Eddie Trunk's Essential Hard Rock and Heavy Metal

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• Publisher: Abrams Image
• Year: 2011
• Print ISBN: 9780810998315
• eBook ISBN: 9781613121429
• Topic: Art
• Subtopic: Music

Known as a leading expert on all things hard rock and heavy metal, Eddie Trunk continues to entertain fans on the radio and as the host of VH1 Classic's hit television program That Metal Show with his passion for music. In his debut book, Eddie discusses his most essential bands, his unique personal experiences with them, his favorite "e;Stump the Trunk"e; anecdotes and trivia, as well as his favorite playlists. Whether you're a classic Metallica or Megadeth metalhead or prefer the hair metal of old-school Bon Jovi or Poison, Eddie Trunk's Hard Rock and Heavy Metal salutes all who are ready to rock!

104 EDDIE TRUNK’S ESSENTIAL HARD ROCK AND HEAVY METAL

CLASSIC LINEUP:

Peter Criss

(drums/vocals)

Ace Frehley

(guitar/vocals)

Gene Simmons

(bass/vocals)

Paul Stanley

(guitar/vocals)

KEY ADDITIONAL MEMBERS:

Eric Carr (drums)

Bruce Kulick (guitar)

Eric Singer (drums)

Mark St. John (guitar)

TOMMY THAYER (guitar)

Vinnie Vincent (guitar)

OPPOSITE: Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley, Paul Stanley, and Eric Carr at the Palladium, New York City, July 25, 1990

When I was twelve years old, the music I knew was mostly limited to what I saw on TV (like on The Partridge Family) or heard on Top 40 radio in my parents’ car. My best friend in junior high went to get the new Kiss album after school one day in 1976. I went with him and had no idea what he was buying. I remember him saying, “You’ve never heard of Kiss?” and then asking him which record I should buy to get to know them. He was clearly a fan, and since I was at that age when it was time to graduate to real bands, not pretend ones on TV, I decided to take a shot.

I bought Destroyer for about four dollars that day at his suggestion. When I got home, I took the album from its jacket and dropped the needle on the vinyl. I heard “Detroit Rock City” start with background noise, the sound of a car door and keys, and an engine revving, and then a driving guitar riff that exploded into the song. I was floored by the wash of guitars and the powerful drums that came from my speakers. I stared at the album cover, with its larger-than-life demons in leather and makeup, holding their fists in the air in some kind of revolt. It was like nothing I’d ever heard or seen before.

KISS 105

OPPOSITE: Gene Simmons at Capitol Theatre, Passaic, New Jersey, October 3, 1975

The next day, I borrowed money from my mom so I could buy every other Kiss album. I found The Originals, a collection of the first three studio albums packaged as one. Like all Kiss records, they came with posters, which became the beginning of my collection. A few days later, I decided to get rid of the few other records I owned. Bobby Goldsboro, Bobby Sherman, and the 1910 Fruit gum Company couldn’t even be filed anywhere near Kiss. It seemed like a hundred years ago that I’d listened to that other stuff, even though it had only been two days. The slate had to be cleared for the new kings of my world!

I became a Kiss freak. My bedroom walls were covered with Kiss posters. There was no other band to me. There could be no other band. Like so many kids in the world, I was consumed by Kiss, but I didn’t get into the marketing machine as much as some. I never dressed up like the band members or had a Kiss lunch box or action figures. Outside of posters and magazines, I pretty much stayed with the albums, because for me, still to this day, that’s what I like most about Kiss—and for some reason, that’s what you hear about the least. All of their merchandise was simply a by-product of their popularity.

Kiss’s golden years were 1975 to 1977. The guys were the stuff of legends. No one knew what they looked like without their makeup, if they were devil worshippers, or if they were another band in disguise! There were rumors about the blood Gene spit—that it was his own from biting his mouth or that it was cow’s blood—and questions about whether his tongue was real or a sewn-on extension! People wanted to know how Ace Frehley made his guitar smoke when he played and if he was really from another planet. Kiss merged heavy rock with horror movies and comic books and blood and fire. They were larger than life. Nobody had ever taken theatrics to this level other than Alice Cooper. But there were just as many detractors as there were fans. As a Kiss lover, you became part of the Kiss Army and found yourself constantly defending them.

