Lifelong Kansas superfan and prolific session guitarist Scott Bernard has made his switch to Kansas permanent after several stand-in performances with the American hitmakers, with Rich Williams set to scale back his touring commitments going forward.
The LA-born, Nashville-based string slinger was Kenny Loggins’ foil over 17 years, a gig that saw him promoted to musical director for the past seven years. Over a busy career, Bernard has also worked with Joe Bonamassa, Michael McDonald, Alan Parsons, and Gary Burr.
Bernard first picked up an electric guitar aged 9, and idolised Al Di Meola and Chick Corea as he delved into jazz guitar during his teenage years. He later formed the Christian rock band Big Difference while establishing himself in the session scene.
While the band has confirmed that co-founding guitarist Rich Williams will remain “an active member” of the group, he will be scaling back his touring commitments.
Williams had originally had to pull out of several shows in 2024 with travel restrictions in the wake of Hurricane Helene to blame. Health issues have also played their part.
“To say that I am excited to join the Kansas family is quite the understatement,” says Bernard. “As a lifelong Kansas fan, their music has been an integral part of my musical upbringing.
“My first concert that I attended as a young teen was Kansas, and I have closely followed their career ever since. They were and remain my favorite band ever. I am deeply humbled to be chosen to help perpetuate their legacy, which is both a privilege and a surreal experience.”
“Scott Bernard is a fantastic guitar player, a great guy, and is my hand-picked choice to help carry on the legacy of the band Kansas,” says Williams. “He’s not only an incredibly talented guitarist and vocalist, but he’s also a Wheathead.
“I am not stepping down nor retiring. But I am slowing down,” he continues. “Macular degeneration [a condition that affects the middle part of a person's vision] has made travel increasingly difficult to the point where it impedes my ability to get to as many shows as I want. I will still be at, and perform at, as many concerts as I can.”
“Adding Scott as a member of Kansas, alongside Zak Rizvi on guitar, allows the shows that I’m not at, and Kansas, to go on well into the future. When we all three are there, we will all perform.”
Speaking to Guitar World in 2021, Williams claimed that “Kansas pretty much gave birth to American prog bands.”
“We were playing bars in Topeka, doing all the hits of the day but we’d slip in one of our own tunes and tell the crowd that we were playing the B-side of Smoke on the Water,” he had laughed. “We’d stretch songs out and go crazy, and the people loved it. It became our thing.”
Kansas are currently out on the road. Their latest US jaunt wraps Lake Jackson, Texas on December 12. They also have three shows confirmed for 2026.
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