KA: We know people can read all the details of MusiCare Online and the artists involved in the KAOL projects at your webpage http://www.musicareonline.org , but why don't you give everyone a breif overview of the purpose behind KAOL and MusiCare.

Well, they are both designed to have fun making music. In the "business" world, sometimes those most important points get lost. KAOL started out as an opportunity for people to play and record music, KISS music, and give it to our peers to listen to. For me there is nothing more enjoyable than that. I, along with many others, love to arrange and write music. The opportunity to do it and have others around the world hear it is very cool.

We knew that in selling these discs, eventually our costs would be met and there would be some money left over that we wouldn't need. With 20 plus artists on a disc, it made no sense to split up what little profit there might be, and no one was really interested in that to begin with. So we decided to take whatever extra money that came in after paying for expenses, and give it away to charity in Eric Carr's name. We weren't sure if it would be a lot or a little but that didn't matter. That's how MusiCare Online got started. We ARE a charity now. The money stays with us until we donate it to another cause, which in this case is The Children's Hospital of Wisconsin. The best way to handle things financially was to set up an official non-profit corporation. Then any money collected would be tax free and easy to donate away. Since starting MusiCare Online, I have never been more optimistic about what the future holds for music. I could make music for the rest of my life without ever needing to get rich from it. If I, along with other musicians, can continue to make albums containing music that people want to hear, that would be pretty fulfilling. Once these KISS tribute CDs are done, I hope to put together other types of projects on the MusiCare Online label. If we can make a little bit of money for charity this way by doing something we absolutely adore, then cool!! Granted, there is a business side to having the corporation now, which ISN'T always fun, but I'm not really complaining.

KA: The CDs that you make are always advertised a couple of months in advance of their release and pre-orders are taken several weeks before the anticipated shipping date. Can you elaborate on that process for those who are new to KAOL?

Sure. Actually this is what makes KAOL and MusiCare Online SO unique. The cost of making the CDs are actually paid for by the customers as well as the artists on the discs. For instance, each artist chosen to be on a KAOL CD must pay an entry fee of around $200 for their spot. MusiCare Online is a very small corporation that was really only established to formally collect all funds from sales and distribute them properly to the hospital tax free. There really isn't any abundance of company money sitting in the account to finance these albums and as the producer, I personally don't have the kind of wallet to do it either. So to make these discs a reality, everyone who is chosen for their talent must pay their way. Now that usually covers a good portion of the pressing costs but it's never nearly enough to finish the CD to a retail ready form. The special inserts inside of the disc cost plenty as do numerous other facets of putting this together. By advertising to our KAOL customers well in advance, we are able to collect a large portion of the money needed to complete the CD. In return, we always give our pre-order customers an incentive such as a discount for ordering early or some other benefit that makes them want to help us out by placing an order in advance. Believe me, we greatly appreciate the quick response of our KAOL customers. By ordering early they help us out tremendously and they also are guaranteed their copy of the disc at that time. We always send out confirmation letters about 4 weeks before the actual release thanking them for their order and we usually try to include some little extra goodie like a KAOL pen or calendar to show our appreciation. People love free stuff, I know I do! This system works wonderfully and everyone is happy. There are some people who prefer to wait until the disc is actually out and that's okay too. They don't get the "early bird" discount or the free goodie but they are just as valued because by the time they order, we need their check because we're broke from using all of the rest of the funds! LOL......

The KAOL database of customers have become accustomed to the process now and I have had numerous letters telling me they look forward to the call for advance orders so they can see what kind of cute item or discount we are offering! They really are a great bunch of people and it's their participation that makes our project run smoothly.

KA: Did having the experience of having already produced the first KAOL disc make a difference with "KAOL 2 - Creatures Of The Net" as far as your job was concerned as the disc organizer and producer?

Oh yeah, absolutely. Having the first disc as a learning experience and trial and error type project made all the difference in the world in producing both KAOL 2 and the upcoming Remaster of KAOL 1. I avoided several of the mistakes I made with the original disc and changed a lot of how things were organized and run. I did find new ways to make errors though! LOL...... Like anything else, you live and learn. Fine tuning your skills is what life is all about. By that token, it stands to reason that KAOL 3 will obviously be the best disc of all if I apply all that I have learned in this whole KAOL experience. I can say for sure that KAOL 3 will most definitely be tougher to get on for the artist and will be run even more efficiently than the last two projects.

KA: There are some really great tracks on "KAOL 2 Creatures of The Net", did you have a hard time narrowing down from all the submissions what made the final cut?

No. The majority of them took one listen and I knew if they were in or out. There were a few that I was unsure about, but they were the exception to the rule. Of the entire 19 songs on the disc, I'm satisfied with 90% of my decisions.

KA: Some of the tracks on KAOL 2 involve multiple lead vocals from people all over the country, was there any problem presented by that situation as far as the recording process goes?

