Ace Frehley, Gene Simmons and the Rock & Roll hall of fame

Gene Simmons (Chaim Witz) has never been shy about his contributions to Rock and Roll, and he has never missed an opportunity to let people within hearing distance know his opinion on anything from Israel, to his family, to the quickest way to make a buck.  Not that there is anything wrong with his opinions; Israel was his birthplace, he loves his family, and Kiss' renown for making money through marketing is well documented.  And when  you listen to Mr.Simmons long enough you'll find that he dislikes half of the founding members of the lengendary group Kiss, Peter Criss and Ace Frehley (Paul Frehley).  Of course, as of this writing you may find that he dislikes Peter more than Ace, but that may change.  His friendship with fellow bandmate, Paul Stanley (Stanley Eisen), does seem to be a longstanding true friendship.  

Kiss' rise to fame is well documented and can be summed up in the typical bio-pic format, they're up, they're down, they're up again.  However trite a description that may be, it is hard to deny them the impact the band has made on the rock scene with their bombastic tour set in the 70's, 22 gold or platinum albums, 24 charting singles, and devoted fan base.  Not to mention that with their longevity they have been around long enough to reinvent themselves at least 3 times.  

The Rock and Roll hall of fame's ability to nominate artists with such comparatively limited appeal and influence as Blondie, The Lovin Spoonful, Dusty Springfield, Sly and the Family Stone, and Bobbie Darin is unmatched by any historical society aside from the Smithsonian, which will take just about anything.  Lookup the accomplishments of Kiss against Blondie in almost any category and Kiss comes out on top.  So why would RRHOF be so stingy in a nomination for Kiss?  That elusive quality of originality?  Authenticity?  Quality of music?  How about cronyism at RRHOF?

Mr. Simmons' contribution to rock and roll is substantial, but one also must recognize that as a musician he really is average.  He's a respectable bass player, he can carry a tune, although his voice is most suitable for the heavy metal genre.  But musicianship is hardly the only qualifying admission to the club.  The hunger for success, the stage persona, the consistent, albeit not without flaws, contribution to music all paint a much more complete picture of a prominent Rock and Roll Star that belongs in the RRHOF.  This doesn't even cover the extensive work Mr. Simmons does outside the world of music.  Work important when attempting to quantify John Lennon's importance.  Sound ridiculous?  Mr. Simmons recently won $800,000 for a charity on Who's Smarter than a 5th Grader?  But even that sounds inauthentic and almost demeaning.  Unless you happen to be the charity.  

Which brings us to Ace.  There was an interview in the early 90's when Gene was discussing previous lead guitarists and he mentioned that Ace just never developed, despite the hope they had in the band that he would keep improving.  Ace's alcohol abuse and drug issues did have a major impact on his creativity and ability to play.  It is ironic that Ace's contribution to the band was increasing during the last couple years he played with Kiss, even as his offstage abuse increased.  It's also important to note that Gene is not the most prolific, or even most talented member of the group; that would be Paul Stanley.  

When VH1 listed the most influential hard rock bands of all time Kiss made the top 10, but not the top 6.  The top 6 had the mention that they were a truly well rounded band without any noticable weakness and the members on this list that are eligible are all in the RRHOF.  And therein lies the problem between Ace and Gene.  The pressures and temptations of living as superstars the way Kiss did at one time must be tremendous.  But still, Ace did have a negative impact on the band with his substance abuse, and this could have been avoided.   VH1 may have implied that Gene was average, but there are average members of every band on the list.  

It must be hard to know that your band, and your name could be in that top  6 list but it is not.  If you listen to the entire MTV acoustic set of Kiss with both the old and new members on the latest Kissology DVD set you can see footage of two very different bands.  The band at the time of the MTV set consisted of Gene, Paul, Bruce Kulick, and Eric Singer.  They played a very tight and well rehearsed set and the crowd loved the set.  Later in the set the original lineup including Ace and Peter played together and this is the event that kicked off the reunion album and tour along with the album MTV Kiss Unplugged.  

Ace's licks had to be retaught to him by Bruce Kulick, one of the many replacements since 1982.  On the DVD set you will learn that a couple songs were omitted from the album and it is clearly because they were the weaker performances, the weakest by far were by the current lineup.  Despite all the years, despite the key ingredient being talent for the revolving membership in the band aside for Gene and Paul, it is shocking how good and natural the original band sounds.  And this is why as a fan I am also frustrated that Ace left the band due to his substance abuse.  I also think it must be in Gene's mind that with that original lineup that the idea that Kiss is a well rounded band would be pretty well founded, that it should be Kiss in the top 6, and that it should be Kiss in the RRHOF.  I guess Kiss should have done what Van Halen did and refused to admit there was a substance abuse problem for years, get into the RRHOF, then fall apart.  

Now that Ace has his act together, I am looking forward to his new solo album.