D&D 2E Converting the old 2E bard kits?

[Priest]

While I have no qualms about the bard as it was intended to be a Politically oriented adventurer who for most circumstances serves as the Ambassador of his party to the creatures of the dungeonscape, he can cure, he can seduce, he can...well do much for his adventuring band not able to be done by a shifty rogue or a stalwart fighter.

Keep in mind that the Bard does not need to sing he can for instance travel from townhold to townhold as a Poet figure, a man of deeds... One has only to look at the source of the Bard ( The Fillhids and Bards of the Kelto-Scandinavian World (For instance the Welsh poet Tallisien who was known as a great man, a sorcerer of great works said to be a son of the lost Atlantis by some....then shift time a bit and to another place we have Thucydides a greek historian with a quill as his weapon and the truth of a war as his shield, another aspect of a Bard

Bards can be scholars
Bards can be Loresingers
Bards can be hiaku masters

They can have any perform check that they want whether they create magic with song or by pen.

Now on to the idea of mine

Create a Core Class Variant of the Bard that is more skill based with no spells but a better Knowledge gaining ability combo a bonus feat at 1st 3rd 5th and so on and Alignment Any its not perfect since I am writing this from quick thought and not from book thought but its a good alt to using the bard for those that do not see the unique added benefit of the bard itself

 

[Destil]

The bard could be the perfect "Professional Dungeon Delver" class if it weren't for all the damn singing! Personally, if I were in a dungeon and one of my companions burst into song everytime a monster popped out I'd beat him to death with his own freaking lute!!

Kill the musical aspects of the class [which are flavor, mostly] and give the class a new in-game logic for how their effects work (psyhic eminations, altering fate/luck et cetera) while using the same rules. Simple.