The New Jersey KISS Expo is proud to announce KISS lead guitarist Tommy Thayer as our featured guest for 2013!
We return this year to the NJ Convention and Exposition Center for our largest show yet!
Saturday, September 28, 2013
NJ Convention and Exposition Center, at the Raritan Center
97 Sunfield Ave, Edison NJ 08837
$10 DISCOUNT TICKETS NOW AVAILABLE
For tickets, directions and all other info, visit www.njkissexpo.com
Cassius Morris
Tim McPhate | KissFAQ
KissFAQ has 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. Today, the site has published an interview with bassist Neil Jason, one of a select group of musicians who played on two of the KISS solo albums.
The following are excerpts from Jason’s interview with KissFAQ’s Tim McPhate:
On the direction of the material for Criss’ album:
KF: As it turns out, Peter’s album proved to be quite a departure from KISS’ typical sound. There were some old-time rock and roll, R&B and soul influences sprinkled throughout. I’m curious if you recall any discussion that this material might be a little left-of-center for KISS’ audience.
NJ: Well, obviously there’s quite a few ways for us to look at it as sidemen and as musicians. But if your entire career is defined by the band and you want to do a “solo record” — which means you step away from the band — then maybe you do something that you wanted to do. Now if you didn’t want to do anything else, like, “Well, I kind of just want to do that,” then he would have done that. And as far as the production decisions, I think a lot of the tunes were chosen for Peter’s voice and they sounded great and I didn’t see it as a departure from KISS. It was Peter Criss, who is part of KISS. So some of the tunes are right there and some of them aren’t. But that’s how Peter sings. If you liked “Beth,” then you’d like this.
KF: Well said, Neil. There are certainly songs on the lighter side, a la “Beth,” like “Easy Thing” and “I Can’t Stop The Rain.” I don’t know, I just think the fans were expecting something different from Peter.
NJ: Well, I’m assuming that the fans that love them dearly and listen to every note wanted four KISS albums at the same time because that would just about be enough at the same time for them. But, they got, I don’t know, two KISS albums — actually, they got four KISS albums. There are four personalities that make KISS and that’s why those four guys have a sound. It’s like if George Harrison does a record, it didn’t necessarily sound like the Beatles. If Ringo did a record, it didn’t sound like the Beatles. You know what I mean?