In a new Classic Rock feature, KISS frontman Paul Stanley picks his records, artists and gigs of lasting significance, and reveals which KISS album has "no balls." Following is an excerpt.
The First Songs I Ever Sang
Stanley: "As a kid I would sing a-cappella around the house. I loved the pop hits – 'A Teenager In Love' by Dion And The Belmonts, 'All I Have To Do is Dream' by the Everly Brothers… everybody in my family had terrific voices."
The Greatest Album Of All Time
Stanley: "The first Led Zeppelin album is a must. I love The Temptations and Otis Redding. And The Beatles’ Rubber Soul is so eloquent in its simplicity. The emotion in it makes it extraordinary."
The Worst Record I've Made
Stanley: "There are two: Unmasked and Music From The Elder. Unmasked was tepid and had no balls to it. Actually, the band at that point probably had no balls to it, either. The Elder was a misguided attempt at impressing people who we shouldn’t have been trying to impress – the critics – while forgetting the people we should impress – the fans."
Read the complete rundown here.
Desmond Child, the songwriter and producer behind dozens of Billboard hits including Bon Jovi's "Livin' On A Prayer", Joan Jett's "I Hate Myself For Loving You", Aerosmith's "Dude Looks Like A Lady", and Alice Cooper's "Poison", released his first memoir, Livin’ On a Prayer: Big Songs Big Life, back in September in North America via Radius Book Group. The memoir, which includes a foreword by KISS singer/guitarist Paul Stanley, was released in the UK on November 2, published by Radius.
Guesting on the Shout It Out Loudcast, Child discusses how he met Paul Stanley, their writing styles and chemistry, hilarious stories about Gene Simmons, the KISS songs he co-wrote and his KISStory. He also describes his songwriting style, meeting Bon Jovi at Richie Sambora's parent's house and many other fascinating stories. Check out the interview below.
Demond Child on Paul Stanley:
"I just owe him everything because he was also generous enough to share my number with Jon Bon Jovi. Bon Jovi was one of the acts opening for KISS on tour in Europe, and they made friends, and Paul said, 'You know what? This band needs a hit.' And so he said, 'Hey, why don't you guys try writing with Desmond Child?' Unbeknownst to me – except for like, recently – that they wrote with me not to write for Bon Jovi, but because they thought that I could get them a 'pop cut' and bring money to the band, to keep funding their touring and all of that."
