KISS - Rock And Roll Over (1976)

Lest you think that KISS were tame wimps because of their #4 hit ballad Beth and the glossy production of Destroyer, KISS returned with their second album of 1976, the considerably more raw and rockin' Rock And Roll Over, produced and engineered by Eddie Kramer.

There's no sophistication here, whether in sound or lyrical content (bountiful with couplets of 'pockets' and 'rockets' and the like) and that's exactly the notion they were trying to get across. They like to rock ...and to get their rocks off. See, they knew what their audience of 15-year old pimply adolescents wanted most out of life...non-stop rockin', partying, and chicks.  (Pretty please? any chicks will do!)

My old cassette of this back in the 80's used to drag and so I never embraced the album as much as I knew I should. I recognized it as being rife with classic tunes and unsung gems like the hard jivin' Baby Driver, but who had money to buy the same cassette twice?! Not poor old me. Besides, you couldn't even buy cassettes in our town.

But all that is now rectified by having just received the LP, the way it should be heard, on vinyl.  Beautiful matte sleeve lovingly rendered by Michael Doret, this is a tasty piece of work and the sound is fantastic. And I might not have as many pimples, but I still want those same things out of life.  (And the chick part is covered these days, courtesy of the wife, who quite simply, rocks!).