Exclusive KISS Asylum Interview with the author, Dale Sherman

KA: Dale, thanks for taking time out of your book promotion schedule to do this interview.

DS: Not a problem at all. Glad the interest is there.

KA: Please give me some information about yourself, your current job, your hobbies etc.

DS: I'll be turning 33 this April 21st (gifts are accepted). Married to a woman that I first met at an Alice Cooper show in Columbus, Ohio back in 1986 (Vinnie Vincent was the opening act that night, for those looking for a KISS-related insight on this note). Grew up in Fairborn, Ohio and have spent the last seven years in Columbus, Ohio working for a major insurance company. Quite possibly will be moving soon to Louisville, Kentucky and working for an insurance company there.

Can't knock the insurance angle -- both of the guys from the back of the ALIVE! album are working in insurance now, so it must be related in some odd way.
My hobbies include comic books, videos, cartoons and movies. I also do a lot of writing. I used to say it was just a hobby, but I do so much of it now that it's more like a second career. Even so, unless you're Stephen King, writing is no way to make a living.

KA: When did you become a KISS fan and how did this happen?

Oddly enough, I grew up at the right age to become a fan of KISS during the 1970s. Never did. Growing up with an older brother, I usually got into whatever he was listening to, and at the time he was more geared towards Chicago and Blood, Sweat and Tears than something like KISS.

I remember when the album Love Gun came out. My brother had heard so much about the band that he bought the 8-track tape and we both gathered around the stereo to listen to the album. After two minutes, the tape got chewed up in the machine and my brother was out seven bucks for the tape. It's the last KISS was ever heard in the house.
It wasn't until 1982 that I got interested in the band. My friend and (at the time) manager at a comic book shop, Larry Blake, had bought the Creatures album and was really excited about it. We soon found out that KISS was to play University of Dayton Arena in January and Larry really wanted to show me what the shows were like. I ended up being able to get us front row seats for the show and was very impressed with Gene during the show. With Larry's excitement, and those of other friends, I soon got sucked into the fandom of it all. :-)

KA: If you have meet KISS, tell me about the first time you met them.

DS: I've met all of the present and former members of the band at least once -- with the exception of Mark St. John (he's also the only one that I do not have the autograph for). I've never met all four members at the same time, just individually.

Peter -- met him during the Peter Criss Alliance tour at a bar in Dayton, Ohio called McGuffy's. We got there six hours early because one of our group was underaged. We were pretty much the only ones there when Peter showed up with the band. When he found out that we were KISS fans, he came over to our table and had a few drinks with us. As fans started trickling in, they thought we were part of the tour once they knew it was Peter sitting at our table. Lots of fun. The one thing I remember was him saying, "Okay, you're KISS fans. But are you Ace and Peter fans?" Very odd and revealing question from him.

Paul -- met him backstage at an Asylum show. Happen to have a copy of the Lyn Christopher album with me and he just went nuts over seeing the album again after so many years. Only time I met him.

Ace -- met him backstage during a KISS convention in Chicago a few years back. He signed my Crazy Joe album and even drew his makeup on one of the individuals on the cover of the album. I actually go into more details about this meeting in the book, so I'll leave this as a teaser.

Gene -- met him the most of the original members. First time was backstage at another Asylum show. It was pretty much him and me, so I went up and mentioned that I had done some work in the KISS fanzine Strange Ways. He told me how much he enjoyed the work I did in it. I mentioned that I had a couple of friends from the magazine there at the show who would like to meet him. He grabbed me by the arm, took me over to a security person and said to him, "Give this guy whatever he wants, it's okay with me."

Hard to forget something like that. Ended up getting passes for my friends. (I know, should have asked for a guitar or money if Gene's okayed anything I wanted. . . .)

Bruce -- met him at a December Animalize show in Louisville, Kentucky. He was standing on the front steps of the hotel where the band was staying. Turns out that he had just found out that very night that he was to become the permanent replacement for Mark St. John.

Vinnie -- met him at the Alice Cooper show I mentioned above. Had the Treasure album and the Dan Hartman album. He signed both after laughing his head off at the terrible photo of him that appears on the inner sleeve of the Hartman album. Ended up signing the Hartman album four times for some reason. This was his first tour after leaving KISS, so he was pretty up.

