ALBUM OF THE WEEK #178 GENE SIMMONS - GENE SIMMONS (1978 - 35TH ANNIVERSARY)

[RJhog (Admin)]

Artist: Gene Simmons

Genre: Rock

Country Of Origin: United States

Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Member: No

Album: Gene Simmons 

Released: 1978

Producer: Gene Simmons/Sean Delaney

Disclaimer:  All "facts" come from wikipedia.com unless otherwise noted.

So Scott says Jon and I are stuck in the South but we should be celebrating Halloween. Well, I'll celebrate Halloween with the most dressed as rock star ever.  It's the Demon, which screams Halloween as well.  You know you've dressed as Gene at least once on Halloween.  You enjoyed doing the makeup.  But the costume was more difficult.  Especially the boots.  But you did it.  And so did your friends.  People, kids and adults, still do it.  Gene was a down right scary creature back in 1978.  Until this album came out.  Then he lost his edge.  But this album is better than you think.  And you all have Scott to blame for having to listen to it this week.  

• This album was one of four solo albums released, one by each band member, on September 18, 1978.  
• Gene didn't play much bass at all on the album.  He did contribute guitar work.
• The guest list is a veritable who's who: Joe Perry, Bob Seger, Rick Nielsen, Cher, Katy Sagal (Peg Bundy), Jeff "Skunk" Baxter, Donna Summer, Helen Reddy, Janis Ian and Michael Des Barres.
• Gene wanted John and Paul from the Beatles, but had to settle for Mitch Weissman and Joe Pecorino from Beatlemania ( a Beatles tribute I believe).
• See You In Your Dreams was re-recorded as Gene didn't like the way it came out on Rock And Roll Over (RARO's version is much better if you ask me).
• The album reached #22 on the Billboard chart, the highest of the four solo albums.
• It is certified Platinum by the RIAA.
• Radioactive reached #47 on the pop chart.
• Burning Up With Fever is vastly underrated.  One of the female backing vocalists really sounds like Baby Jean Kennedy from Mother's Finest.
• How 'bout that Beatles vibe in See You Tonite and Mr. Make Believe?
• Hmmm.  I wonder what Tunnel Of Love is about?
• Although I personally think the first half of the record is better than the second half, the only real missteps for me are the re-recorded See You In Your Dreams and When You Wish Upon A Star (don't get me wrong, Gene does a great job on it vocally, but it's really out of place for the DEMON).  And although the album isn't up to the level that Ace Frehley and Paul Stanley's solo albums, it beats the crap out of Peter Criss' album.

Side One:

1. Radioactive

2. Burning Up With Fever

3. See You Tonite

4. Tunnel Of Love

5. True Confessions

 

Side Two:

6. Living In Sin

7. Always Near You/Nowhere To Hide

8. Man Of 1,000 Faces

9. Mr. Make Believe

10. See You In Your Dreams

11. When You Wish Upon A Star

 

[Jon]

Thanks, Scott!

[Scott]

Someday I'll learn to keep my big mouth shut!

[Niels (Mod)]

I was once dressed up as Gene, but it wasn't Halloween. Nobody cared about Halloween in my part of the World, when I was a kid. Now US have taken over the world, and is probably tapping my phone. I am partly german, you know.

These were nice times. I got all 4 solo-albums within a few months of the release. The first 2, I bought was Ace's and Paul's, and I should had stopped then. Gene's album is definitely not as bad as Peter's, or as bad as anything released in the name of KISS, after 1979 ( yes, including The Elder, Jon), but it's just partly kind of okay.

In 1978, my favorites were Radioactive and Living In Sin, but after a while I, and still do, liked See You Tonite and Man Of A 1,000 Faces the most.

Yeah, The Demon was never the same again, even though Charisma was a very good Gene-track.

Remember, it's my opinion, so don't bother giving me all the examples of "great" Gene-tracks from the 80s or 90s.

Even the KISS-album covers were never as good again, as the solo-albums were/are.

[Scott]

So what your saying is that you want RJ to bullet list all of genes decent 80s and 90s tunes? Because you know that's what's going to happen anyway, right?

[RJhog (Admin)]

I wasn't gonna do it, but what the heck, I think that, despite his words above, he really wants to know (I'll even throw in a top 10 ranking to the side):

1. Naked City (Unmasked) #1

2. Only You (Music From The Elder) #3

3. Under The Rose (MFTE)

4. A World Without Heroes (MFTE) #4

5. Mr. Blackwell (MFTE)

6. Saint And Sinner (Creatures Of The Night)

7. Rock And Roll Hell (COTN) #7

8. Killer (COTN)

9. War Machine (COTN) #10

10. Not For The Innocent (Lick It Up) #5

11. Young And Wasted (LIU) #8

12. While The City Sleeps (Animalize)

13. Love's A Dirty Weapon (Asylum)

14. Secretly Cruel (Asylum) #2

15. Hell Or High Water (Crazy Nights) #9

16. Good Girl Gone Bad (CN)

17. Love's A Slap In The Face (Hot In The Shade)

18. Somewhere Between Heaven And Hell (HITS) #6

[RJhog (Admin)]

Of course, if you were adding the Dynasty album from '79, since that was after this solo album, I'd add both Gene songs from that album, Charisma and X-Ray Eyes, to the list, with Charisma taking it's Top 10 place at number 5 and everything below that moving down one spot, which would kick War Machine off of the Top 10 Gene Simmons Kiss Songs Of The 1980's list.

[Scott]

I do like his work on a Dynasty, Unmasked, Creatures, and lick It Up. Beyond that he is more miss than hit...

[Niels (Mod)]

To avoid any misunderstandings: I DID say AFTER 1979, and I've always said, that "Dynasty" was the last real KISS-album, and the two Simmons-songs on that album are great. "Dynasty" is in my top 5 over KISS-albums. And THEN it went terrible wrong!!!!

[Jon]

I was going to listen to this today, but decided I could hold off for at least 13 hours or so. Just seems like the wise thing to do. Besides, I wanted to listen to an album about a bird that flat-out didn't wanna sing.

[RJhog (Admin)]

I've got a bird for ya...

[Jon]

Sigh...of course this just HAD to turn into a Kiss discussion.

[RJhog (Admin)]

Jon's Tears Are Falling...