Like most people and fans of KISS, I was shocked and saddened to hear of the passing of guitarist Ace Frehley. It’s hard to put everything in some kind of perspective, but I’ll give it a shot.
I hope the Ace Frehley and his family know just what a huge impact Ace had on so many people’s lives. And it’s still going! Like millions of others, I was a member of the KISS Army. KISS was everything to me back in the day. The music, the make-up, the shows, the live albums. All of it. The complete package. And that doesn’t happen without Ace Frehley.
It’s worth noting that those live albums were truly live. Peter Criss had to be an incredible drummer to keep the time. Ace Frehley had to be an incredible guitarist. They recorded live. No going back and fixing it in post. It’s insane. The level of talent is off the chart.
So, millions of people loved the music and started playing musical instruments. Started bands of their own. That a gift that can’t be measured. Thank you, Ace Frehley. You will be missed.
This song has been on my phone for years. I crank this up on a constant basic. Please listen at an inappropriately high volume.
These 2 dudes. Come on. The best!
And no disrespect to Gene Simmons or Paul Stanley. Those guys are legends as well. And I can personally testify that Paul is nice guy. Even when he’s grocery shopping and some random dude gives him a shout out in the soup aisle. That might have been me. I didn’t make a scene. I tried to keep it cool. But Paul is a good dude. Just saying. (I’m not recommending people stroll up and interrupt a man doing his grocery shopping. I’m just saying… it happened)
I cannot love this more. So great. Unplugged and just killing it. Great groove.
It’s the live stuff for me. That’s on another level. It’s LIVE. No backing track. Nothing. Amazing.
How can you NOT include this moment? What and outpouring of love for these guys. The OG Hit.
We could be here for days. RIP Ace Frehley. You will be missed. Thank you for everything.
This is a tough day for KISS fans. I was not a fan of the gimmicky makeup and stage outfits,but loved the music because KISS rocked. Ace Frehley’s guitar work was so influential with his amazing riffs and inventive solos. So glad you put New York Groove in your article. A great song . The MTV Unplugged was fantastic.
Ace loved the fans. When was he was almost electrocuted in 1976 at a show,he was revived but he had no feeling in his right hand and his fingertips were burned. He heard the crowd chanting his name and went out and finished the show.
How cool you saw and got to say something to Paul Stanley at the grocery store. I will be blasting KISS today in his honor. Thank you for the great article and videos Michael!
Do it up! Am gonna be listening to some on my way to Detroit. Maybe even ‘Detroit rock city’! It’s a really bummer Ace is gone. Soooo many people picked up guitar because of that guy. Sad.