Eric Singer -- met him backstage at a Revenge show in Dayton. Seemed like a nice guy, although he didn't say much.

Eric Carr -- For more details about him, readers may want to check out my article in the "Features" section of The KISS Asylum.

KA: Tell me more about your old KISS fan-magazine "Strange Ways".

Back in 1984, Larry and another friend, Carlyn Nugent, were discussing KISS fanzines. There were only a few at the time (Firehouse and The Oath are the only two I can think of now). Both Larry and Carlyn felt that these were fine, but they also felt they could do something even better.

Basically, I called their bluff. I told them to do it and I even had an idea for a KISS novel called, "A World Without Heroes," that we could run as a serial in each issue.
We did two issues -- one in 1984 and one in 1985. Both were 100 pages long and featured comic strips, cartoons, reviews, articles and the first two parts of my novel. We had planned a third issue, but everyone moved to other areas of the country and I ended up losing money on both of the issues; so nothing ever came of it. Gene saw the issues and was very complimentary, and the magazine does have some type of cult following (I still get letters about them). One of our early readers who wrote to us was Mark Slaughter (who wanted Carlyn to write back to him and she blew it off, thinking it was just another male KISS fan -- she's been kicking herself ever since).
Incidentally, if anyone is reading this that wonders about the KISS novel, it is finished. Whether it will ever see the light of day, though, is another story. I should also point out that "Strange Ways" (which was listed on the "Hot In the Shade" album) was in no way associated with the web-zine by the same name.

KA: Also, please give us some information on your KISS Forum magazine.

DS: After Strange Ways, I kept getting letters and calls from fans who wanted to see more. Since Larry and Carlyn were not around, I decided to start up another KISS fanzine with my friend Jan Carter. We did eight issues from 1988 through 1990. Each were at least 16 pages and sold for a buck a piece. We tried to be a bit more controversial and cover topics that were slightly different. We even did a parody issue. Good fun, and we had a lot of positive feedback from fans and the band, but when I moved to Columbus in 1990 we decided to fold the fanzine while we were still hot.

KA: What other KISS projects have you been into other than the new book?

DS: Not much else. My energy has been concentrated mostly on getting the book finished and making it as clear and factual as possible. I do have some other ideas now that the book is done, but nothing that I feel comfortable in talking about. I'm also hoping to start work on a non-KISS-related book project soon.

KA: Please tell us about your new KISS book, "Black Diamond," and what will it cover?

DS: The book is something that I've been wanting to see written about the band for years. Basically, when I first started writing the book in 1989, all fans had was either the two small paperback bios that came out in the late 1970's, or whatever information they could dig up through their fellow fans. That still hasn't changed. Here we are with the band that had the most successful tour of 1996 and there is still nothing out that that tells the full story about them.

"Black Diamond" covers the band's history from Day One and before. I discuss the early bands for each member, how they got involved in KISS, and what solo projects they have done during or after KISS as well. Also, the book not only gives details on WHAT happened, but WHY they happened the way they did. For example, why was "Music From 'The Elder'" considered a good project to go into? Or, why were the solo albums done?
The book concludes with information about the 1996 reunion tour and Bruce and Eric leaving, so it's pretty much up to date. There's also a lot of visual material in the book as well, so don't expect just a dry text with nothing to catch the eyes.

KA: What prompted you to write a KISS book like this and how much research went into writing this book? Just from reading a few chapters and seeing how much info is in there, it must have taken you quite a long time to research it.

DS: Thanks for the compliment. As stated above, I really did not think KISS had ever had a good serious book written about their history. I contacted Gene in late 1988 and he gave me encouragement to go ahead and start on such a project. Between working full-time, finishing a BS in business and geting married, it's taken eight years to finish the project. I also spent a lot of time with other fans who had knowledge in areas of the band that I didn't, just to make sure what I was writing was accurate.

It was hard work, but I think it shows in the text.

KA: As you know, there are two other prominant books coming out soon about KISS. They are KISS & Sell and KISS 'n' Tell. From what you know about the those books, what makes your book different from the ones mentioned?

