KISS IS EVERYWHERE!

Here's German Playboy Playmate Mia Gray's photo shoot tribute to Paul Stanley!

Thanks to KISS News for the images!

 

My dream from the start was five years of glory with KISS. Along with Peter and Ace, we kicked doors open that stood in our way, and every band member who has stood with me at some point during these decades has played an essential part in turning that five year dream into a phenomenal 40 year reality. I thank each of you for your contribution to this milestone.

Our journey and victories are a joy I also share with you, our fans who have always given us the freedom to stand and fall on our own terms, and we have done both with a grateful smile. For the past ten years, Tommy and Eric’s pride and dedication have enabled Gene and I to reclaim and celebrate all that we have been, while continuing to move forward in a way that would have been impossible without them. I love playing with the band as it is today, and many of my proudest moments are tied to moments of magic we have created together in the studio and on the stage. I know we’re ready to do it again.

Humble thanks.

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A special thanx to ALL of the Fans who have been with the band on this roller coaster ride called KISS for 40 years! I am honored to be a part of this machine and pay special respect to all members past & present. I especially want to thank Paul, Gene, Tommy & Doc McGhee for giving me a place to call home. And most importantly the Fans. YOU Fuel this engine!

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At 40 years strong, I'm proud to be in one of the greatest bands in rock history. KISS is a band that is as full of life and vitality today as it was 10, 20, 30 and 40 years ago. All eras of the band should be celebrated today. Long live KISS.

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To the Kiss Army - who made it all possible for us.

To Paul, without whom I would never have been able to achieve my dreams.

And to the band - past and present, for continuing to treat the stage as holy ground and the fans as our bosses.

Here's to another 40 years!

On this day in KISStory - Forty years ago today, on January 30, 1973, KISS performed their very first concert at Popcorn (The Coventry) in Queens, NY. The band performed 2 sets at the club that night for a crowd of under 10 people.

Gene recalls how that show came about:

1973 was the beginning.

Wicked Lester had just finished its album for EPIC RECORDS. There were five members in the band, including Paul and myself. Though we had a real recording contract with a major label, and though we had finished an entire album, we were depressed. It just wasn't what we had envisioned.

So, we started again. We tried firing the other three guys in Wicked Lester, but some wouldn't leave. So, we quit.

We started again with a vision. 'Let's put together the band we never saw on stage.'

We got a manager named LOU LINET, who managed JF MURPHY AND FREE FLOWING SALT and DIANA MARCOVITZ (or something like that)...and when he heard the newborn baby -- KISS. He thought it was the worst crap he had ever heard. Needless to say, he was gone immediately. So, we were managerless.

I put together a bio kit, while I worked at the Puerto Rican Interagency Council, as assistant to the Director. Peter's friend owned a printing press and printed up our invites.

But, where to play? We didn't have a manager. We didn't have an agent. We never had.

I made a phone call cold to a place called Popcorn in Queens, NY and on the phone convinced the guy to hire a band, who would soon be changing their name from WICKED LESTER to KISS.

We got the gig -- three nights -- Wed, Thurs and Fri for the sum total of $150.

That was the beginning.

By Chris Epting

KISS lead guitarist Tommy Thayer was on hand at the 2013 NAMM show in Anaheim, Calif. over this past weekend to visit the Gibson guitar booth and give the capacity crowd an up close and personal look at his spectacular new signature Epiphone "Spaceman" Les Paul.

It's a silver sparkle beauty that Thayer is clearly very proud of, as he should be. He's now been in KISS for over a decade, and he's slowly but surely carved out his own unique sound and approach, all the while being sensitive to the legacy of the "Spaceman" character originally created by original guitarist Ace Frehley.

As Tommy tells us, he didn't want to rock the boat too early in the game, but with the last two KISS albums, Sonic Boom and Monster, he took the opportunity to begin putting his personal stamp on the sound of the "hottest band in the land."

In just a few weeks, KISS are off to Australia to bring some thunder down under and then hopefully after they have their way with Europe, we'll get some KISS here again in the U.S.

Aside from being a fantastic guitarist, Thayer (formerly of Black 'N Blue) is also one of the most down-to-earth guys in the business and it's always a pleasure when Noisecreep gets a chance to speak to him.

Forty years ago this week, on January 30, 1973, the band formerly known as Wicked Lester played its first gig under its new name. To three people. In a long-forgotten venue in Queens called the Popcorn Club (later renamed the Coventry). Why is this notable, you ask? Well, because that was the first official concert by a not-so-little band called KISS. And four decades, 100 million in album sales, multiple lineup changes, thousands of pieces of mass-produced merchandise, and countless gallons of facepaint later, KISS (or at least founding members Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley) are still rocking and rolling all nite and partying ev-er-y day.

Check out these KISS clips from 1985, 1986 and 1987!

