In 1985, Kiss, which had shed its trademark face paint at the time, introduced themselves to the MTV generation
Bassist-vocalist Gene Simmons had already established himself without the makeup, embarking on a successful acting career away from the band in movies & television, including a role opposite Tom Selleck in "Runaway" a year earlier.
Guitarist-vocalist Paul Stanley endeared himself to the young ladies with leading man-style looks. He wrote and sings lead on "Tears Are Falling", the first single from the CD, "Asylum". Strangely, if you believe Wikipedia, Simmons isn't credited with playing bass on the track. Instead, they claim Stanley played both bass and rhythm guitar in addition to lead vocals.
"Tears" topped the daily Dial MTV chart for several days until the network changed the rules. Go figure.
First tour that I saw them live, Feb. 1986 in Norman, OK with W.A.S.P.
ReplyDeleteIt wasn't the original lineup, though, as Ace Frehley was gone by then, as was Peter Criss. In fact, I saw Frehley's Comet at RPI a couple of years later.
ReplyDeleteI saw Frehley's Comet in 1987 also (August 9), with Y&T, Gary Moore and Faster Pussycat at Dallas' Bronco Bowl. Like many of my age group, I saw the original Kiss lineup for the first time in 1996.
ReplyDeleteI'm trying to remember who was on tour with Frehley's Comet by the time they came to RPI. I know it wasn't Y & T, but I remember seeing Firehouse and the Vinnie Vincent Invasion, separately, IIRC.
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