DS: There are a few others as well. I have to admit, I'm a bit frustrated as I was close to a book deal with a publisher back in 1995 when they went under financially and had to tell me "thanks, but no thanks." So I did have a feeling of "Hey! I was first!" Which isn't fair to these other books. I know in the case of "KISS & Sell" that it's been in the works for a long time as well. Some of the others are pretty much your classic case of "get a lot of pictures together, add 15 pages of text, mix slightly and voila, instant bestseller."

Some people may think that I'm talking about THE KISS YEARS by Barry Levine. I'm not. That's a perfectly understandable book and there have been several photo books over the years by particular photographers over certain bands (I'm thinking here of a few that have come out on the Beatles, for example). What I'm am referring to is those books that are 70 or 80 pages long and are just a bunch of filler, both photos and text-wise. Levine's book makes sense, the others are just a way to make a buck by putting out ANYTHING and sticking the band's name on it.
Some will be good, some bad. Hopefully, fans will consider "Black Diamond" one of the best of the group. I think fans should also consider the fact that "Black Diamond" will cover the band's, and each member's, COMPLETE history -- not just a portion as many of these other books are doing. A major difference is in the way the story is told. A personal view (such as those to be found in both books you mentioned above) is an interesting and fascinating way to write a biography. However, it will only be that one person's colored view of events. "Black Diamond", because it was written by an outsider, will give fans a more even balance in reviewing the history through many people's eyes, not just one person's.
Besides, "Black Diamond" is better because it has a half-naked woman on the cover.
Just kidding.

KA: Where are some of the places that you will visit to promote this book?

DS: First stop is the 11th annual New York KISS Convention (opps, I meant KISS Expo) on April 20th. I'll be there signing copies of the book and talking to fans. Then I'll be jumping on stage with Eric Singer and the rest and jamming the night away.

Okay, I'm lying about the jamming part. One can dream though, y'know.
After that, fans can see me at the Cleveland KISS Expo on June 1st.
"Black Diamond's" cover-girl, Haley, will also be at this particular show to sign books with me (I'll be the one at the table with the shortest line to get autographs, no doubt).
Talks are still brewing on other signings and promotional ideas, including some radio interviews. I'll keep The KISS Asylum informed as more info is available.

KA: Will this book be available in most bookstores?

DS: Hopefully so. I just heard on Friday that Barnes & Nobles have picked up the book, and a chain called Borders will be carrying the book as well. In relations, there might be a chance of booksigning occurring at some of these stores as well. A store chain called Media Play has carried several of the earlier books from CGP, so there's a good chance they will carry it. Expect more book stores to have the book on their shelves by the last week in April.

You can also order the book directly from CGP at their web-site.

KA: From what I understand, when you purchase the book, you get a free Interview CD. Please tell us more about that.

DS: CGP has always made a habit of trying to give readers something extra with their newest books. Several of their earlier biographies about bands had included CDs and it was decided to do the same for "Black Diamond." The interview CD is taken from the interview I did with Eric Carr back in 1990 for the book and are some of the choicest bits from our discussion. What really cool about the CD is that there is a track listing for the portions selected for the CD and fans will be able to go directly to a certain topic discussed without having to search through the whole CD everytime.

The CD covers such topics like Eric's early career before KISS; how he joined; "Chickenman"; and his views about Vinnie. Some of this material is not even covered in the book, so I think fans will get a lot out of it.

(CD Note from Dale: BTW, you may want to mention somewhere (as I do in the book), that the quality of the recordings on the CD is rather weak for the first ten minutes. After that, it clears up and the last 30 minutes is pretty smooth going. Don't want someone listen to the first few minutes and feel that they are getting ripped-off somehow.

KA: What are your thoughts on the KISS reunion tour?

DS: Lots of fun and a good idea. I mention in the book that this was not the first time that Gene and Paul tried to get a reunion idea off the ground, so I wasn't really surprised by it when it occurred (especially as some friend told me about the announcement before it happened). Glad to see that this has given Ace the chance to shine in front of a large audience again. I've seen two shows so far and I have enjoyed them both.

Now they just need to progress past the reunion to a new album of original material. I also have a sneaky secret desire to see them do a tour for the new album without the makeup and just as the four men behind the masks. Would give the entire history of the band some type of closure.

