in the early days. 

What happened to everybody after the band broke up?
Nancy: I had gotten back together with Richard by that time, and he and I started doing bands and releasing albums, which we do to this day.

Look for more on Cheap Perfume in the coming days in this space.

The scent of Cheap Perfume is, once again, wafting through the seedier environs of Manhattan's Lower East Side, and word has it that the all-girl pop-punk act that abruptly called it quits in 1981 is working on a new record, which actually would be their first.






Acting sort of as the big sister who made the male-dominated punk playground safe for siblings the Go-Gos and The Bangles, Cheap Perfume's insanely catchy little tunes had just enough edge and bite to them to garner the band big crowds in the late 1970s and early '80s at notorious New York City venues like CBGBs and Max's Kansas City. Their coming-out party came with a showcase gig in 1979 at CBGBs.

Odell remembers "being scared to f**king death" about the show. "When it was over I went to the second floor bathroom and puked up my guts," she adds.

In its brief history, Cheap Perfume played with the likes of The Plasmatics, the Dead Boys, the Tuff Darts and the Laughing Boys. But Cheap Perfume didn't linger in the air for long. Lineup changes and a car accident made singer Lynn Odell " ... a mess for a long, long time," in her words, stopped the band in its tracks, and everyone went their separate ways, with two members winding up with acting careers — Odell has appeared on "Law And Order" and "Criminal Minds," while (drummer) Brenda (Martinez) White landed spots on HBO's "Oz" and "Sex In The City."

Years passed, but White, bassist Susan Palermo and lead guitarist/vocalist Bunny LeDesma kept in touch, and eventually, they got the itch to play again as Cheap Perfume. They started performing again as a trio, but that wasn't enough for White.

"One day I was talking on the phone to Brenda, who said how much she wished the original band would get back together," says Nancy. "I said I'd be willing if Lynn was involved. Lynn had by that time moved out to Los Angeles, where she's lived for many years, but I figured we could ask her. I called her and said, 'How would you feel about doing a real Cheap Perfume reunion,' and to my surprise, she said she'd be thrilled."

In 2007, Cheap Perfume, back to being a five-piece, played a triumphant reunion gig at a packed Baggot Inn in Manhattan. Buoyed by the response, Cheap Perfume did another set in April of this year at Kenny's Castaways. And now, the band, which had only recorded a few demos while they were together way back when, is looking to roll out a full-length album.

"We recorded basic tracks a little over a year ago and have been working on them at my home studio (where Richard and I record) ever since," says Nancy Heyman, who is married to noted songwriter Richard X. Heyman of '60s garage-rock heroes The Doughboys. "We've finished two songs, have another two that are just about ready for mixing, and then another five or six that have yet to have lead vocals recorded. The way we've been working is, once the instrumentation is done, I send the tracks to Lynn to record her vocals at a studio in Los Angeles. She sends those back and then the songs are ready for mixing. We were fortunate enough to have Ed Stasium mix and master the first two songs, and I'm sure we'll continue to use him for that work."

Recently, a hot little two-song CD — honed and shaped by the famed Stasium, who has worked with The Ramones, Living Colour and the Rolling Stones, among others — was sent out to journalists featuring tracks "Ordinary Girls" and "Too Bad," and they show a band that is roaring back to life with Spandex-tight playing, plenty of attitude and smart hooks.

Look for more to come on Cheap Perfume in this space. To sample some Cheap Perfume, go to www.myspace.com/cheapperfumemusic. And both "Ordinary Girls" and "Too Bad" are available as downloads on iTunes and Amazon.

Anybody out there have any memories of Cheap Perfume? Or, if you've seen them at one of their reunion shows, give us the lowdown.

With the 40th anniversary of Woodstock coming up, Goldmine plans to celebrate the occasion with an issue devoted to the three days of peace and love and rock 'n' roll that made history.





The July 31 print issue of Goldmine will take a detailed look back at each day of the festival in the cover story, featuring excerpts from F&W Media's new book "Woodstock — Peace, Music & Memories." In addition, we'll have an interview with Eddie Kramer, the famed producer/engineer who worked the soundboard at Woodstock and commentary from some of the major artists who played the event.

But we'd also like you to be a part of it! If you were at Woodstock, share your thoughts and memories with us! Do you wish you were there? Tell us about what you heard about the event or what you heard later on.

Please e-mail your Woodstock tales to joyce.greenholdt@fwmedia.com, and be sure to put Woodstock in the subject line. We'll try to include as many as we can in print and online at www.goldminemag.com.

With a new box set and reissues of #1 Record and Radio City coming out this summer, there's never been a better time to get reacquainted with the patron saints of power-pop, Big Star.






Led by two genius songwriters, Chris Bell and former Box Tops prodigy Alex Chilton, Big Star's jangly melodies and crafty, irresistible hooks should have made the Memphis group mega-stars. After all, how could a band that married sunny, but sometimes wounded, California harmonies, Byrds-style folk and the sharp guitar-driven brashness of the British Invasion fail?

