Ronnie Platt, Kansas Bring Their 50th Anniversary Tour To Morristown
Ronnie Platt is the lead singer and keyboard player for Kansas, one of the best known bands in rock.
With a current lineup including bassist & vocalist Billy Greer, lead vocalist & keyboardist Ronnie Platt, keyboardist & vocalist Tom Brislin, violinist & guitarist Joe Deninzon, and original guitarist Richard William , they are joined by Eric Holmquist filling in on drums while Phil Ehart continues to recover from health issues.
They are celebrating their 50th anniversary and they’ll be in Morristown April 26th at the Mayo Performing Arts Center.
Ronnie Platt Interview Excerpts
JIM MONAGHAN – For WDHA listeners who are actually watching this on video. You’ve got a bunch of cool guitars in the background there on the wall. I didn’t know you played guitar. I knew you played keys. I had no idea you played guitar.
RONNIE PLATT – Yeah, you know, I like to dabble in and everything actually. It’s unfortunate that my house is not big enough for a set of drums, or I’d have those two, you know. Hey, Phil (Ehart), you know, can I have a set of yours?
But, no, I mean, I’ve always said that playing guitar, it’s the best therapy in the world. When I sit down at the piano or I sit down with the guitar, even when I’m not working on anything, just to noodle. It’s stress relief to me.
JM – You know, playing guitar, one of the first songs that I tried to learn the finger pick pattern to was one of the Kansas songs, of course, “Dust in the Wind.” And I think I got it down.
But the problem was nobody in any band I was ever in could sing it. You’ve got this great voice singing great songs like “Dust in the Wind.”
RP – You know what? Do this sometime. At the end of “Dust In the Wind,” when they start to fade out, start turning the volume up and listen to Steve (Walsh), he goes in the stratosphere. It’s amazing.
And you never hear that because the fade is pretty drastic. But if you turn the volume up at the end of “Dust In the Wind,” listen to Steve. It’s absolutely amazing.
The depth of Kansas’ lyrics
JM – There was an interview that you and Richard (Williams) and Phil did with Dan Rather, not that long ago. And I think it was Phil who said the first time that they heard the song, “Dust In the Wind,” they go, that’s a hit.
I think back, because I can’t think of a lot of rock bands at the time that were doing songs like that. Songs with that kind of a lyrical theme were coming from the likes of Jackson Browne and James Taylor, that singer-songwriter. There weren’t a lot of rock bands doing that.
RP – Yeah. That does sound something like a James Taylor would do, not Kansas, you know, that, you know, the previous album “Wayward Son” came off of, you know. So it really was a stretch, but it shows the diversity of Kansas’ music.
And something I wish a lot more people would get in, you know, than just carrying the hits, “Wayward Son,” “Point of No Return,” “Dust in the Wind.” I mean, there’s really such a wide variety of music genre throughout the Kansas albums throughout the years.
There’s really some difference from straight ahead rock and roll to something very progressive. And that’s what grabbed me about the band and why I’ve been a diehard fan my entire life. It gave me an unfair advantage when I joined the band. I knew all the music before I joined the band.
Knowing the material already
JM – You actually played some of Kansas’ songs in cover bands.
RP – I did some deep, deep cut Kansas stuff that my cover bands did. And just because we like the song, you know, and it’s it’s a pretty thing, pretty hard thing to balance out because you want to do stuff that people know to grab people’s attention.
But you also want to do stuff that you want to do, you know, that, you know, interest you as a musician. So it’s a fine line. But I really did some deep cut Kansas stuff back in the day in my cover bands all the way going back to the early 80s.
Getting the lead singer’s job with Kansas
JM – So you’re going to be able to tell this story far better than I can. You’ve already auditioned for a number of bands. You’ve been in some big bands. You’ve been on the road. You’ve been touring and what have you. And the opportunity comes up that maybe Kansas is going to have an opening and you send a Facebook message to Richard.
Tell our listeners about that.
RP – Like I just said, I was such a huge Kansas fan to begin with. And a very good friend of mine, Dina Olson, who happens to be the niece of Dennis DeYoung from Styx, long time friend, long time fan. She knew I was a huge Kansas fan.
And she texts me one day, did you see this? And it was the announcement of Steve’s retirement.
They were in the middle of a tour. And you know, automatically, I think, oh gosh, they they have to have someone, you know, seamlessly ready to go in. And so just I mean, on a total whim, I was Facebook friends with Rich Williams. And I sent them a message. Richard, it’s Ronnie from Shooting Star, give me some consideration, because Richard seen me sing and Shooting Star. I was in Shooting Star from 2007 to 2011.
And I sent that message. That was a Wednesday,
Thursday, come home from work, check my messages. And here I get a message from Rich Williams. Ronnie, we’re about to go on stage in Houston. If you get this, give me a call.
