ROCK HALL DEFENDS THEIR POSITION ON KISS, CEO JOEL PRESSMAN SAYS SINGER AND THAYER “TOOK ON PERSONAS CREATED BY ACE AND PETER”
Gary Graff of Billboard reports:
With the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction ceremony looming closer, neither KISS nor the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation seem ready to relax the entrenched positions that led to the group’s decision not to perform April 10th at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
KISS, according to frontman Paul Stanley, is upset that the Rock Hall plans to induct only the group’s founding lineup and tells Billboard that discussions about subsequent members “was shut down as a non-starter.”
Nevertheless, Stanley says KISS feels that honoring the other six musicians who have played in the band is “a very valid argument considering that there are people who played on multi-platinum albums and played for millions of people and were very important for the continuation of the band. And clearly when you’ve got a busload of Grateful Dead (members) who have been inducted and guys in the Chili Peppers who nobody knows who they are because they played on the very earliest albums are inducted…The list goes on and on of the inconsistencies. Now, I’m not pointing fingers at any of those people, but I’m certainly pointing a finger at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The only consistencies are inconsistencies and the rules clearly are there are no rules because the criteria for how and who gets in is purely based upon a personal like or dislike. And when I feel we’re being treated unfairly, I have issues with that.”
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation CEO Joel Peresman says that the decision about who to induct from any band is made by the Rock Hall’s nominating committee as well as an adjunct group of “scholars and historians” familiar with specific inductees and genres. “This isn’t chemistry or physics; it’s not an exact science,” Peresman acknowledges. “Sometimes there’s an entire body of work up until (the artists) are inducted, other times it’s a specific period of time that established the band as who they are. With KISS there wasn’t one person here who didn’t agree that the reason Kiss was nominated and is being inducted was because of what was established in the ’70s with Ace (Frehley), with Peter (Criss), with Paul and Gene (Simmons). That’s what put them on that map.”
Peresman adds that KISS “is a unique situation where you have artists who wear makeup as part of what the band’s about,” but the Rock Hall felt that the later members — including current guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer, who are wearing Frehley and Criss’ makeup, respectively — “are fine musicians who…basically have the same makeup and are the same characters that Ace and Peter started. It’s not like they created these other characters with different makeup and playing different songs. They took the persona of characters that were created by Ace and Peter.” Persman notes that last year Heart was in a similar position, where the Rock Hall chose to induct the original ’70s sextet and not later musicians that played in the band.
But Stanley feels the situation with KISS is a bit more personal. “That it’s 14 years on (of eligibility) and we’re getting into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a clear indication that the people who hide behind that moniker don’t like us, but it reached a point where it was so absurd and ludicrous (to exclude Kiss) that they caved,” he says. “It’s like them swallowing a teaspoon of medicine they don’t want. It’s a bitter pill for them to swallow, so they’re making it as small as possible.”
Stanley says that the Rock Hall asked KISS to perform as the original quartet, in make-up, but he and Simmons — who have been playing with three-time KISS member Singer again since 2002 and Thayer since 2004 — were not confident the performance would be up to standard. “Honestly, I don’t want to roll the dice and possibly negatively impact on what I personally have been involved in building for 40 years,” he explains. “I have too much invested at this point. It really is a can of worms that I feel is better off left closed.” Peresman, meanwhile, says the Rock Hall has no plans for a performance stand-in for Kiss at the ceremony. “We have other artists, other inductees showing up and performing when they can,” Peresman says. “We’re very hopeful that Ace and Peter and Paul and Gene come and accept their award. We’re obviously honored to have them inducted.”
Read more at Billboard.
source: billboard.com
Well,it only took 40 years,but KISS has FINALLY sent me running in the opposite direction. I was onboard with these guys from the minute I heard the first few notes of the very first album. I weathered all of the stylistic changes, and the changes in personel,the deaths of Eric Carr and Mark St.John, the interminable flip-flopping about retiring and/or reuniting, and the “re-emergence” of the latest incarnation of KISS. The band has been through a lot of shit over the years, and are still around to talk about it. But,that having been said,when one or both of the founding members are relegated to commiserating about the potential of tarnishing the stellar reputation of the band by merely allowing two of the most important past members to join with them in a celebration of what was, and is, a VERY successful franchise,merely due to the speculation that those past members could not, or would not,perform responsibly (or,for that matter,coherently),or that the mere appearance of those key members would somehow trigger some form of mass “Reunion Tour II” hysteria,it begs the question” What the hell are you guys thinking?” Paul Stanley has been quoted as saying that he believed that the memory of the band would not be embellished by allowing Ace and Peter to play live with him and Gene at the induction ceremony. So, rather than give the fans,who are collectively responsible for those fat wallets and nice mansions that they currently enjoy, one last glimpse at the iconic lineup that started it all, he would just as soon choose to behave like a petulant 6 year old that will not share his favorite toy with anyone else. Jeez,Louise…..it’s only one night, and only one performance. I’m embarrassed, for all of the people who have supported this band through the years, by this blatant display of abject pettiness. Personally,I have been waiting, and waiting, and waiting,for the release of the much-delayed 4th installment of the KISSOLOGY video series, and was interested in reading Paul’s soon to be released autobiography. But, after all of this rampant back-biting, I have decided that enough is enough, and I will no longer contribute my money to anyone who engages in this twisted mind-set. Thanks for the good times,KISS. And thanks for the bad times as well…no one goes on for 40 years without some kind of hurdles to deal with. But, when you set yourself up for a fall, you’ve no one to blame but yourself. I will continue to seek out bootleg videos of the band in their various incarnations,but, as for buying official product,from which the band will personally profit…..no thanks…not anymore.
Paul Stanley is right in pointing out that the HOF is full of inconsistencies. If the HOF was so concerned with original lineups, why did they allow the debacles that were the Blondie and Creedence Clearwater Revival performances? And going forward, the HOF is inisiting that Chad Channing not be part of the Nirvana induction.
like everything kiss nowadays a good thing has turned to dramatic to really care anymore. kind of like a reality show……… weird how the rnrhof inducts kiss during their 40th anniversary…
Ok? So what about Eric Carr or Bruce Kulick?
This has turned into tabloid humor. It’s like following Lindsey Lohan or Miley Sirus. At this point, I’m like… who cares?