Alas, however, the usual record-label complications and the fickle nature of the buying public kept Big Star from breaking it ... well, big. Doomed to being a cult favorite, Big Star would, nevertheless, go on to influence thousands of bands, not the least of which was R.E.M. And #1 Record and Radio City are rightly worshipped as pop/rock masters.

Jody Stephens, the band's longtime drummer, did his part to drive Big Star to the top with solid stick work that helped to ground the band's sound. Much has been written about the choosing of "When My Baby's Beside Me" and "Don't Lie To Me" as the first singles off the band's debut, #1 Record, released in 1972, and some have speculated that perhaps it would have made more sense to go with other songs off that album first.

Don't put Stephens in that camp. "I thought they were great songs," he says.

And they are. Still, Stephens' favorite track off that LP is something different.

"[I'm] very reluctant to pick one but ... 'Ballad Of El Goodo,'" Stephens relents. "It incorporates much of what I like about Big Star. Wonderful lead vocal melody lines, guitar lines and harmonies, but there is a 'soul' there that takes me deeper than where just a pop band would."

It's hard to argue with Stephens on this point. As perfectly constructed a pop song as you'll find anywhere, "The Ballad Of El Goodo" is definitely a highlight for many Big Star devotees. Of course, most people who are only the most casual Big Star fans might opt for "In The Street" — mainly because of the Cheap Trick version that served as the theme song for the "That '70s Show." 

What about you? Is "The Ballad Of El Goodo" your favorite Big Star song? Or do you have a different one? And, ultimately, what is Big Star's legacy? Let me know. I would love to get a discussion going among readers.

The Big Star box set, titled Keep An Eye On The Sky, will be released by Rhino. For more information, visit www.rhino.com. As for the reissues of #1 Record and Radio City, there will be separate vinyl reissues in addition to a CD that features both albums. Visit www.conchordmusicgroup.com for more information on those reissues, which came out June 16.

Michael Sadler took his leave of Saga after the 2007 tour, and his departure left a gaping hole in the Canadian progressive-rock stalwart's lineup. His signature vocals, so much a part of the Saga sound, could fill arenas with their urgency and majestic acrobatics.

AOR staples like "Wind Him Up" and "On The Loose" give evidence of Sadler's prowess, and it's hard to imagine anybody else singing those songs. But, alas, nothing lasts forever, and when Sadler decided he wanted to spend more time with his family and less time on the road, it closed one chapter in the Saga story. But, another one is being written right now.






Two years ago, Saga found Sadler's replacement, enlisting Rob Moratti after an Internet talent search. His vocal stylings can be found on Saga's latest, The Human Condition, a guitar-heavy prog-rock adventure that's as metallic — especially on "Step Inside" and "Crown Of Thorns" — as any album in the band's catalog. Moratti was up to the challenge.

Guitarist Ian Crichton, whose brother Jim plays keyboards and bass in the group, explains how Saga and Moratti got on the same page. "We were writing the music first, as always in Saga, and sending the ideas to Rob; it was Rob that matched the guitars!!"

And match them he did, bellowing out powerful vocals that lived up to every power chord and shifting musical direction Saga threw at him. Finding someone of Moratti's talent was a stroke of luck. Ian admits the band did its search via YouTube.

"Yes we did, [and we] also we posted two of the hits on our site for people to download and upload their performances," says Ian.

Perhaps this is the way auditions will, from this day forward, be held.

To learn more about the latest addition to the Saga catalog, visit http://www.spv.de/eng/news.html

With Kerry Livgren and Steve Walsh shying away from writing new songs for the Heartland prog-rock institution Kansas, the rest of the band has decided to pick up the slack with Native Window.

Comprised of drummer Phil Ehart and other Kansans Richard Williams (guitar), Billy Greer (vocals/bass) and David Ragsdale (violin), Native Window will be releasing its debut self-titled album June 23 on StarCity Records, run by veteran Kansas producer Jeff Glixman.





Ehart nixes suggestions that Native Window was conceived because of any uncertainty surrounding Kansas.

"Well, it's not uncertainty," says Ehart. "It's just a situation of no new material for the band Kansas. And the guys who have usually written the material are either choosing not to write material or are doing other projects. So, the four of us just kind of went, 'Hey, you know, instead of sitting around whining about no new material, let's do something on our own.' So we did. And Native Window was born kind of out of necessity to scratch that new material itch. You can only play the old material so much and you kind of start yearning for something new to work on. So yeah, about two years ago, we started working on this and knew that Kansas is our main focus and that will always remain so. But when we had time off of the road, we'd come in and work on stuff and write stuff and that's kind of where it came from."

A little simpler, a little more straightahead, with swampy, blistering rockers like "Blood In The Water" sharing top billing with more surging, emotional triumphs such as the reflective "Still" and "Surrender," Native Window isn't necessarily a departure from the Kansas you grew up with. But neither will it give cause for critics to attack them for simply resting on their laurels.

To find out for yourself, visit www.nativewindow.com. A sampler of four songs will give you a taste of what Native Window is all about. Look for more on Native Window in this space and in the July 17 edition of Goldmine.