Well as you know we attempted the "cross country" group recordings on the original KAOL disc from 1997 with varying degrees of success. In those cases, music was completed at one location and shipped elsewhere to add the lead vocal. What we attempted to do on the sequel was to incorporate THREE different vocalists in three different locations. We did this on both "Kissin' Time" and "Rip and Destroy." Could we technically pull it off? With the help of CJ Scioscia from New Jersey, who has turned out to be a valuable KAOL production buddy, we did. He and I came up with the plan on how to execute it. For instance, with "Kissin' Time", I recorded all of the music tracks here at home, then had Nile Carter over to do his "Gene" verse. I then mixed that onto DAT and shipped it to Detroit. Nile was the only vocal track pre-mixed into the music because the recording format I had at that time was analog and not the same as what everyone else would be using. Whatever left my house had to be in mixed form to be compatible with the rest of the process. Now John Stockwell was ready to do his "Paul" verse in Detroit. They dumped my mix onto 2 tracks of Hi-8 digital format and John did his lead vocal and then his backup harmony in the choruses. This master Hi-8 was shipped onto New Jersey where CJ was. CJ took it and recorded Bart Collins doing his "Peter" verse and backups. Now all the vocals were complete and CJ did the final mix of blending John and Bart into the music with Nile. We did a similar situation with "Rip and Destroy". Similar cast of characters but this time we called ourselves The Phantoms Of The Park. With CJ's help and by doing a little planning, we were successful in pulling off what KAOL is all about..........musicians that have never met before playing together for a united cause. We plan on some more interesting KAOL All Star jams on the final KAOL 3 album next year. These will be even better because my current studio has been upgraded to the highest quality formats allowing us a lot more freedom to do some technical dazzling with the cross country theme.

KA: How did you manage to get rock producer legend Bob Ezrin involved in this disc?

Well, I'm a big Partridge Family fan and I had briefly met the founder of a PF Tribute band called Sound Magazine online a while ago. His name was Howard and he portrayed "Danny" in the group. One night after not seeing him online for a while , we started talking. He filled me in on future PF performances and I told him about the KISS Tribute CD I was doing. Then I told him he should do a KISS song Partridge style! I wasn't sure if he would take me seriously or not, but I went to see one of their shows and talk to them further about it. The next thing you know we were hooked up and they were doing Shout It Out Loud. It turns out Howard happened to work for Bob's company during the day and when the song was finished he gave him a copy. Bob loved it! He brought it to Gene and Paul who also got a huge kick out of it. Bob called Howard and told him he wanted to remix it personally. It was a great thrill to have him come and put his magic touch on the song. I was there the night we re-mixed and I will never forget it. I've kept him updated on KAOL since then. I have to say that the song is absolutely my favorite on the CD, but not neccessarily because of Bob at all. It's just infectious! It's perfectly arranged and produced and it crosses two worlds of the seventies together. Everyone who hears it loves it. If Gene, Paul, and Bob can't keep the smile off their face when they hear it, then that should tell you something.

KA: The Caravello family has been very supportive of the first two KAOL cds, including donating the never before released Eric Carr track "I Cry At Night" for KAOL 2. Do they seem to be excited about a third disc?

Loretta Caravello was a great help and support in the making of KAOL 2. She provided pictures, drawings, and the music from Eric. Loretta also donated the 2nd and final Cellarman song " Your Turn To Cry" for the KAOL Remaster coming out later this month. The family has also authorized us to make the official KAOL/Eric Carr Signature Guitar Picks that are included inside of each Remaster disc. I've briefed her of the plans for KAOL 3 and she is supportive of that too. She knows that everyone is having fun making music and she likes to see Eric get recognition for his part in KISS. Even though this final disc will be based on the 4 solo albums of 1978 before Eric was around, there'll be some special things involving him as well. Eric fans are going to be able to get more involved in this one in a unique way such as a contest for them to write lyrics for the first fan based tribute song about Eric. In addition, some of the KAOL veterans will be remaking the Cellarman song from KAOL 2, "I Cry At Night" for KAOL 3. Details of all that is up on our website.

KA: The first and second KAOL discs received very nice reviews in Metal Edge magazine, do you know whether or not KAOL 3 will be receiving coverage and/or a review as well?

Another person who has been wonderful towards KAOL is Gerri Miller. From day one she has been supportive and accomodating and has witnessed a lot of what has gone into this project, good and bad. She's watched KAOL grow and knows it still hasn't peaked to being all it can be yet. I'll always be grateful for the exposure she's provided and forthe patience she has shown during our growth. There was a nice review on KAOL 2 last July in Metal Edge and I'm sure Gerri will continue to be there for our final KAOL 3 next year.

KA: Being an internet based organization allows you to reach people worldwide with this project. What are some of the more interesting locations that you have received musical submissions from and shipped orders to?

Wow, we've gotten orders from literally all over the world. Brazil, Australia, France, Italy, and Spain to name a few. As for musical submissions, some of the best ones have come from Sweden. Both the "KAOL - Music From the Folder '99" Remaster and "KAOL 3 - The Spirit of '78" will have Swedish bands.

