Tim McPhate | KissFAQ
This week, KissFAQ launched Back In The Solo Album Groove: The KISS Albums. 35 Years Later…, an ambitious multi-week retrospective dedicated to arguably the biggest milestone in KISStory: the 1978 KISS solo albums. In conjunction with the launch, the site has published an exclusive interview with founder of the Citrus College Singers Ben D. Bollinger.
As director of the Citrus Singers, Bollinger played a key role as the liaison between Gene Simmons and his ensemble of 30 students. The ensemble provided lush background vocals on three songs on Simmons’ 1978 solo album: “True Confessions,” “Always Near You/Nowhere To Hide” and “When You Wish Upon A Star.” 
The students’ participation added a key element to the LP, which spanned a variety of material — from straight-ahead rockers and Beatlesque ballads to experimental songs and a cover of a Disney classic.
The following are excerpts from Bollinger’s interview with KissFAQ’s Tim McPhate:
On the invitation to participate on the album:
KF: And moving ahead one decade later to 1978 and the natural question: How did you come to receive an invitation to participate on Gene Simmons’ solo album?
BDB: Well, it’s really interesting how this happened. I was doing a lot of television work and a lot of studio work and I had a dear friend in Cher. Gene ended up living with Cher for a period of time. And he asked me if I would bring my singers in 1978 to celebrate her birthday at the Beverly Hills Hotel on Sunset Boulevard. And I told him, “Sure, I’d be happy to.” And she loved a song called “If.” And I had a brilliant young singer by the name of John Cavazos, and the group was excellent at the time. And we went out and sang for