Asylum album TV commercial - 1985



"Detroit Rock City" - Asylum Tour - 1986



SKY TV interview with Paul and Gene - 1987

Check out these KISS clips from 1982, 1983 and 1984!

"I Love It Loud" - Dutch TV show Toppop - 1982



Swedish TV show Rapport feature - 1983



Sky-Fi Music Video show from England - 1984

Here are some great shots of Tommy signing autographs and visiting with fans at NAMM 2013! Tommy spent several hours at the Gibson Epiphone booth and Hughes & Kettner booth promoting his signature guitar and amp. Tommy had such a long line at Epiphone that he stayed for more than two hours, posing for photos and signing!

Photos by Keith Leroux and Rutger de Groot for KISSonline.

Here's a closer look at Paul's new Washburn Starfire Time Traveler guitar, which is featured at NAMM! The display features a great quote from Paul, which reads:

"I had a vision and the challenge was creating it. As someone who has collected some pretty stellar examples of classic vintage guitars I know both their magic and their myths. "New" can be spectacular. "Old" can be subpar and vice versa. The Washburn Starfire Time Traveler series imparts a classic iconic guitar that never was, with a life, soul and mojo that rivals decades of travel on countless musical journeys. This is a guitar that not only screams vintage; it whispers it. From the construction to the colors. From the case to the hangtags it's all there. Pick one up and play it. The next trip starts with you."

Gene had a variety of Cort Axe and Punisher basses on display at Cort's booth at NAMM!

Photo by Keith Leroux for KISSonline.

Check out these KISS clips from 1979, 1980 and 1981.

PM Magazine Special - 1979



New Zealand TV report - 1980



"I" - European satellite TV broadcast - 1981

American hard rock legends Kiss celebrate their fortieth anniversary this month and have marked the occasion by reminding us of this: Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons and Peter Criss auditioned lead guitarist Ace Frehley in a New York City loft way back in 1973 and thus, Kiss was born. Love ‘em or hate ‘em you can’t deny the impact of Kiss and the legendary status that sees them continue to sell out large venues around the globe, even with half their original members replaced. For the purpose of this retrospective you need to know that I fall into the ‘love ‘em’ camp and I’m saying so up front just so we’re clear. What follows is gleaned from nearly 40 years of both loving and, at times, hating the band Kiss.

Like much of the world I didn’t become acquainted with the band until after the release of Kiss Alive in 1975 when the live version of Rock n Roll All Nite was blasting out of A.M. transistor radios everywhere. My American step-dad loved to smoke weed and get mellow to James Taylor and while I can and did appreciate the finer points of that he was not reciprocally open minded about my love for Kiss, an outrageously attired band in make-up who liked to blow stuff up, set things on fire and spit blood. In short he thought that Kiss was disgusting and for a rebellious, long-haired teen with a bad attitude, that was a recipe for unbridled joy.

This then is one writer’s opinion with respect to ten hidden gems that all but the most ardent of Kiss fans may have missed, an opinion formed through decades of being a Kiss fan and observer. I’ve organized these gems by release date in order to avoid a debate about how these songs would appear in a ‘top ten’ format. I have listed them this way as a purposeful construct, the idea being that each tune is worthy in and of itself to be included in the list without regard for how it stacks up against its brethren.

So, let’s proceed…

CLICK HERE to view the rest of the story.

Here's a photo of the new Paul Stanley Time Traveler series of guitars featured at Washburn's booth at NAMM!

Photo by Fran Stewart for KISSOnline.

Tommy Thayer will make the following appearances at NAMM in Anaheim, CA tomorrow:

Gibson Guitar / Epiphone booth #303AB at 11 AM

Hughes & Kettner booth #6555 at 2 PM

Pictured is the cool new ad for Tommy's Epiphone Ltd. Ed. Les Paul in the Feb. issue of Guitar Player Magazine.

by Morley Seaver

I've been a solider in the KISS Army for a long time. Since the very beginning, in fact. I bought the debut record the day after it was released. And as a fan who has supported them at every stage of their career, I think I've got more than a bit of perspective.

With that in mind, it's with complete confidence that I make the following statement. This is not a regular KISS album. With past records, everything was transparent and you knew exactly what was what when dropping the needle or pushing the button.

With Monster, at least for me, its magic was not so instantly apparent. I cracked the plastic on the CD when I received it and sat back waiting and….nothing stood out. Only one cut "Show Mercy" showed promise and Eric's vocal on "All For the Love of Rock & Roll" also caught my ear.

Slightly disappointed, I let it sit for a day or so before trying again. This time it became warmer. The first single "Hell or Hallelujah" shined a bit brighter. It still wasn't there, however. It sat for a few more days and then a strange thing happened. I threw on some headphones and listened to it that way. Suddenly and dynamically, the album came rushing into focus like an old-time Polaroid quickly developing before your eyes. The songs that first struck me became absolute winners and the other tracks quickly followed suit.