GUITARIST VINNIE VINCENT “APPEARS” IN PROMO CLIP OF THE ATLANTA KISS EXPO 2018
Former KISS guitarist Vinnie Vincent is featured in a new promotional video for his upcoming appearance as a special guest at the Atlanta Kiss Expo next year, watch it below.
To read more about this event, please click here. Additionally, the Atlanta KISS Expo has an FAQ section, which addresses Vincent’s appearance.
Vincent replaced lead guitarist Ace Frehley in 1982 and played with KISS for two years.
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I love that Vinnie developed his own character in KI$$. And while his time in the band was brief, he made a positive impact.
Vinnie “replaced” Ace, while Tommy “impersonates” Ace.
Vinnie “replaced” Ace, while Tommy “impersonates” Ace. Rattle, you absolutely nailed it!
Hey, let me know what you think about Airbourne! Cheers!
Hi ho, hi ho, it’s off to work I go! 😉 LOL!!! The early bird always catches the worm!
Doug, I ordered the Airbourne box set when Dana posted the article about them, but it hasn’t been released yet so I haven’t had a chance to really check ’em out. I’m looking forward to listening to them. They seem to play AC/DC inspired music, and that’s just fine with me! :o)
Rattle, they totally were inspired by AC/DC! They remind me so much of a younger, maybe even crazier version of AC/DC! If you love AC/DC, and who doesn’t? I think you’ll love Airbourne as well! Enjoy, bro, cheers! 🙂
Both Vinnie and Tommy did what they were hired to do by Gene and Paul! I believe Vinnie is a much better guitarist and songwriter than any of the other replacement guitarists KISS has had since Ace was let go. His songwriting on CREATURES OF THE NIGHT brought KISS back from the dead after the whole THE ELDER debacle. Unfortunately, he could never accept the fact that Gene and Paul was never going to make him an equal partner in KISS. Bruce and Tommy, both good role players, accepted what they were offered by Gene and Paul. As I’ve said many times before, I wish that KISS had never went back to the makeup thing, once they got rid of it when LICK IT UP was released. I thought that the band as it was when REVENGE was released was the best that they were since ROCK AND ROLL OVER back in ’76/’77! REVENGE totally rocked! I wish that band had continued on for years. But I understood that, financially, reuniting with Peter and Ace and bringing back the spectacle of the makeup days made sense. And if they had retired after kicking Ace and Peter out again, I would have been fine with it. But bringing Tommy and Eric on board and bringing back the makeup of the Spaceman and Catman has worked for them financially, as well. The two records that they have released with this version of the band have been good (in my opinion), and their tours have been pretty successful. They have been able to milk another successful 15 years of life from the band, so their decision should probably be considered a good one.
keith,
that was very well said. Vinnie was a solid guitarist and a decent songwriter did he save kiss ? I think he helped keep them alive for sure , he overplayed a lot but that was the thing to do in the hair metal era-as for today the best thing Vinnie ever did for Vinnie was to disappear i’m sure he didn’t do it on purpose but so many people want to hear his story and see him now I hope he has a good story to tell- as for today there are fans that still go see kiss and really love the whole show, i’m not one of them, but I do understand paul and gene made a choice to continue and keep kiss alive , and I don’t pay their bills or mortgages so they are entitled to do what they need to do to make a living- if no one came to the shows they would change it in a heartbeat , but people still come – and if paul still had that amazing voice intact tommy and eric in ace and peter make-up might not be that big a deal……
Also, if Kiss had inhabited the vacated spots with the established characters in the early 80/’82 it would not have worked. The fans would have rejected it. It would’ve been just too much to handle at that point. Paul says now it was a mistake and remember he invented Vinnie’s character and makeup. Gene also invented Vinnie’s stage name. I don’t really agree with Paul’s business plan but he has to sell the tickets not me. I enjoyed their performances at the Sonic Boom show and this past summer. It’s not ideal but the guys there are huge fans and want to be there. What got me upset was when Gene and Paul said that Tommy and Eric were BETTER than Ace and Peter and that this was the best Kiss lineup. (It’s Jim Mora again..) Are you kiddin’ me? Better? Better than..? Better? The double and triple takes I was doing made me somewhat dizzy and incoherent.
Totally agree with your comments, Shannon. I saw KISS on both the SONIC BOOM and MONSTER tours, and the shows were both terrific! Paul’s voice wasn’t the greatest, but other than that everyone seemed to enjoy the performances. Tommy and Eric both played their roles well, and you can tell that they are glad to be part of the band. And I think Gene and Paul’s comments about this version of KISS being the best lineup has to be taken with a grain of salt. From their perspective, they probably do see it as the better lineup than the one with Ace and Peter. Ace and Peter were both full members of the band, and had far more say in how things were run within the band. Also, and I say this with great respect to Ace and Peter, both of those guys were “heavily medicated” at the time of their being kicked out of the band (at least the first time with Peter). Tommy and Eric are both clean and sober, and both of them are employees, not full fledged band members. From a technical standpoint, Eric is a much better drummer than Peter. Tommy’s guitar skills are probably as good as Ace’s, although I don’t think he is as creative as Ace is. Personally, I thought Bruce K. was a FAR better guitar player than both Tommy and Ace, but that’s just me.
Bruce is the best guitarist Kiss ever had; his solo in “Forever” is what makes that song so special if you ask me, although if you notice it’s always the drummer who makes or breaks a power ballad; even if you program a drum machine.
Bruce’s chops, the choices he makes, even his non-persona is its own persona. I always liked the way Bruce never tried to be someone else; he is that geeky kid in the corner who shreds on his guitar, and that actually made him more of a Kiss person funny enough.
However, if you take Kiss in the 70s, the thing that was so cool about Peter and Ace was they had these really early rock’n’roll influences from the 50s that made their way into Kiss, and that’s what makes Kiss Kiss (if you ask me); the stuff they were doing was actually far more musical-that Gene Krupa stuff and those Country guitar licks…Peter and Ace were artistes, stars in their own right. It’s too bad they couldn’t handle success but all of them messed up Kiss–>plenty of blame to go around. Peter and Ace were just more naive (if you ask me). 🙂
You are right about Ace and Peter, Shannon. Peter’s big band influences shine through a lot on the classic 70’s KISS albums. KISS was the first rock band I was truly a big fan of, so at the time I thought all of the drummers of rock bands sounded like Peter Criss. When he was kicked out of the band and Eric Carr started playing for them, it was a HUGE difference! Eric was such a different kind of drummer, much more of a John Bonham influenced style. I never thought about Ace’s playing as Country influenced, but I have heard other people mention that he has some “rockabilly” licks on some of his solo’s. I’ve always heard a new wave/ punk style in his songwriting, and I’ve heard folks say that his playing reminded them of Keith Richards. Ace was always my favorite KISS character, so I just always knew he was COOL! It was unfortunate that both of these guys let the rock star lifestyle wreck their lives to the point that they were kicked out of the band. But, in retrospect, I seriously doubt if KISS would have survived as long as they did with all four original members.
Thats one dude that should keep his makeup on at all times.