Looking back: KISS and their pop failure, Unmasked
What many of my friends and colleagues have come to learn about me is that my musical tastes are not aligned with the the majority of music fans within the context of one band's work.
For example, I am a greater fan of the albums The Makers released after their glam rock conversion than any of the records they released back when they were a lo-fi garage band. The Strangest Parade is one of my favorite records of all time. But that revelation is for another post on another day.
I became a KISS fan at the age of 8 (1978). I was sort of a late-comer actually. I remember 2nd grade the year before. Every Friday we had a music class. Week by week, everyone in the class took a turn bringing in tapes and vinyl. When it was my turn, I brought in a Moody Blues record from my step father's collection. All my classmates thought it sucked. Many of the cooler kids in my class said KISS was better. So, in my failed attempt to be accepted among my peers, I joined the KISS Army and was a faithful soldier up until the famous day on MTV when they appeared without their make-up for the very first time (1983).
During this time period Kiss released what many would like to call their "Jump The Shark" trilogy. Three albums, each one with a different musical turn, each one seeing the band less in favor of the American youth that packed stadiums throughout the mid to late 70s. Dynasty (1979), Unmasked (1980), and Music From "The Elder" (1981). My favorite of the three was Unmasked. In fact, Unmasked was my favorite KISS album of all time and still is, with the possible exception of Love Gun (the first album I have owned in all three physical formats). Maybe it was because there was absolutely no television or radio exposure for this record. There weren't any friends to share this album with. Therefore the album became very personal to me. Their disco experiment, "I Was Made For Loving You", had pretty much scared off the rocker kids that would go on to become AC/DC and Van Halen fans. So, by 1980, I became the sole KISS fan in my elementary school.
Unmasked did receive gold status within weeks regardless of the lack of real exposure. There was enough core fans in the U.S. that was buying the record on name and artwork alone. Although I too bought this record based on the one commercial that hyped it all with the frame by frame cartoon storyline, I also played this record non-stop through my 5th grade year. I was in love with what I believe was pure pop bliss with songs that I felt belonged on the radio next to the Rick Springfields, the Andy Gibbs, and the Leo Sayers of the world.
Unmasked, like Dynasty, would feature three songs with lead vocals by Ace Frehley, all three of them penned by him as well. I wonder if the decision to have Ace contribute more had anything to do with he being the only member of Kiss to have a chart single from the solo albums of 1978 ("New York Groove"). The album would also feature the opening track "Is That You?", an original KISS song not written by a KISS member (Gerard McMahon never actually released the single before Paul Stanley heard the demo and wanted it on the next KISS record.) And ofcourse there was "Shandi" which featured Stanley on all lead and rhythm guitars while (what I presume to be) Gene Simmons' bass guitar tech performing all his superior's recording duties. Joining them on this track was Anton Fig (who actually played ALL the drums on Unmasked), Holly Knight on keyboards, and producer Vini Poncia doing back-up vocals. This would make "Shandi" a Paul Stanley solo track in my opinion, which in retrospect in probably should had been.
28 years later, a visit to You Tube finds me reminiscing and uncovering a few of the lip-synched promotional appearances that KISS did do in support of Unmasked, including the music video for "Shandi". And now I can understand why so many KISS fans ran away. What you will witness is KISS looking like KISS, and acting like KISS (see Simmons' tounge flickering in most of these videos), but not sounding like KISS. The make-up and posing looks familiar, yet they are seen performing run-of-the-mill power pop that was a far cry from the Love Gun album that was released only three years before (although maybe the seeds were planted during the recording sessions of Love Gun. "Plaster Caster" is pop magic and "Christine Sixteen" sounds as though KISS had all their Cheap Trick records out).
The music video for "Shandi" was the last time Peter Criss would ever appear with KISS (it had been since 1979's Dynasty that he last recorded with the band...only one song in fact).
The other three lip synced stage performances are from overseas television and are noted as being the first television apperances to feature Eric Carr on drums.
