George Peter John Criscuola, better known by his stage name Peter Criss, is an American retired musician, best known as a co-founder, original drummer, and vocalist of the hard rock band Kiss. Criss established The Catman character for his Kiss persona. In 2014, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Kiss.
Vincent John Cusano, better known by his stage name Vinnie Vincent, is an American guitarist. He is a former member of the rock band Kiss from 1982 until mid-1984 during the band's transition out of their 1973–1983 makeup period. Vincent was the last member to wear a unique makeup/costume configuration, as the character of The Ankh Warrior, until he and the band were first shown without the makeup during an interview on MTV in September 1983. He founded his own band, Vinnie Vincent Invasion, which had minor hits.
Hot in the Shade is the fifteenth studio album by American rock band Kiss, released in 1989. It is the first Kiss studio album since 1981's Music From "The Elder" to feature lead vocals from someone other than Paul Stanley or Gene Simmons, with drummer Eric Carr singing lead on "Little Caesar". It is also the final Kiss album in its entirety to feature Carr before his death in November 1991 during production of the band’s next album Revenge. Unlike its predecessor album, 1987's Crazy Nights, Hot in the Shade does not heavily feature keyboards.
Kiss is the debut studio album by American rock band Kiss, released on February 18, 1974. Much of the material on the album was written by Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, as members of their pre-Kiss band Wicked Lester. Simmons estimated that the entire process of recording and mixing took three weeks, while co-producer Richie Wise has stated it took just 13 days.
Crazy Nights is the fourteenth studio album by American rock band Kiss, recorded from March to June 1987 and released on September 21, 1987, by Mercury worldwide and Vertigo in the UK. This was the second album to feature the line-up of Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Bruce Kulick, and Eric Carr. The album is notable for featuring heavy use of pop-metal keyboards and synthesizers. It was re-released in 1998 as part of the Kiss Remasters series and is the last Kiss album to have been remastered.
"Beth" is a song by American rock band Kiss, originally released on their 1976 album Destroyer. Although drummer Peter Criss has gotten credit over the years for writing the song, he was not truly the composer. Criss had a hand in a demo called “Beck”, but his friend, Stan Penridge, was the main writer. Producer Bob Ezrin turned it into “Beth” for the album. Casablanca Records released it as a single in August 1976, after it was released as the B-side of "Detroit Rock City". "Beth" is Kiss's biggest commercial hit in the United States; it reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100, received a Gold Record certification from the RIAA, and won the 1977 People's Choice Award for "Favorite Song". In 2003, "Beth" ranked #3 in VH1's 25 Greatest Power Ballads.
"Rock and Roll All Nite" is a song by American rock band Kiss, originally released on their 1975 album Dressed to Kill. It was released as the A-side of their fifth single, with the album track "Getaway". The studio version of the song peaked at No. 69 on the Billboard singles chart, besting the band's previous charting single, "Kissin' Time" (#89). A subsequent live version, released as a single in October 1975, eventually reached No. 12 in early 1976, the first of six Top 20 songs for Kiss in the 1970s. "Rock and Roll All Nite" became Kiss's signature song and has served as the group's closing concert number in almost every concert since 1976. In 2008, it was named the 16th greatest hard rock song of all time by VH1.
Kiss Unplugged is a live album by the American rock band Kiss, released in 1996. It was recorded in studio for the television program MTV Unplugged and released as part of a series of live and video albums. It is the first Kiss live album that is not part of the Alive! series.
"Deuce" is a song by the American hard rock band Kiss, written by bassist and vocalist Gene Simmons. The song appeared on Kiss' eponymous 1974 debut album. In addition to being one of the band's most popular and most-covered songs, "Deuce" is a traditional concert opener. The song has appeared on many Kiss live and compilation albums.
"Lick It Up" is a song by American rock band Kiss. It is the title track to the group's 1983 album of the same name. The song was released as the album's first single, and it was a Top 40 hit in the United Kingdom, although it failed to chart as highly in the band's native U.S. Musicians Paul Stanley and Vinnie Vincent composed the track.
