Andy Warhol, Studio 54, Madison Square Garden and two albums – this is what it was like being in Kiss in 1977

(Image credit: Fin Costello/Redferns)

By 1977, Kiss were the most famous rock’n’roll band in America – and they knew it. In 2012, singer and guitarist Paul Stanley looked back at the year of Love Gun, Alive II, Madison Square Garden and some dedicated hedonism.

1977: How was it for you?

It was an incredible time for us. Everything had kind of exploded and we found ourselves trying to fortify Kiss’s place in rock’n’roll. I wanted to see the band become the biggest it could possibly be. To reach the Olympus of Rock.

There were two Kiss albums that year. One was Love Gun, which featured Plaster Caster. Were you ever ‘commemorated’ by Cynthia Plastercaster?

That song was more of a fake homage to the person who spearheaded that movement. But no, I never had it done to me. It always sounded a bit painful. I can think of better things to do with an erection than stick it into a load of dental gel.

The other Kiss album that year was Alive II.

Sonically, I never felt the studio albums lived up to what we were doing live. They just didn’t have the kick, the balls or the sonic enormity of what we did live. Alive II captured the experience of being at a Kiss show and what we stood for.

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Original KISS guitarist, Ace Frehley, performed at at Hard Rock Live in Orlando, Florida on June 21, and YouTube user Shane Cordwainer has uploaded 4K video of the entire set. Check it out below.

Ace and his band performed the following setlist (as per Setlist.fm):

“Shock Me” (KISS song)
“Shout It Out Loud” (KISS song)
“Cherry Medicine”
“Rock Soldiers” (Frehley’s Comet song)
“Love Gun” (KISS song)
“10,000 Volts”
“Parasite” (KISS song)
“New York Groove” (Russ Ballard cover)
“Rip It Out”
“Detroit Rock City” (KISS song)
“Love Her All I Can” (KISS song)
“Cold Gin” (KISS song)
“Strange Ways” (KISS song)
“Deuce” (KISS song)

There are things in the universe for which the head of the rock’n’roll gods must be personally responsible.

When the Gene Simmons takes to the stage of the Turbinenhalle in Oberhausen, Germany on August 6, Double Crush Syndrome frontman / ex- Sodom guitarist Andy Brings and his six-piece band will have opened the evening and, true to the title of his 2018 film Full Circle – Last Exit Rock’n’Roll, will have completed a circle that began 45 years ago. That’s how long Brings has been a KISS fan. You can watch the movie here.

Andy Brings: “Gene and I have already crossed paths several times, but playing with him is absolutely amazing. A real rock’n’roll fairytale. This is what I live for!”

Drum Legend Carmine Appice Talks Cactus, KISS, Rod Stewart, Led Zeppelin and more!

Episode 579. One of the premier showmen in rock, Carmine Appice became known worldwide for his astonishing live performances, in addition to becoming a highly sought-after session drummer, recording with countless artists throughout his career. In ‘76, he joined Rod Stewart‘s band, touring, recording and writing two of Stewart‘s biggest hits, “Do Ya Think I‘m Sexy’ and “Young Turks.’ He left Stewart to record his first solo album, “Rockers’, and tour Japan and North America with an allstar band. . In the early 80’s, he toured with OZZY Osborne ,Ted Nugent . In the mid 80’s, he formed King Kobra for two Capitol albums and international touring And in the late 80’s, Carmine played on a Pink Floyd record “Momentary Lapse of Reason’ and formed Blue Murder with Whitesnake‘s John Sykes and The Firm‘s Tony Franklin. In the early 90s, he pounded away soul-style for The Edgar Winter Group.

As an educator, Carmine was the first to legitimize rock drumming with his landmark book, The Realistic Rock Drum Method, selling over 400,000 copies (now in video format). He was the first Rock Drummer and Rock Musician to conduct instructional clinics and symposiums around the world.

Gene Simmons has opened up about the first time he saw AC/DC live in 1977 and the way he was “blown away” by the sheer “brilliance” of their performance – though the band’s name initially gave him rather the wrong impression.

In the latest issue of Classic Rock, the Kiss bassist reminisces about his fateful encounter one summer night with the Australian rock band at the iconic Whisky A Go Go in Los Angeles.

“I’d never heard of AC/DC, and I thought it might be a gay band,” Simmons admits, noting that the term ‘AC/DC’ was slang for bisexuality at the time in America. What he discovered that night, however, was apparently a band far removed from any stereotypes Simmons had.