And I’m like, Oh my God, you know, I call him. Have a real nice conversation. He says, can Phil call you the next day of Friday? I talked to Phil on Friday. They flew me to Atlanta on Monday. And so funny, you know, meeting with these guys, you know, you know, at first, Jim, I’m like, Oh my God, a meeting with Rich Williams and Phil Ehart from Kansas. Oh my God, you know, you know, that that icon status they have.
And that disappeared in about one minute. Cause as soon as we sat down and started talking, we talk business for maybe five minutes max.
And the next three hours was telling stories and just laughing our asses off. Just all the stories we were telling back and forth. It was like three hours of comedy.
And walking out of there, you know, I’m flying right back to Chicago. And you know, Rich is maybe walking 10 feet in front of Phil and I and Phil looks up at me and he goes, Hey, you know, that went well, you know, and he’s like, yeah, you know, you got the job, but I’m going to talk to Rich, you know, and I was, you know, I never count my chickens before they’re hatched, right?
So I go back to Chicago. I’m at work the next day. I check my email and there’s a message from Phil. Congrats. You got the job. The band is pumped. And wow, I mean, in the matter of five days becoming the lead singer of Kansas, it was crazy.
JM – What were you working? What was your job at the time?
RP – I worked for a corrugated company, a family-owned company, still friends with them. They just came and saw one of our shows in Florida.
And they were really just so supportive and it was so funny when I went back to the office, because I was driving a truck for them at the time. I went back to the office and I went into John, one of the owners and said, John, can I talk to you for a minute? He’s like, yeah, Ronnie, come on in, come on in, sit down.
John, I got it. I’m sorry. I got, I got to leave. I got to give you my notice and he goes, you ain’t leaving. You’re at this company until you die. You cannot leave.
And I’m like, well, John, I’m now the lead singer of Kansas. And he’s like, what? And he just, he went out of his mind. He goes into the office and he’s yelling to everybody. He was more excited than me.
But really good people to work for. They put up with my, you know, my schedule of music and stuff. And I was there for 10 years and still friends with them in a great place to work. But that’s, that’s where I was when I got the job.
JM – The Tedeschi Trucks Band has been posting some stuff on their social media. And one of the questions that they asked each member of the band was, who would you want to drive the tour bus? Do you still have your CDL (commercial driver’s license)?
RP – Believe it or not, my CDL is still valid. And for those of you in the trucking industry, I do have a hazmat endorsement. So I do have to, I do have to retest every two years. And even all this time, I’ve kept it up.
Why? I don’t know. You know, like I need something to fall back now. I know. But yeah, I’ve just kept it up.
A friend of mine owns a trucking company. And I just, I always thought I hold onto it just in case he needed, you know, help one day or something or was really desperate. And, and let’s see in 10 years, that happened once.
JM – Well, listen, if that, you know, the 18-wheelers bringing the equipment into Morristown, they break down. You’re the guy they can go to.
RP – I’m the guy. I’m the guy. I am. I say this often. I am your multi-purpose lead singer.
Phil Ehart health update
JM – I know Phil has had some health issues. How is he doing? I’d be remiss if I didn’t ask you about him.
RP – Oh my God. You know, he might get mad at me for saying this, but he was late afternoon early evening on a Tuesday that he had his heart attack. And luckily, Laurie, his wife was very on the stick. I mean, she, what are you feeling? I got a little pain in my left arm.
She immediately called 911 and they live very close to a hospital, which was really probably saved his life. But he had a couple of stents put in and Phil is, him and I share something very unique for the music industry. We’ve never drank. We’ve never done drugs. And I think about a band from the 70s, you know, early 80s, that party atmosphere to never do that is just amazing.
So he’s had just a clean life, constantly healthy, constantly eating right. So that really was a big contributor to his survival. But here he has us on a Tuesday evening. And I get the call I find out Wednesday morning. Thursday, Phil calls me and I’m like, what are you doing? He goes, I’m just home sitting on the couch. What? What? Aren’t you just in the hospital two days ago?
Then he calls me Friday. What are you doing? Oh, I’m just playing my drums. What? Oh, don’t worry. I’m just tippy-tapping on my electric set.
Regardless, you’re playing, you had a heart attack three days ago and you’re playing the drums. It’s only, you know, a testament to just how healthy the guy is.
And I talked to him probably three times a week, you know, just to check in while he’s been recovering. Of course, you know, his body has to take time to, you know, adapt to what he went through and stuff.
But he’s going to be, he’s going to be right back. Will he go back to playing half the show like he was? Time will tell, time will tell. But he’s doing fantastic. He sounds like, you know, the old Phil like he like he always has.
Something special for Morristown
JM – The 50th anniversary tour for Kansas gets into Mars 10 April 26th at the Mayo Performing Arts Center. Ronnie, that is a beautiful building. You’re going to love playing there.
RP – I’m not going to let the cat out of the bag, but we have, that night, we have something very, very special. That’s going to be a huge night for Kansas. So everyone in Morristown, you’re in for a treat.
MORE ALL MIXED UP – Interviews and Playlists
A Dozen Underrated Rock Guitar Players