"Shout It Out Loud" is a song by the American hard rock group Kiss, originally released on their 1976 album, Destroyer. It was released as the lead single off the album, and it proved to be successful, becoming the band's second single to break the Top 40, after "Rock and Roll All Nite". It was also the band's first single to top the charts, as it reached number 1 hit in Canada on May 22, 1976. The song was performed on almost every tour for many years, and is one of the most played songs in the Kiss catalog, having been played over 1,700 times as of May 2023.
"God of Thunder" is a song by Kiss from their 1976 album Destroyer. The song has also been featured on many of Kiss' live albums, including an up-tempo version on Alive II. Many various sound effects were used to make the song including explosions, clapping, zippers, overdubbed audience chatter and screaming children. The song was written by Paul Stanley, who intended to sing it on the album, but producer Bob Ezrin suggested slowing down the tempo and handing the lead vocals over to Gene Simmons.
The Kiss My Ass Tour was a concert tour by American rock band Kiss. It was the last tour to feature drummer Eric Singer as a member until 2004, and the last tour with guitarist Bruce Kulick.
"Nothin' to Lose" is a song by American hard rock band Kiss, released on their self-titled debut album in 1974. It is the first single the band had ever released and the first single off the album, with "Love Theme from KISS" as the B-side. Although the song failed to chart, it has remained a concert staple during the 1970s and was featured on many live albums and compilations.
"Firehouse" is a song by American hard rock band Kiss, released in 1974 on their eponymous debut album. The track was written by the bands' rhythm guitarist and vocalist Paul Stanley. During live performances, bassist Gene Simmons has breathed fire, with red lights flashing and sirens sounding. "Firehouse" has remained a concert staple and is regarded as one of the band's classic songs. With its fan-favorite status, the song is one of the most played songs in the Kiss catalog, having been played well over 1,000 times during their career.
"Parasite" is a song by American hard rock band Kiss, released in 1974 on their second studio album, Hotter Than Hell. The song is one of three songs featured on the album written by lead guitarist Ace Frehley. As one of the album's heaviest songs, "Parasite" was performed on the following tour, but Kiss dropped it from the setlist for the Destroyer Tour and did not play it again until the Revenge Tour in 1992. As Frehley was insecure about his singing ability, he passed that duty to Gene Simmons. In 2016, Frehley re-recorded the track with John 5 for Frehley's solo album Origins Vol. 1.
"She" is a song by American hard rock group Kiss. It was released in 1975 on the band's third studio album, Dressed to Kill. The song was written by Gene Simmons and Stephen Coronel while Simmons was in a band called Bullfrog Bheer. Although it was first released in 1975, Kiss had performed "She" on previous tours. It was removed from the setlist during the 1980s and the 1990s.
"Unholy" is a song by American hard rock band Kiss, written by Gene Simmons and Vinnie Vincent. Featured on their 1992 album, Revenge, the song is one of the three Vincent co-writes to appear on the album despite the fact that he had been fired from the band 8 years earlier. The release of "Unholy" signaled the return to a heavier sound for Kiss. The song was played live during the Revenge Tour and was included on the 1993 live album Alive III, but did not return to the live Kiss set list until 2004's Rock the Nation Tour.
"Let Me Go, Rock 'n' Roll" is a song by the American hard rock band Kiss, released in 1974. It was released as the only single from their second album Hotter Than Hell. Even though the song failed to chart, it is a staple in their live concerts. The B-side was the album title track, "Hotter Than Hell". Gene Simmons penned the lyrics during a lunch break at his day job, and the song conveys romantic excitement: "'Cause baby's got the feeling/Baby wants a show/Baby won't you tell me/Baby rock & roll, yeah, yeah!". "Let Me Go, Rock 'n' Roll" became a live favorite for Kiss.
"Creatures of the Night" is a song by American hard rock band Kiss, released as a single from their 1982 album of the same name. It was only released in the UK, where it reached #34. The song was written by Paul Stanley and Adam Mitchell in Mitchell's kitchen. It is not clear who plays what on the track but it is assumed that bass was not played by Gene Simmons, but Mike Porcaro who would soon join his brothers in the American rock band Toto. Lead guitar was not played by Ace Frehley as he was not musically involved with the album and it was not played by Vinnie Vincent either; it was played by Steve Farris, who would go on to become the lead guitarist of the 1980s pop rock group Mr. Mister. Song co-writer Adam Mitchell also played on the final version of the song, replacing Stanley on rhythm guitar in the middle and end of the song.