“I was blown away,” Simmons recalls. “No minor chords here, mate – just major chords hitting you in the balls! It was all – as you say in England – meat and two veg. I was just mesmerised by this band.”

“Bon Scott was a force of nature with his shirt off, drinking. It was like a homeless crazy guy had jumped up on stage. He never had that sort of rock-star sheen, or any kind of showmanship. It just felt like a stream-of-consciousness expulsion of his inner demons on stage.”

Scott wasn’t the only one who left an impression: “When the lights went out at the end of each song, Angus [Young] was still going crazy, doing that Chuck Berry thing during the blackouts with nobody watching. And I said to myself: this is the real deal. This is a guy that does it because he feels it inside.”

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Jay Jay French looked back on what would eventually become KISS, and recalled witnessing what he thinks is the first time the legendary NYC band performed under their new name.

Between dealing drugs (which, as he would often suggest, taught him how to be a good manager) and playing in a myriad of bands, Jay Jay’s pre-Twisted Sister‘s days were definitely picturesque. One fascinating episode in the guitarist/manager’s early career was auditioning for KISS when the on-stage extravaganza that would enter the annals of rock history was barely a glimmer in Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley’s eyes.

As French explains in a recent interview on the Denim and Leather podcast, the audition came as Gene & Paul were “transitioning” from their previous band, Wicked Lester (transcribed by Ultimate Guitar):

“I was babysitting for a guy who was a music business attorney, and his client was a producer named Ron Johnson, who produced the Wicked Lester album. One day, when I was babysitting for his daughter, he told me, ‘Are you in a band right now?’, because he would hear me play guitar in the building. And I said, ‘No, I’m looking for a band.’ He said, ‘Well, I’m representing a guy who’s producing a band, Wicked Lester.’ So, he gave me the phone number of either Gene or the producer.”

“I made a phone call, and I was invited. Gene and Paul came down to see me play. On June 6, 1972, I was playing with a band called Scout, at a church social event, when they asked me to play with them, so I did. They invited me to rehearsal, which I did three or four times. I jammed with them, and I never heard back.”

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Deciphering the greatest vocalist of all time is difficult, especially when you have so many choices. For many, the one that immediately comes to mind is Freddie Mercury, but what about all of the other singers who managed to epitomise the good and bad of an entire generation? What about Nina Simone, Dolores O’Riordan, Tracy Chapman? The list is endless, but thankfully, Kiss’ Paul Stanley seems to claim the answer.

When studying vocal virtuosos, it’s important to consider what, exactly, constitutes a great singer. Is it the ability to project and fill an entire stadium with a strong and distinctive tone? Or is it all about infusing emotional rawness and authenticity into a voice? What about range? Should a great singer be able to oscillate between notes with effortless control? Usually, the answer to all of these questions depends on the genre in question.

For instance, outside the realm of pop, most singers are completely suited to their respective arenas, like Debbie Harry and Chrissie Hynde, whose vocal talent is indisputable but entirely fitting within the rock sensibilities they pervade. O’Riordan, too, had a hauntingly beautiful voice, one which incorporated vocal flips that didn’t just align perfectly with her Irish heritage but carried a pained edge that made her melodies even more spine-tingling.

In terms of more traditional rock voices, many musicians who thrived during the late 1960s and 1970s felt particularly drawn to the ways many male rock singers blended emotive aggression with genuine vocal range, like the way Robert Plant gave Led Zeppelin its signature stadium rock sound. The kind that could reach the furthest corners of the biggest venues.

In fact, for Paul Stanley, Plant represents the greatest vocalist of all time, one that many have attempted to replicate to no avail. Stanley first experienced Led Zeppelin live in 1969, and found the whole event “transformative”. Recalling the concert during a Forbes interview in 2020, he said: “I saw Zeppelin in ’69 and that was transformative. As I would put it that was god’s work.”

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CRANDON, Wis. (WSAW) – Get ready to rock this July, as legendary Rock & Roll Hall of Famer and Co-Founder of Rock & Brews, Gene Simmons, will cut the ribbon to open Wisconsin’s second Rock & Brews restaurant location on Tuesday, July 2 at Potawatomi Casino Hotel Carter.

The rock-inspired restaurant and entertainment concept’s brand-new three thousand square-foot restaurant is equipped with a stage for live entertainment, in true Rock & Brews fashion.

