KISS - Dressed To Kill

31 years ago at 4:51 PM on the Southwest corner of 23rd Street and Eighth Avenue in New York City a kid, no more than six years of age, witnessed history. He can be seen in the outtake photos from the CREEM magazine two page photo comic sessions in KISSTORY. I do not know his name or have ever stumbled across a statement of his in an interview, but I would love to know what he was thinking the day he saw four men in makeup and business suits, leaning against a light pole on an ordinary busy New York afternoon. That must have been magical.
The feat of releasing three albums of original material in the span of 13 months is remarkable. The fact that each album got progressively better is downright amazing. DRESSED TO KILL, in my eyes is the best album of the three building block albums leading up to ALIVE in 1975. From the album cover to the album title, down to the songs themselves, KISS had finally found their groove and was settling into that classic look, style and formula.
KISS has a magical ‘something’ that draws us to it. I feel that ‘something’ is first apparent on this record. There is a mystical innocence to the songs. The album as a whole is so simply put together that after you listen to it, you immediately want to listen to it again, and that is the essentially what makes a classic KISS album.
Looking back it is interesting to think why Neil Bogart was chosen to produce the album. Was it the fact that KISS had been receiving offers from other major labels and Neil was simply trying to protect his investment? Was it that he suddenly had a spark of interest and loyalty to his baby? Or, was it the fact that KISS and Casablanca Records were running on empty and having Neil, as producer was simply a way to save money? We may never know. Which is probably one of the many reasons we keep listening. Sometimes it’s the mystery of KISS that keeps us coming back for more.


KISS – DRESSED TO KILL (March 19th, 1975)
ROOM SERVICE – A classic ‘road’ song and a classic Paul Stanley song. I love this song for many of the same reasons I love “Tomorrow And Tonight”. Catchy pop rock songs singing about the escapism all teenage boys love to dream about.
TWO TIMER – In the same way “Room Service” is a classic Paul Stanley song, “Two Timer” is a classic Gene Simmons song. I love how this song chugs along. Picking a clear-cut winner as far as song writing for this album is next to impossible. It has to go down as a tie. Simmons and Stanley were red hot at this point and the album is very reflective of that. My jaw hit the floor when a live version of “Two Timer” popped up on 1996’s, YOU WANTED THE BEST, YOU GOT THE BEST, although I question its authenticity. I never knew Peter’s drums were so thick, and for a live performance from Detroit in 1975 Gene sure sounds old. But nonetheless, I’ll sit back and make believe, after all it’s KISS, and part of the magical potion is just that…’make believe’.
LADIES IN WAITING – This song feels like an outtake from the Gene Simmons 78’ solo album. Quite possibly one of the reasons it has always remained one of my constant favorites. LIW is our first jump into the hook driven Gene Simmons groupie song, which will soon plague most of his cuts throughout the remainder of the seventies. But who’s complaining?
GETAWAY – I’ve never cared for this song. As an Ace Frehley song I feel it’s weak and sadly becomes the most skipped on the album.
ROCK BOTTOM – Hearing the intro to this song takes me back to the time when I first discovered KISS. I was young and naïve and believed that life was an open highway of possibilities. Now that I’m older and perhaps a little more jaded, it’s nice to ‘lose yourself’ in the music again, and believe, if only for a moment, that ‘anything’ is possible. “Rock Bottom” does that for me…pure magic.
C’MON AND LOVE ME – This is by far one of Paul Stanley’s coolest songs. I would rate it number three of my favorite Stanley tunes. The first being “Mr. Speed”, the second “Strutter” and “C’mon And Love Me” rounding up the bunch. It simply kicks ass.
ANYTHING FOR MY BABY – Another track I never pay to much attention to. However, I love Peter’s snare shot at the beginning of each stanza. He was quite possible at the top of his game on this record.
SHE – It was a treat to hear this song in its original WICKED LESTER demo form after growing to love it on this record. It made understanding the transition from WICKED LESTER to KISS mean so much more. I have always loved how grungy and dirty this song sounds, and Ace’s guitar work is phenomenal. A Gene Simmons classic. How cool it must have felt for Steve Coronel to watch a song he helped write make such an incredible stamp on KISS history. That would be a ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunity and blessing.
LOVE HER ALL I CAN – A fine example of how well Simmons and Stanley work together. From the harmonies to the guitar riff, everything about this song works and proves why KISS is such a great rock and roll band, clean, simple and to the point…kick ass rock songs.
ROCK AND ROLL ALL NITE – Yes, it is triumphant that KISS could create such an instant classic out of the clear blue sky. Yes, it is a great rock and roll anthem, known the world over. Yes, it is a great closing number when performed live (the first time you see it)…but it has been overplayed. I may be stepping on some toes here, but…c’mon, give it up. Let’s lose the song from the set list at least for one year/tour. Everyone knows the song, and the people who really ‘matter’ in the audience…the ‘diehards’ are tired of it. It’s a song that has grown so mythical in proportion that the only ones who truly get off on it are ‘over the hill’ drunken women…who know little to nothing about KISS. The greatest move ever was NOT playing it at the VH1 ROCK HONORS. Thank you. From the bottom of our hearts…thank you. It’s a good song…but we get it already. KISS is bigger than any one member, and they should be bigger than any one song.

