The unbelievably sweet reason why Gene Simmons of KISS has never done drugs or gotten drunk
By James Fell / www.latimes.com
Rocker Gene Simmons says there�s no big secret to his ability to play a show night after night while wearing 50 pounds of gear (that�s between the armor and his guitar):
�I�ve never been drunk and I�ve never been high,� said Simmons, 67, who is currently on tour with KISS.
Although a rock �n� roll lifestyle practically preaches indulgence of booze and drugs, Simmons said he went against the grain � for his mother, who survived a Nazi concentration camp while many in her family did not.
�I�m my mother�s only child,� Simmons said. �I was concerned I had no right to harm my mother. Life did that enough.�
Simmons said abstaining has helped him stay on top of the music industry and continue to fill stadiums after more than four decades.
�I literally never drink. Privately or publicly. I simply don't like the taste or the smell of anything with alcohol in it. I have never been drunk in my life and have never taken more than a sip of anything, and hated it every time. I will toast just to be social, but that's it.�
�Life is a race and we�re in constant competition,� added Simmons, whose band is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and was named the top American gold-record-earning band of all time by the Recording Industry Assn. of America.
�I�m not here to convince anyone of my lifestyle,� he said. �This is what I want for me.� But he said he doesn�t understand why someone would choose to hamper their ability to succeed by drinking and doing drugs.
Hypothetically, Simmons said, if �you and I are lined up along with 10 other guys, do you think you�ll do better than the guy who is a little tipsy? Because the alcohol is not going to help him.�
He�s also critical of media outlets making alcohol appear like a health food with �red wine is good for you� stories. �People say, �There�s my license to drink,�� he said.