The menu is full of tried and true guest favorites including Rock’n Hot Wings, the Alice Cooper Poison Burger, and the Demon Chicken Sandwich, a menu item created as an homage to Gene Simmons. Guests can also choose from 24 beers on tap, including the best domestic and imported beers.

This opening celebrates the ongoing partnership Potawatomi Casino Hotel has created with Rock & Brews founders, Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons. After opening their first Wisconsin location in Milwaukee in August 2023, and closing out the summer with KISS’ End of the Road Tour in Crandon last September, this new endeavor will launch the 25th Rock and Brews location.

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Being an American metal musician, it’s not much of a secret that David Ellefson is a KISS fan. And how could he not be a fan of a game-changing band that was huge as he was growing up? With that in mind, as he’s preparing for the new Kings Of Thrash dates, we asked David about his thoughts on the final KISS show and how things went down with their farewell tour. Among other things, he also reflected on some of the aspects of his work in Megadeth as well.

Ultimate-Guitar.com: Do you think KISS has really played their final show?

David Ellefson: “I don’t know for sure. I always felt like KISS, if they wanted to, they could always do corporates. I’m surprised there’s not a KISS Las Vegas, KISS Tokyo, KISS London, and put some other guys in the make-up and go out and have KISS carry on.

“But look, Gene [Simmons] and Paul [Stanley] are artists and musicians. Gene is already out on tour playing. I get it, I was like that even in and around Megadeth. I still put out a solo record, wrote a book, music is your life. This isn’t a job where you just put in your 30 years, clock out, get your gold watch, and play golf. That’s not who we are as people.

“I think, at the end of the day, the stage always calls us back. The studio always calls us back. I’ve talked to some people, and the more they threaten to retire, the better the calls they get for the next gig. I think that’s a pure sign that the universe is like, ‘Yeah, you ain’t done. Keep going.”

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Official, original printing from 1977 – this is NOT a reproduction. The KISS Motorcycle poster set are some of the most exciting and interesting photos of KISS ever taken.  This is STILL SEALED AND ROLLED!

Measures 20 x 28 inches.

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Episode 578. Another Mark fan boy episode this week! Guitarist Pat Travers sits down with us this week. Yes Pat does have some KISS stories to share, talks about Doc McGhee managing his career even lets us in on the one song he wishes he had recorded and why! Pat talks about working with Carmine Appice on the new Cactus album that is out now and shares the news that he is starting to work on a new Pat Travers album.

The late ‘80s were a weird time for KISS. The band “unmasked” and revamped themselves on 1983’s Lick It Up. It was a risky move, but one that rejuvenated their career. Pop metal (or “hair metal”) acts started dominating MTV and the Billboard charts, so this was perfect timing. Their look and sound fit perfectly alongside Motley Crue, Bon Jovi, and Poison.

It worked really well. That is, until it didn’t: by the end of the decade, hair metal was yesterday’s news and was quickly becoming a punchline. Sure, KISS was still headlining arenas, and they had some pretty big pop hits (“Reason To Live,” “Forever”). Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley would probably protest the premise of this article: they’d say that their “bad” years were better than most bands’ best years. And that’s true. But this is also true: although they were never “hip,” if you grew up in the suburbs, no band was cooler in the ‘70s. If Gene and Paul had a nickel for every kid who bought a guitar or drumset because of KISS, they’d double their considerable fortunes. But a few years into unmasking, they were no longer cool.

Strangely enough, the bands that were banishing the pop-metal rockers to the discount bins turned out to be KISS fans, too. Gene and Paul, always aware of trends, knew this was an opportunity. 1990 saw the release of Hard To Believe: A KISS Covers Compilation on the indie label C/Z Records; that’s the same label that released the 1986 Deep Six compilation, the record that helped to launch the Melvins, Green River (featuring future Pearl Jam members Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament) Skin Yard (featuring future Soundgarden and Pearl Jam drummer Matt Cameron) and Soundgarden.

Hard To Believe: A KISS Covers Compilation had contributions from both the Melvins and Skin Yard, as well as legendary punk band All. Oh yeah, and Nirvana, who covered “Do You Love Me?” Always attuned to trends, and never shy about addressing or defending their legacy, Gene Simmons and Paul Stanely decided to take the reins to assemble their own tribute album.

To be fair, KISS was already changing with the times before they started working on the tribute: their 1992 album Revenge was a darker, heavier record than they’d done since they unmasked, and they adopted a new, mostly black look, a visual 180 from their bright garb from the past decade or so. But they were still playing to the shrinking KISS audience.

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