"SHANDI"
For example, I am a greater fan of the albums The Makers released after their glam rock conversion than any of the records they released back when they were a lo-fi garage band. The Strangest Parade is one of my favorite records of all time. But that revelation is for another post on another day.
I became a KISS fan at the age of 8 (1978). I was sort of a late-comer actually. I remember 2nd grade the year before. Every Friday we had a music class. Week by week, everyone in the class took a turn bringing in tapes and vinyl. When it was my turn, I brought in a Moody Blues record from my step father's collection. All my classmates thought it sucked. Many of the cooler kids in my class said KISS was better. So, in my failed attempt to be accepted among my peers, I joined the KISS Army and was a faithful soldier up until the famous day on MTV when they appeared without their make-up for the very first time (1983).
During this time period Kiss released what many would like to call their "Jump The Shark" trilogy. Three albums, each one with a different musical turn, each one seeing the band less in favor of the American youth that packed stadiums throughout the mid to late 70s. Dynasty (1979), Unmasked (1980), and Music From "The Elder" (1981). My favorite of the three was Unmasked. In fact, Unmasked was my favorite KISS album of all time and still is, with the possible exception of Love Gun (the first album I have owned in all three physical formats). Maybe it was because there was absolutely no television or radio exposure for this record. There weren't any friends to share this album with. Therefore the album became very personal to me. Their disco experiment, "I Was Made For Loving You", had pretty much scared off the rocker kids that would go on to become AC/DC and Van Halen fans. So, by 1980, I became the sole KISS fan in my elementary school.
Unmasked did receive gold status within weeks regardless of the lack of real exposure. There was enough core fans in the U.S. that was buying the record on name and artwork alone. Although I too bought this record based on the one commercial that hyped it all with the frame by frame cartoon storyline, I also played this record non-stop through my 5th grade year. I was in love with what I believe was pure pop bliss with songs that I felt belonged on the radio next to the Rick Springfields, the Andy Gibbs, and the Leo Sayers of the world.
Unmasked, like Dynasty, would feature three songs with lead vocals by Ace Frehley, all three of them penned by him as well. I wonder if the decision to have Ace contribute more had anything to do with he being the only member of Kiss to have a chart single from the solo albums of 1978 ("New York Groove"). The album would also feature the opening track "Is That You?", an original KISS song not written by a KISS member (Gerard McMahon never actually released the single before Paul Stanley heard the demo and wanted it on the next KISS record.) And ofcourse there was "Shandi" which featured Stanley on all lead and rhythm guitars while (what I presume to be) Gene Simmons' bass guitar tech performing all his superior's recording duties. Joining them on this track was Anton Fig (who actually played ALL the drums on Unmasked), Holly Knight on keyboards, and producer Vini Poncia doing back-up vocals. This would make "Shandi" a Paul Stanley solo track in my opinion, which in retrospect in probably should had been.
28 years later, a visit to You Tube finds me reminiscing and uncovering a few of the lip-synched promotional appearances that KISS did do in support of Unmasked, including the music video for "Shandi". And now I can understand why so many KISS fans ran away. What you will witness is KISS looking like KISS, and acting like KISS (see Simmons' tounge flickering in most of these videos), but not sounding like KISS. The make-up and posing looks familiar, yet they are seen performing run-of-the-mill power pop that was a far cry from the Love Gun album that was released only three years before (although maybe the seeds were planted during the recording sessions of Love Gun. "Plaster Caster" is pop magic and "Christine Sixteen" sounds as though KISS had all their Cheap Trick records out).
The music video for "Shandi" was the last time Peter Criss would ever appear with KISS (it had been since 1979's Dynasty that he last recorded with the band...only one song in fact).
The other three lip synced stage performances are from overseas television and are noted as being the first television apperances to feature Eric Carr on drums.
"SHANDI"
Posted by Will Tynor - aka Vil Vodka at 8/22/2008 1:07 AM 
Categories: Retroactive/Retrospective
Tags: KISS
Categories: Retroactive/Retrospective
Tags: KISS
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