Adored
by fans, hated by critics, regardless of which side you choose there is
no denying that Kiss is one of the most influential Rock Bands of the Century.
Known for their Kabuki like Face paint, and wild Stage shows, which included
Fireworks, and a bass player that spits blood, and fire. Kiss became the
biggest selling artist of the 70's and again in the 90's.
Paul
Stanley met Gene Simmons and formed the band Wicked Lester, a far mellower
sounding band with a sound reminiscent of Jethro Tull, when that did not
pan out they moved to the heavier side of music, and adopted the image
of the dying New York Glam scene. Paul and Gene placed an ad for a Drummer
in a local music paper in New York, and Peter was hired after claiming
he would do anything to make it, even wear a dress on stage if it came
to it. They practiced in a loft in NYC for a few month before auditioning
Ace Frehley.
The
face paint evolved as the played nightly gigs at the local New York club
the Diplomat hotel. Each night the members would do different characters
until they evolved into what would be the most recognized faces in Rock
N Roll.
The
band landed a contract with Casablanca records and release three albums
in 74-75, which did not sell that well. On the road however Kiss was selling
out shows, and gaining a reputation as a great live band. They decided
to put out a double live album called Alive. The Album was an instant success,
and propelled the group to Super stardom.
Alive
was followed in 1976 by Destroyer which featured the hit ballad "beth".
Later that year the band released Rock n roll over, followed by Love gun
the Following Spring. Kiss toured Japan for the first time, Breaking attendance
records held by the Beatles.
1978
saw the release of the four solo albums, the idea was for each member to
put out an album that each wrote, and performed all the material on with
the aid of studio or guest musicians. The four Solo albums went platinum
prior to release, but once in stores did not prove to be as popular as
expected, and they soon were found in the discount racks.
1979-80
the band released Dynasty, and Unmasked . The Disco single "I was
Made for loving you" was a major hit, hitting number 1 in many European
countries. Peter was asked to leave the band before the band began recording
Unmasked, a studio drummer Anton Fig was asked to sit in on the sessions.
With Unmasked Kiss made the final jump from being a hard rock band, to
being a Pop band, unmasked bombed.
The
follow up to unmasked Music from the Elder was a Rock opera sound track
to a none existent movie. Although the album broadened the horizons for
Kiss musically, it was too far removed from previous Kiss music for many
fans. The Critics however gave Kiss rave reviews for the first time in
their career.
Then
in 1982 Ace Frehley Left the band in the middle of recording Creatures
of the night. Vinnie Vincent was hired to take his place. Creatures was
the heaviest album Kiss had done to that point, but it seems that fans
had moved on to other things sales for Creatures was dismal.
Realizing
that they needed to survive the current Heavy Metal onslaught they had
themselves created, Kiss made the bold move of removing their make up for
the Release of 1983's Lick it up. The band appeared unmasked on MTV to
unveil the video Lick it up. Suddenly Kiss was interesting again to the
press, and Lick it up sold well.
Animalyze
was released in 1984 and was the largest selling Kiss post makeup album,
due to the hit single Heavens on Fire. Vinnie Vincent had left Kiss due
to artistic differences, so the Kissers recruited Anaheim Californian Mark
St. John. Mark was a highly gifted guitarist, with a flashy style much
different than Ace Frehleys. Unfortunately St. John developed an arthritis
disorder while the band was touring, and was replaced by Bruce Kulick who
played with the band until their original line up regrouped in 1996.
The
years 1985 through 92 saw Kiss Release 4 albums. The single "Reason
to live" off of 1987's Crazy nights was a hit for the band, earning the
distinction of the longest running number one requested video on MTV's
daily video request show Dial MTV.
Drummer
Eric Carr passed away from Cancer in 1991. The band recruited ex
Badlands drummer Eric Singer to take Carr's place.
The
band released Revenge in 1992, to rave reviews from fans and critics. The
singles Domino, and I just wanna received healthy air play, and it seemed
an opportune time to record and release Alive III in 1993. The day
of the release The Band received their stars on the Hollywood walk of fame.
The
next few years Kiss released a tribute album Kiss My Ass, and the now legendary
Unplugged which aired on Halloween night 1995 on MTV. It was at this unplugged
show that the original members all played together for the first
time, in over a decade. A few months later the record breaking Kiss and
make up Reunion tour was announced.
Kiss
embarked on a 18 month World Tour which turned a whole new generation on
to the magic of classic Kiss. Their 1997 album Carnival of souls was the
last session album from the pre-reunion Kiss line up.
The
first studio record from the Original Line up is due in stores in
the summer of 98, and the band will once more embark on a world tour the
following fall.
History
seems to be repeating its self, and in concert halls, and stadiums through
out the world you can hear the now legendary Rock n' Roll Battle cry....
"You wanted the best and you got the best...."
Written
by Keavin Wiggins (Managing Editor)
