KISS - Alive (1975)

KISS lore has it that this was the album that cemented KISS' reputation and propelled them into stardom, finally providing them with the hit album they so wanted with their first three releases but didn't quite manage. This is original KISS at their toughest and most raw, indeed their most genuine as a rock band and containing all the solid, heavy-hitting nuggets that they mostly still play to this day and delivered here with youthful passion, panache and balls-out drive.

The wife, upon looking at the cover, said they looked unbelievably gay. I was fairly aghast. I asked her to reconsider her definition of "gay". She pointed to Gene Simmons, of all people, and rested her case. Well, I didn't know quite what to say. Gay!? Well, yes, I can see what she means. But no...not gay! (sticks fingers in ears and hums "Hot, hot..hotter than hell!!"...)

KISS - Alive II (1977)

This is where it all began for me and KISS. My buddy Vince lent me his cassette of Alive II which I listened to when moving downstairs into my older brother's vacated bedroom and out from under the aegis of my parents. My own pad, so to speak, at a time when the discovery of (and obsession for) rock and roll was still blossoming and taking deep root. This 1977 double album has it all for any budding KISS fan, the songs are energetic, fun, instantly memorable and as a bonus you get one side of new studio cuts at the end.

Funnily enough, as a teenager, I was competely oblivious to lyrics in music. I'm still that way. I hear the "shapes" of music when I listen, not the words. So when Paul Stanley is shouting "You pulled the trigger of my love gun", it just didn't register to my naive ears that it is overtly sexual. I would sing along and not even realize what I was saying. When Gene Simmons (a grown man), in his little monologue in Christine Sixteen, says, "I don't usually say things like this to girls your age, but when I saw you coming out of school that day I knew...I've got to have you...I'VE GOT TO HAVE YOU!!!"...it didn't register how wrong and ridiculous that is. I just didn't hear any of that. The guitars and drums were my drug. And when you're dealing with a band as crude as KISS, it's probably for the best if you tune out the lyrics otherwise you might not respect yourself in the morning for being a fan.

KISS - Best Of The Solo Albums (1981)

Most KISS fans don't rate the solo albums too highly. Sure, we all agree Ace's was the best but beyond that, it's patchy terrain. However, for my money, Gene's album gets better with age. He had a real knack for a crackin' melody. Then there's Paul and Peter's albums. Meh.

So what could be better than the record company realizing what a misguided ploy these solo albums were than to cut the crap and release one album of just the best songs?

It was a good idea, but this compilation doesn't flow right. They should have tried to make it flow more like a proper KISS album. Paul doesn't even make an appearance until side 2!

For KISS completists only.

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!).

KISS - Destroyer (1976)

The only real problem with KISS is that they didn't die in a plane crash during their 1977 Japanese tour. If they had, they'd be hailed as some of the greatest entertainers in pop history, yea even among the most innovative and influential artists of modern times. Alas, 'twas not to be. They didn't die a horrible death and are now merely rich and bloated chumps that get some begrudging respect when pressed. (But they still put on an entertaining and exciting show, as anyone who has seen them will testify.)

If ever there was a touchstone for fuelling the imagination of a 15-year-old boy leaving his youth of cartoons and toys behind him, what better gateway musical drug than the superheroic theatrics of KISS and the big n' bold songs of Destroyer?  Peppered with classics and not a weak track in the set, the album plays strong and doesn't overstay its welcome.

It's easy to forget the visual and game-changing impact that the group initially had. In those heady days of their slow but steady rise to global fame, this album, produced by none other than living legend Bob Ezrin (Alice Cooper Group, The Wall, etc.) distills and crystallizes the many pleasures of KISS in grand cinematic technicolor.

It may not be the album you call your favorite, but if any was to be considered their (cough) masterpiece, this is the one, and the first one any newbie should acquire.

In closing, Ace Frehley is perhaps the coolest individual of all time, though admittedly his presence is muted on this album.