Kiss Unplugged

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Kiss Unplugged
KISS Unplugged.jpg
Live album by Kiss
Released March 12, 1996
Recorded August 9, 1995, Sony Studios, New York City, New York
Genre Rock, hard rock, acoustic rock
Length 56:07
Label Mercury
Producer Alex Coletti
Kiss chronology
Alive III
(1993)Alive III1993		 Kiss Unplugged
(1996)		 You Wanted the Best, You Got the Best!!
(1996)
Singles from Kiss Unplugged
  1. "Rock and Roll All Nite"
    Released: 1996

You Wanted the Best, You Got the Best!!1996

Kiss Unplugged is an MTV Unplugged album by American rock band Kiss. On August 9, 1995, the band performed on MTV Unplugged. Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons contacted former members Peter Criss and Ace Frehley and invited them to participate. Fan reaction to Criss and Frehley at the show was so positive that, in 1996, the original lineup of Kiss reunited, with all four original members together for the first time since 1979.

"The sound was deafening: the sound of rock 'n' roll history coming full circle in a TV studio," wrote Kerrang!'s Don Kaye in a review of the taping at New York's Sony Music Studios. "Complete pandemonium ensued as they struck the opening chords to '2,000 Man', and it continued when Ace's voice rang out in the clear, sardonic manner we all know and love."[1]

It marked the only time the original lineup performed publicly without their trademark makeup, and was also the only time Frehley and Criss shared a stage with Eric Singer and Bruce Kulick. It was the first time Singer had part of a lead vocal on an album (shared with Criss on "Nothin' to Lose"). On March 12, 1996, the concert was released on CD and, on December 18, 2007, on the Kissology Volume Three: 1992–2000 DVD set. This included the original DVD release of the concert plus five previously unreleased songs: "Hard Luck Woman" (with Stanley on vocals), "Heaven's on Fire", "Spit", "C'mon and Love Me", and the infamous country version of "God of Thunder". The LP version of the album includes a poster and some were pressed on yellow marbled vinyl.

A stand-alone VHS and DVD documentary was produced around the same time as the CD release, with archival footage of the bands' rehearsal sessions at SIR Studios in New York. It also shows the first "KISS Konvention" appearance with Peter Criss joining the touring members onstage to sing a few tunes earlier in the year. According to Peter, this invite gave Gene the idea of reaching out to both he and Ace to be a part of the Unplugged taping in an unannounced reunion. Because of the contentious split, the worldwide fan base never thought this would happen, and it was kept a closely held secret until the day of the event.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic 3/5 stars[2]
Melodic.net 4.5/5 stars[3]
Metal Nightfall 4/5 stars[4]
Q 3/5 stars[5]

Allmusic gave the album three out of five stars and said, "They exceeded expectations and, given their newfound energy, charisma, and love for the music, their performance provided the catalyst for the beginning of a successful world reunion tour."

"Cheatingly, the ambience is muscularly electro-acoustic," observed Danny Eccleston in Q, "but the tunes happily hail from the classic slap period, throwing the simply great pop of 'Goin' Blind' and the Beatley 'Sure Know Something' into pin-sharp focus."[6]

Track listing

No. Title Writer(s) Lead vocals Length
1. "Comin' Home"   Ace Frehley, Paul Stanley Stanley 2:51
2. "Plaster Caster"   Gene Simmons Simmons 3:17
3. "Goin' Blind"   Simmons, Stephen Coronel Simmons 3:37
4. "Do You Love Me?"   Stanley, Bob Ezrin, Kim Fowley Stanley 3:13
5. "Domino"   Simmons Simmons 3:46
6. "Sure Know Something"   Stanley, Vini Poncia Stanley 4:14
7. "A World Without Heroes"   Stanley, Simmons, Ezrin, Lou Reed Simmons 2:57
8. "Rock Bottom"   Frehley, Stanley Stanley 3:20
9. "See You Tonight"   Simmons Simmons 2:26
10. "I Still Love You"   Stanley, Vinnie Vincent Stanley 6:09
11. "Every Time I Look at You"   Stanley, Ezrin Stanley 4:43
12. "2,000 Man"   Mick Jagger, Keith Richards Frehley 5:12
13. "Beth"   Peter Criss, Ezrin, Stan Penridge Criss 2:50
14. "Nothin' to Lose"   Simmons Eric Singer, Criss 3:42
15. "Rock and Roll All Nite"   Stanley, Simmons Simmons, Frehley, Criss 4:20
16. "Got to Choose (Japan Bonus Track)"   Stanley Stanley 4:01

The tracklisting including "Got to Choose" is only available on vinyl and on CD releases in Japan.

Personnel

With

Charts

Album
Chart (1996) Peak position
Australia ARIA Albums Chart[8] 4
US Billboard 200 [9] 15
Singles
Single Chart (1996) Position
"Rock and Roll All Nite" US Mainstream Rock Tracks[10] 13

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Argentina (CAPIF)[11] Gold 30,000
United States (RIAA)[12] Gold 500,000
United States (RIAA)[13]
Video		 Gold 50,000

^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alone

References

  1. ↑ Kerrang! #564, 23 September 1995
  2. ↑ Kiss Unplugged at AllMusic
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  5. ↑ Q, April 1996
  6. ↑ Q, April 1996
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  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Video Longform, then click SEARCH
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