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Kiss

Kiss - Kiss Audio CD

A fair review of the Kiss "Kiss" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Kiss reviews here, or go back to the Kiss tabs.

Band: Kiss
Title: Kiss
Rating:

Release Date: 1997-07-15
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Strutter 2: Nothin' to Lose 3: Firehouse 4: Cold Gin 5: Let Me Know 6: Kissin' Time 7: Deuce 8: Love Theme from Kiss 9: 100,000 Years 10: Black Diamond

KISS struts out strong with an excellent 1st album!
How fitting. As I type these words, KISS: Extreme Close Up is playing on TV. Earlier today I listened to the very first album by them, simply titled KISS. What an amazing album! If you are throwing a party, this is the album that will get it started. The entire album is a scorcher from beginning to end, with nary a single weak song in it's midst. I have loved this album ever since I first listened to it in the seventies, and, amazingly, it still sounds just as good, if not better, today. The song Strutter starts the rock and roll rollercoaster with it's blistering guitar riffs and amazing vocals by Paul Stanley. Nothin' To Lose kicks in next, and cowbells never sounded cooler. In fact, as I relistened to my classic KISS albums, the cowbells really stood out to me like they had never done before. KISS drummer, the Catman, Peter Criss, really knew how to use the cowbell to it's full extent back in the day. Next up is Firehouse, which all KISS fans can pretty much agree is one of the band's best songs ever. After that comes Cold Gin, which will have you playing air guitar with it's amazing guitar riffs and solo. Let Me Know is another great song with another great guitar solo at the end. What stands out most in my mind about the next song, Kissin' Time, is the excellent drumwork performed by Peter Criss. Deuce is another strong classic song by KISS that leaves no doubt by this time on the album that KISS is going to be a force to be reckoned with in the world of Rock and Roll for a very long time to come. Up next is the Love Theme From KISS, which is an instrumental that has those amazing cowbells again to start things off. It's a short but sweet tune that helps mellow things out a little bit, but that is little more than the calm before the storm that is to come called 100,000 years. The opening bass line riff for 100,000 Years is one of the coolest I have ever heard, and the lyrics are some of the best on the album, "I'm sorry to have taken so long It must have been a bitch while I was gone You mind if I sit down for a while You'll reacquaint yourself with my style. " The song also features more excellent drumming by Peter Criss. The last song on the album is titled Black Diamond, which is sung by Peter Criss, and he does a great job here too, proving he can sing as well as he can drum. It is an excellent end song to a perfect album. After listening to the album in it's entirety, I thought to myself, Wow, they really gave it their all on this album. An album like this would be tough to beat, how could anyone ever top this debut? But, as we all know, KISS did just that in later releases. At this point, KISS was just getting warmed up.
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Remaster improves a classic
I knew how good the remasters sounded, but I guess i figured they couldn't improve the first two albums that much. All real KISS fans know that this album is essential, but for some reason I JUST bought the remaster. Man was I wrong. I listened to it with headphones and was amazed to pick up on things i hadn't heard over countless listinings. The main thing I picked up was Gene's bass. I almost felt like I was hearing songs like Let me Know for the first time. I definitly recommend the remasters. It's worth the upgrade. .

DOESN'T GET ANY BETTER~~~~~
RECENTLY CAUGHT KISS ON THEIR ALIVE 35 TOUR AND THEY DID AROUND 7 SONGS FROM THIS ALBUM. WHAT CAN I SAY??? LEGENDARY,CLASSIC!!!! ONE OF THE BEST DEBUT ALBUMS FOR ANY ROCK BAND AND PERHAPS KISS BEST ALBUM. JUST A TIMELESS COLLECTION OF CLASSIC ROCKERS FROM KISS. IF YOU'RE A MEGA KISS FAN LIKE ME AND FOR SOME REASON,DON'T HAVE THIS GEM,GO GET IT NOW. . . STANDOUTS FOR ME: STRUTTER,NOTHIN' TO LOSE,FIREHOUSE,COLD GIN,LET ME KNOW,DEUCE,100,000 YEARS AND BLACK DIAMOND. . . KISS FOREVER!!!!!.

Kiss
While Destroyer was fantastic, Love Gun was classic, and Rock N' Roll Over was awesome, this is raw, honest, sleazy, and jam pact with what I like about Kiss. Without question, Kiss' self-titled debut album is by far their greatest studio album as a band.

For me personally I can't look at them because I hate the image and when i saw them open for Aerosmith I was so annoyed with them that I tuned out the great performance. But Kiss to me without a visual is one of the great rock n' roll bands of all time.

'Strutter' might be the bands best song. 'Firehouse' is classic. As a guitarist I have always been a sucker for when Joe Perry, Keith Richards, or Ace Frehley stepped up to the mic, and 'Cold Gin' is no excaption to that rule. 'Deuce' is as cool as it's title projects, and 'Black Diamond' while better covered by the Replacements is still mighty fine.

Musically the members of Kiss were never very good but they made it work in the same way that the New York Dolls did, just on a much larger scale. However, I must say Ace has never let me down with his fret work, this is no exception.

Kiss, is the perfect starting place for a Kiss collection, because it's their first and best.

The debut of rock's masked marauders still rocks 35 years on

The album introduced the world to the bass playing Demon Gene Simmons, the Star Child rhythm guitars of Paul Stanley, the lead guitar of rock's Space Ace himself Ace Frehley and the drumming of the Cat Man Peter Criss. Makeup clad New York rockers KISS released their self-titled debut in February of 1974.
For years the band trucked around as Wicked Lester and various other groups until 1973 when KISS was born. The band was initially turned down by most major record labels but then Neil Bogart, whom was a Buddah Records employee, heard and saw potential in KISS and made them the first act signed to his fledgling Casablanca Records label.
The album was produced by Kenny Kerner and Richie Wise and recorded at Bell Sound Studios in late 1973.
The original Casablanca/Warner Bros. issue didn't include "Kissin' Time" until the self-titled album's re-release later in 1974. I first got this album on cassette in October of 1988 but "Nothin' to Lose" was the live version on Alive. It wasn't until I first got the CD in March of 1993 that I got the album with its true running order and with the studio version of "Nothin to Lose". The 1997 remastered CD is superb.
We open with the Paul and Gene collaboration "Strutter" which is a great rocker. We follow with another rocker from "Nothin' to Lose" which had Gene on vocals for verse and Peter on lead for the chorus. Next is Paul's classic rocker "Firehouse". We follow with Ace's ode to booze "Cold Gin" which kicks *ss (strange that a tee-totaller like Gene would sing the lyrics). We closed the first half with "Let Me Know" which was written by Gene and Ace. The first part was a Gene number. The last section was a riff Ace came up with.
The second half (as of late 1974) started with a cover of "Kissin' Time" which had lead vocals from Gene, Paul and Peter (meanwhile Ace would play a blazing guitar solo in his spotlight section). Next is one of Gene's classic rockers "Deuce". Next is the instrumental "Love Theme From KISS" which originated from a jam that the band did in its early days. Next is another classic rocker out of "100000 Years". We close with the classic "Black Diamond" The track starts with Paul and acoustic guitars before it rocks out and Peter takes over on lead vocals and ends with its infamouus tape slowing ending.
Strange enough, this album was ignored when first released as Americans were digging Elton John and one-hit wonders like Terry Jacks.
Today, this KISS debut still holds up well over 35 years on.
Highly recommended!.

You can see a complete list of all Kiss discography, or go back to the Kiss tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.