KA: KAOL 2 offers covers of some KISS songs you don't normally see on tribute discs, including "old gems" like "Two Timer" and "Rockin' In The USA." Were you deliberately looking for "fresh" material for this disc, or did it just end up those versions were among the best submissions you received?

I WAS hoping for the more obscure songs to come in. To be honest, I wish more had. I really didn't want to cover all the same old songs that everyone has heard over and over again. But a few of those familiar ones that did end up on KAOL 2 are there only because I thought the renditions were so good. We won't have this problem with KAOL 3 because it will be all of the solo songs and with the exception of New York Groove, none of the rest are what you could call "overpopular".

KA: Speaking of KISS songs you would not think to see on a tribute disc, you yourself chose to do a cover of "Jungle" off of "Carnival of Souls." What about that song drew you to it for your choice to cover for this disc?

Well I was originally going to do Hooligan. I was listening to a friends tape of the COS bootleg one day and really didn't care for the first few songs. Then Jungle came on it grabbed my attention. I loved the feel of the song. As soon as Paul started singing though, I thought "This song doesn't feel comfortable with a vocal for the melody. That type of melody would come across better with mood synthesizers.". As soon as I heard a new arrangement of it in my head, I knew I wanted to do it.

KA: Have you received any feedback about either of the first two KAOL discs from any of the members of KISS?

I briefly spoke with Gene on the phone the day we were re-mixing Shout It Out Loud with Bob. We talked about both discs and he was very kind. In light of how Gene feels about the gossip on the Internet, I prefer to keep most of my conversation with him private and not posted as to where it could be miscontrued by anyone. Earlier this year at the NAMM convention in LA, I also got a chance to show him the prototype of the disc before it was pressed and finished. It was just a test pressing with a preliminary CD booklet layout. He signed it for me. I also showed it to Bruce while I was there and we talked at length about it. He has been pretty encouraging of the project.

KA: Several of the artists on the disc live in the southern California area, do you think there is a possibility KAOL fans could ever see any of the KAOL artists perform live, like at a KISS Expo for example?

I hope so! That would be very cool, but it's not something that is being talked about.

KA: We know you are still dealing with KAOL 2 as far as taking orders and shipping them out goes, but you've also taken on another project involving the original KAOL disc. You are now re-releasing it as a remaster with quite a few changes. What brought that on and what can we expect from the new version?

The most current buzz around KAOL these days is the Remaster. What happened is that immediately after KAOL 2 came out, people were coming out of the woodwork asking about how to get the first KAOL. I'll admit that I had a couple of hundred of them left but had stopped selling them. It is no secret that I felt the quality of that disc was poor. KAOL 2 was not a perfect disc either but the quality of the music and packaging far surpassed the original disc and there was no way that I could now sell those originals anymore. So I decided to clean up the tracks, artwork, and packaging, and re-issue it. Everything has been remastered of course which is an improvement by itself, but several tracks were removed and some new artists/material were added. Other remaining tracks were remixed and/or re-recorded and the result is a cleaner, more enjoyable set of tunes. There's also a wonderful short bonus track of Eric speaking to his fans just one year before his death. The cover art was redone by Dave Magee and we have included a limited edition KAOL/Eric Carr Signature Guitar Pick inside. The response to the remaster has been the largest volume of pre-orders to date. We anticipate shipping it to our mail order customers right after Thanksgiving - the official release date for the rest of the public is January 2nd, 1999. The name of the re-issue is "KAOL - Music From The Folder '99" and if you haven't ordered it, there is still time to do so!

KA: We also know that KAOL 3 is already in the works. Care to tell everyone a little bit about what's planned to be the KAOL finale disc? It's going to be based on the '78 solo albums right?

Yes,the KAOL finale will be called "KAOL 3: The Spirit of '78" and will consist of songs from the 4 solo albums. There will be some Eric material as well. We are accepting audition tapes for this one now thru the summer of 1999. It won't be released until late in '99 or early 2000. It's still too early to know exactly what will be included but I promise there'll be some goodies and surprises in both the packaging and the music for everyone. This will be our goodbye disc so there will be no holding back. For full details you can visit the KAOL web pages at http://www.musicareonline.org

KA: Great job on the discs, is there anything else you would like to say to all the online fans that have been following all the KAOL projects?

Yeah, but thank you sounds so small. I don't know how else to say it. KAOL is really just about some of us out there who love to write and record music. To be able to create a tribute to a band that we grew up with, and have everyone take interest in our versions of the classics is wonderful. Since it helps out needy kids in the process and keeps Eric Carr's name remembered, what more could you ask for? Without the KAOL customers though, none of this would happen. You guys have been so great and supportive. We get a lot of nice stories, pictures, and wonderful comments in the mail when you send in your CD order. Thank you so much for buying the discs and being involved. I hope we can keep giving you great music and fun stuff for just a little while longer. Eventually KAOL will be over and part of the past, but for now, each and every one of you that buys a disc is part of the magic. What other fan club has ever had such a loyal following? The Kiss Army On Line has made history.

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