In addition to their recordings and their stage show, one of the best things about the original Kiss lineup was the fact that all four members had an equal role in the band. They all sang lead vocals in addition to playing their instruments, and each had his own fans. They modeled themselves as a hard rock version of the Beatles, one of the bands that was a huge influence on them.

People always talk about the fire, the costumes, and the makeup when it comes to Kiss, but they are rarely given credit for their music. Unfortunately, from their more than thirty records, only two or three Kiss songs are ever played regularly on the radio. I’ve made it my job to bring the unheard stuff to the mainstream. If you look at the band’s musical history, you’ll see, for better or worse, that they’ve always experimented and explored different sides of their writing abilities. At their core, Kiss is a hard rock band, but within that context, there’s something in their catalog for everyone. They even have a song written by Lou Reed. They have plenty of pop, a little bit of disco and grunge, and full-on heavy metal. If you’re a true Kiss fan, you love all of it, but if you don’t know them at all, there’s a lot to explore. ____________

106 EDDIE TRUNK’S ESSENTIAL HARD ROCK AND HEAVY METAL

Kiss (1974) Hotter Than Hell (1974) Dressed to Kill (1975) Alive! (1975) Destroyer (1976) ROCK AND ROLL OVER (1976) Love Gun (1977) Alive II (1977) Ace Frehley (1978) Gene Simmons (1978) Paul Stanley (1978) Peter Criss (1978) Dynasty (1979) Unmasked (1980) MUSIC FROM “THE ELDER” (1981)

CREATURES OF THE NIGHT (1982) Lick It Up (1983) Animalize (1984) Asylum (1985) Crazy Nights (1987) Hot in the Shade (1989) Revenge (1992) Alive III (1993) MTV UNPLUGGED [LIVE] (1996) CARNIVAL OF SOULS: THE FINAL SESSIONS (1997) Psycho Circus (1998) KISS SYMPHONY: ALIVE IV (2003) Sonic Boom (2009)

On December 16, 1977, I went to my very first concert: Kiss at Madison Square Garden. I was thirteen, and it was also one of my first trips to New York. My friend’s older sister took us, and I remember everything like it was yesterday—the frenzy on the street in front of the venue and the people selling buttons and T-shirts. I bought a T-shirt from one of the bootleg sellers outside, and we went to our nosebleed seats. I wouldn’t know what it was until years later, but I smelled pot everywhere.

Before the show, I remember the buzz in the air and wondering how the music would sound from our seats high up in the upper level. I remember how the stage looked so small and far away. But when Kiss came out and the bombs and flames went off, I could feel the heat of the fire. This was the Love Gun/Alive II tour, widely regarded by Kiss fans as having the best- ever stage show, featuring lighted staircases on either side of the enor- ____________

KISS 107

ABOVE: Gene Simmons at PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel Township, New Jersey, August 11, 2003

KISS

1. WHO WANTS TO BE LONELY

2. ANYTHING FOR MY BABY

3. LARGER THAN LIFE

4. WHAT MAKES THE WORLD GO ’ROUND

5. I’VE HAD ENOUGH

6. GOT TO CHOOSE

7. ROOM SERVICE

8. MAKIN’ LOVE

9. MR. SPEED

10. SHOCK ME

11. CREATURES OF THE NIGHT

12. I STOLE ...

Table of contents

• FOREWORD
• INTRODUCTION
• AC/DC
• AEROSMITH
• ANTHRAX
• BLACK SABBATH
• BON JOVI
• CHEAP TRICK
• ALICE COOPER
• DEEP PURPLE
• DEF LEPPARD
• DIO
• GUNS N ROSES
• SAMMY HAGAR
• IRON MAIDEN
• JUDAS PRIEST
• KISS
• LED ZEPPELIN
• MEGADETH
• METALLICA
• MOTLEY CRUE
• MOTORHEAD
• OZZY OSBOURNE
• PANTERA
• POISON
• QUEEN
• RAINBOW
• RUSH
• SCORPIONS
• SKID ROW
• SLAYER
• BILLY SQUIER
• TESLA
• THIN LIZZY
• TWISTED SISTER
• UFO
• VAN HALEN
• MORE ESSENTIALS