KISS-HOTTER THAN HELL

Somewhere hidden deep inside my families ‘board game’ closet is a book. It’s a small paperback book of questions. It’s nothing fancy, the edges are worn out from past family vacations and the pages have yellowed with time, but the book serves one purpose; it presents the player with thousands of questions, or circumstances, and asks them to give come up with their best answer. It’s a simple game and an excellent way to waste countless hours on the road.
Over the years the questions have seem to grown easier with time allowing the answers to flow from my mouth with ease, however, there has always been just one question in which I have never been able to answer properly, until today that is.
“What is your biggest pet peeve?”
Looking back I had always chosen easy cop out answers like, ‘slow drivers in the fast lane’ or ‘people writing checks in the express lane’, your basic everyday bullshit answer…but today, I know I can genuinely answer the question honestly with all my heart.
My answer; “People who make fun of you because of what you believe in.” Am I talking about KISS? You bet your ass I am.
Today I was innocently enough pushed into a corner by the ‘outsiders’ and made to look like a fool simply because I like KISS. To make a long story short, it all boiled down to the fact that the Kansas City Chiefs are going to the playoff’s and everyone at work is simply ecstatic for this Saturday’s game. Now, don’t get me wrong. I do not hate football, football fans, or the Kansas City Chiefs. In fact, a small majority of my closest friends are crazy about the game. I, on the other hand simply enjoy the barbequed hamburgers and tossing back a couple of cold sixer’s while they watch the game. I don’t understand football, I know nothing about the rules or how it is played, but yet (here’s the kicker) I don’t put people down that do.
Case in point…my afternoon. A coworker, very excited about this Saturday’s match up announced to those around them that they could ‘not wait’ until this Saturday because this was going to be ‘the best game ever’ and that they were going to be ‘partying it up at the bar by 2:00…ready for some f-o-o-t-b-a-l-l’ (as if they were Hank Jr. themselves).
My argument here? This is the same person who gave me the look of death and confusion when they saw that my calendar on October 26th, had the inscription ‘KISS’ written on the day, reminding me that on that particular evening, the local movie theater was showing a sneak broadcast of the upcoming KISSOLOGY box set. Granted, I was excited for that day, but please tell me what exactly is the big difference here?
The ‘outsiders’ can get excited about a football game, but we cannot get excited about a rock concert? It’s perfectly acceptable to wear a bright red and yellow jersey to the bar with gigantic numbers on the back, but if I were to wear a black KISS t-shirt, I’m seen as a scumbag? It’s ok to be thirty years old, and have a big screen television set in your basement, along with your Chiefs flag, and your fridge of beer…but if you have KISS posters on your wall…you need to grow up and your immature.
Ohhhhhhh…I get it. I understand. Football is a sport for MEN. It’s ‘real’ and KISS…well they’re ‘make believe’…the kind of stuff ‘nerds’ like and go to conventions for. Well, if that’s the case, call me a nerd, and sign me up for the next convention.
I apologize for my rambling…but this truly burns my ass. I hate the fact that no matter how old we get, we still have never left the high school halls. I can’t stand the fact that just because we don’t follow what other people consider to be normal, we’re the geeks, who need to ‘grow up’.
I say, “Fuck-em’”.
When I got home this evening, needing a little outlet, I raced to the basement and threw on my HOTTER THAN HELL vinyl LP. Listening to that record it reminded me the reason I love KISS so much. Hearing it again tonight, swimming in my own angst, I realized once again…KISS is the perfect escape.
It saddens me that it took me so long to actually purchase this album (it was the last to enter my collection many years ago) and looking back, I do not realize why it took me so long to purchase it, but for some reason it was the one album I had the least desire to listen to, but of all the ‘pre-fame’ KISS albums, is by far my favorite.
Well…I’ve wasted enough of your time…and ‘I got this feeling, tonight’s gonna’ be one of those hot nights…’