KA: In a few sentences, give me your thoughts on Gene, Paul, Ace, Peter and Eric Carr and Bruce Kulick.

DS: Gene -- The real enigma of the group. He likes being the center of attention and likes to be able to catch people off-guard. I feel like I know so much about him, but nothing about him at all. Although he was nothing but friendly to me everytime I spoke with him, he always came across as intimidating. I really do like him, just can't figure him out.

Paul -- I gained a lot of respect for Paul after finishing the book. The real center of KISS, even more so than Gene. Very talented and a perfectionist. Plus, more down-to-earth in his own way than any other member of the band.

Ace -- Pure genius at the guitar. Extremely talented, but he has not become the superstar in music that he deserves to be due to his tendency to coast on his skills. I've always felt he could and can be the one member of KISS that breaks out as a major force on his own.

Peter -- Nice guy. Good drummer, but a different type of drummer than the two that followed him. Glad to see him on the major stage again.

Eric Carr -- A true friend of all fans. When I was writing the book some people, including fans, tried to paint an ugly picture of Eric. I can't see him as anything other than what I saw everytime we met: a normal guy who just was happy to be where he was and happy that someone was interested in him.

Vinnie -- (You didn't ask, but I'll mention him anyway) Good guitar player. Talented writer of songs. Wish he would get away from, what I consider to be, boring maniacal guitar solos and back into writing some of the pure pop songs he did in his early days.

Mark St. John -- The only thing I personally liked on "Animalize" was Mark's guitar work. Don't hear enough from him. Too bad.

Bruce Kulick -- Very friendly, although he tends to keep to himself for the most part. Proved to be the real successor to Ace in the band, and I don't doubt that he'll always have a career in music waiting for him somewhere.

Eric Singer -- Good drummer who got a bit of a raw deal (unintentionally, really) in only being able to record one album of new material while in KISS for five years. He also seemed pretty fun to be around in person. I only hope to see him more in the future on the music scene.

KA: What do you think of the online explosion of KISS Web sites? Do you go online at all to check out the web sites? What do you think of The KISS Asylum. =)?

DS: Strangely enough, I never got on the 'net until after the book was already delivered to my publisher. I wrote the whole book on a standard typewriter, believe it or not. If I had gotten a computer earlier, I'd probably would have save some time when putting the book together. I do check out a few sites every once in a while just to keep up with what is going on currently with KISS and fandom in general.

As to The KISS Asylum -- what can I say? It's a great site and the first one I turn to when taking a look around on the web. Always something new on there as well. Fun, but serious with the facts as well (which is something I always strived for when writing "Black Diamond" as well). I always recommend it when someone asked me what KISS web site to check out.

KA: What are your thoughts on the other KISS Fanzines in the world?

DS: Having done fanzines myself, I think I can speak from experience. Many of them are fun in their own ways, but there are really only a handfull that have something to say beyond "KISS is touring, here's some cool picture!" That should not be taken as an insult. I only wish that more fans tried to learn more about writing and about having something to say themselves before they put together a fanzine.

If you want to do a fanzine, you should: 1) love the band; and, 2) have a point of view that you feel is unique enough to make people what to read what you have to say about the band. Whether it's historical research, or reviews, doesn't matter. Just have something to say. Fandom needs more of that, I feel.

KA: This is your soapbox, is there anything else you would like to say to the online readers?

DS: My soapbox? I get to keep it? Gosh, no one's ever given me a soapbox before? I'm. . .I'm touched.

Okay, I'll stop being stupid.

My writing about KISS is an extension of a common belief that the band has always talked about in the past: that of believing in yourself. It may have taken me eight years to get this book finished, but I think fans will see that the time, patience, research and love for the topic and the act of writing shines through on those pages. During those years, I had some setbacks and I even had some of those dear to me tell me that I should just give up. That I would never be a published author. But I never did. The dream of successfully writing a book was something that I believed I could do and I refused to give up that dream.

And that's just it. Dreams can come true. You may have some setbacks, but don't give up your dreams. Keep working at them and keep them realistic and someday they can come true as well.

KA: Thanks again for agreeing to do this interview. I am positive that all the fans out there will love your new book!

DS: Thanks for the interest, eveyone! And be sure to let me know what you think if and when you get a chance!