Time is a cruel mistress. No matter what we do to try and hold onto the things we love and cherish, the world will continue to age. Within the last month, we have lost some of our favorite musicians in Dolly Parton, ZZ Top’s Frank Beard, and Every Time I Die guitarist Andy Williams. We can never guess how much longer we will get to keep enjoying live performances from the bands that have been doing this for decades. Deep Purple have been going for nearly six decades and are still putting out new music with their 24th studio album, SPLAT! They hit the road with another legendary band, Kansas, and came to the F&M Bank Amphitheater for a night of classic rock hits. I couldn’t pass up the chance to see these living legends.

With the lights going down over the waterfront, Kansas took the stage and immediately demonstrated why they were such a perfect pairing for Deep Purple. Their set leaned heavily on the songs that established them as one of progressive rock’s great bands. One thing I never noticed while listening to Kansas on the radio was just how many jam sessions they put into their music. Many songs took a good minute plus or ended with the band just moving into an instrumental jam, playing off the catchy hooks and tunes that they made famous. Even with these extended jams, Kansas managed to fit a whole lot of songs into their set, featuring classics like “Point of Know Return”, “Paradox”, “Child of Innocence”, “Jets Overhead”, “The Wall”, “Song for America”, “Dust in the Wind”, “Hold On”, “Down the Road”, “Portrait (He Knew)”, and “Miracles Out of Nowhere”. But this set culminated with the final song, “Carry On Wayward Son”. This song has taken on a life of its own and has been cherished by fans for decades. Seeing the love of fans for this song and band really makes you appreciate what music does for all generations.

It was then time for Deep Purple, starting things off with “Highway Star”. Hearing this classic live, you could still feel the energy and passion that Deep Purple has for their music and live performances. Vocalist Ian Gillan’s performance comes with the enormous weight of Deep Purple’s history behind it. His voice has changed over the years, but the personality and presence remain unmistakable. Drummer Ian Paice remained the rhythmic engine of the band, while Roger Glover provided the kind of rock-solid foundation that makes the more elaborate instrumental passages possible. Guitarist Simon McBride brought a powerful, modern edge to the guitar while still respecting the character of the original songs. With keyboardist Don Airey, a Deep Purple concert wouldn’t be complete without the keyboards and Hammond organ being front and center, and he delivered. His keyboard solo was one of the night’s musical highlights, showcasing the virtuosity that has always been an essential part of the Deep Purple sound.

What made their set special wasn’t simply the opportunity to hear songs that have been part of the rock canon for generations, like “A Bit on the Side”, “Into the Fire”, “Arrogant Boy”, “Lazy Sod”, “Lazy”, “When a Blind Man Cries”, “Diablo”, “Perfect Strangers”, “Space Truckin’”, “Smoke on the Water”, “Guinnesis”, and ending with the powerhouse track “Hush”. Each of these songs still works. The riffs still hit. The solos still thrill. The audience still sings along, and we were having the time of our lives.

Deep Purple and Kansas offered two different versions of longevity. Kansas demonstrated the enduring power of progressive rock’s melodies and musicianship, while Deep Purple showed why heavy rock built on virtuosity, improvisation, and sheer volume remains so compelling. Only time will tell how much longer we have to keep hearing these bands live, and we have to take every opportunity to see them that we can. For such legendary bands to keep playing giant venues like the F&M Bank Amphitheater proves how everlasting these songs are, and the legacy Kansas and Deep Purple have cemented in music history.