“When you like something, you’ve got to be willing to stand your ground.” – Paul Stanley
“You were the weirdo in school with your black nail polish; that’s ok, because you believed in something, you knew something before they did.” – Gene Simmons

KISS – HOTTER THAN HELL (October 22nd, 1974)
GOT TO CHOOSE – From the beginning guitar chord, this song sounds like it was recorded in your mother’s basement, and I love it for that very reason. It sounds so low budget, and so filthy, it wreaks of that early KISS fire that seemed to sadly dwindle with age and fame.
PARASITE – I have always felt that Ace Frehley was a great guitarist and a great songwriter, but for me his songs always seem very rushed. It’s as if he tried to get his idea down on paper as quickly as he could, and didn’t take the time to let it blossom. Now, this somewhat changed by LOVE GUN and the ACE FREHELY solo album, but I have never considered “Parasite” a top ten song. I do however love the middle jam before the guitar solo…very reminiscent of the classic Ace Frehley concert guitar solo…something I smile like a school kid for every time.
GOIN’ BLIND – This is by far one of the best Gene Simmons songs on record. Very, un-KISS, and pretty strange, a song I would kill to hear performed live. Gene definitely takes the cake on the HOTTER THAN HELL album. If I had to choose one winner, it would go to the Demon…if for nothing else…this song alone.
HOTTER THAN HELL – I have loved this song from the first day I heard it. I read once in a GOLDMINE magazine that Paul ripped the idea for the song off from “All Right Now” by FREE…he even said, something to the effect of; “it’s ok to steal in the beginning when your first creating your sound, as long as you’re stealing a diamond and not a piece of glass,”…that has stuck with me forever. I love that quote.
LET ME GO, ROCK ‘N ROLL – One of the ‘classic’ KISS song’s that has never really done much for me. Yes, it’s very upbeat and great to hear in concert, but nothing about the song makes me ‘get off’ in that good ol’ fashioned KISS way.
ALL THE WAY – Flipping this record to Side 2 it is quite apparent, Mr. Simmons rules the roost. “All The Way” followed by “Watchin’ You”…WOW! The groovy sleaze of the guitar line, followed by the poppy-chorus blends wonderfully together. “All The Way” is a classic B-Side that deserves much more recognition that it receives, and deserves at least the chance to be heard live in a smoke filled concert arena setting.
WATCHIN’ YOU – This guitar riff alone, is in my top five favorite guitar riffs of all time. I love the attitude in this song. The balls out, cockiness, along with that kick ass riff, simply makes this song kill. It’s hardcore in that melodic KISS way that truly makes it magical.
MAINLINE – In a very weird way I have always enjoyed Peter Criss songs. Granted Paul wrote the song and had every intention of singing it himself until Peter declared he would ‘quit the band’ if he weren’t allowed to sing it…but to me the song fits him perfectly. You can actually picture this coming off the soft green glow of his 78’ solo record. Sorry…I’m nostalgic for that period…and for some reason, Peter’s cuts are very close to heart, probably one reason I have always enjoyed this track. It’s not the best on the album for sure, but it pops along nicely and effortlessly, in that ‘Peter Criss’ sort of way.
COMIN’ HOME – I have always considered this the “Strutter” of the HOTTER THAN HELL album. In my eyes, it’s Paul’s best effort from this record. To this day I get Goosebumps hearing the ‘downward’ chord progression after the chorus. A classic on this album, that still sounds just as good today. The song has not aged one bit, and is still as every bit as powerful.
STRANGE WAYS – Sebastian Bach has stated many times that this is his favorite KISS song, simply for the guitar groove and the wonderfully sleazy Ace Frehley guitar solo. I could not agree with him more. The deep bass and guitar tone combined with the effect that Ace uses at the beginning of his guitar solo…Holy Shit!! These guys didn’t just make it on image alone, before the fame and the fortune, they were talented musicians who were on a mission to kick ass and dominate the world…HOTTER THAN HELL is clear cut example of that.