Ruth Blatt | Forbes
“It’s a pretty safe statement to say that most entertainers have self worth issues and image issues, inferiority issues.” That’s KISS’s Paul Stanley, talking to me about his new memoir, Face the Music: A Life Exposed. “ Let’s face it, getting up on a stage or getting up in front of people is not a normal thing to do ,” he continued. “You do it because you’re seeking approval on a mass scale when you don’t get it on a small scale. So if you’re not going to address that as you become successful then the clock is ticking because of all the possible poisons that will enter into your life. Unless you can look elsewhere to remedy whatever the problems are, you’re a fatality waiting to happen, if not in terms of your life then certainly in terms of your career.”
The statement isn’t too surprising given that KISS is increasingly known for their internal strife. The conflict over KISS’s legacy – and the people who go down in history as the architects of its success – has come to head over KISS’s recent induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Stanley’s refusal, along with co-founder Gene Simmons, to perform at the ceremony with the band’s original lineup.
The details of their beefs are available elsewhere. My conversation with Stanley focused on how he avoided the career suicide that led to the ousting of original drummer Peter Criss and the ungraceful exit of original lead guitarist Ace Frehley.
First was the realization that the flip side of success is the inevitable precipice you reach. Here is how Stanley describes it in his book: “I was being pulled up the big hill, knowing we were going to reach the top at any moment and then plunge down the other side, falling, screaming, with no control whatsoever. I could feel the momentum, the process of being pulled up the hill. I could tell we had reached a point of no return. All I could do was hold on real tight.”
But the inevitable fall wasn’t Stanley’s real problem. The real problem was that he had nothing to hold on to, no loved ones to ground him. The relationships he did have were, for the most part, toxic.
Ace Frehley is a busy guy these days. The guitarist — who’s fresh from being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the rest of his former band, KISS — turns 63 this Sunday, but will have to celebrate on the fly: he’s got his hands full with a pressing production schedule for his new solo album.
Episode 21 finds Jody Havenot joined once again with his KISS Army sista, Rachel Ann! And as usual, we discuss a wide range of KISS topics..including but not limited to KISS tributes, groupies, and KISS 40. As always,thanks for listening, and keep on rockin’!
Paul Stanley‘s autobiography, Face the Music: A Life Exposed, has debuted at number-two on 
Contrary to popular belief, Kiss was not just about the makeup—it was the about the pyrotechnics, fake blood and high heels. Formed in 1973, the band made a name for themselves as a part of the glam rock-movement in a similar vein to the androgynous antics of the New York Dolls and Alice Cooper. So how exactly did a couple of guys who look like RuPaul’s Drag Race rejects become the idols of half the male population of the United States? Kick-ass guitar licks and Satan worship, that’s how.