Former Kiss drummer Peter Criss recalled how John 5 persuaded him to finish the solo album he’d been working on for a decade.
The self-titled record, which was released in December, features 5 on three tracks – “Justice,” “Cheaper to Keep Her” and “Rubberneckin’” – with Billy Sheehan and keyboardist Paul Shaffer appearing on all 11 songs.
In a recent interview with Rock Candy, Criss explained that he’d decided to let 5 hear the work in progress when he went to visit the Motley Crue guitarist a few years ago.
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“I started this album maybe 10 years ago,” Criss said. “And I’d got quite a long way, but never finished it. One day… I went down to my studio and listened to the stuff again. I thought it sounded pretty good, so the next time I was out in California visiting my buddy Johnny 5, I took a CD of what was recorded with me.
“I went out to his truck, because we both like to listen to music in our cars, and I played it for him. John said, ‘Peter, I love this. This could be a great, kick-ass rock ’n’ roll album. You’ve got to finish this. You’ve got to get this done. And I’ll play on anything you want me to. I want to be on this album.’”
Criss said 5’s words gave him a “huge boost,” which led him to playing his unfinished songs for a handful of other trusted associates. “[T]hey all said the same thing; ‘This is dynamite, some of the best stuff you’ve ever done.’
“So I started working on the songs again, coming up with new lyrics, different arrangements. My wife Gigi was really encouraging, so I started working on the numbers 18, 19, maybe 20 hours a day, and in the end I redid all of the vocals with this dream team of musicians backing me.”
He added: I had an absolute blast; I was like a kid in a candy store, and my pipes are better than they’ve ever been! Thanks to this project I feel like I’m 20 years old all over again.”
Peter Criss Was Glad to Be At Ace Frehley’s Deathbed
Criss, 80, was with former bandmate Ace Frehley when he died on Oct. 16 last year, weeks before Kiss were honored at the Kennedy Center – making the event even more emotional for the drummer.
“That was very hard on me because Ace and I were extremely close,” he said. “We lived very near to each other. I watched his daughter being born; he watched my daughter being born.
“I was there at the hospital when he passed, and I got to hold his hand. I can’t tell you how happy I was to be with him at the end.”
Criss also reported that, regardless of the prestige attached to the awards Kiss have garnered, he’d fulfilled his career ambition in 1977. “When I was a boy, my dream was always to do a gig at Madison Square Garden,” he said.“At the age of 13 I promised my mother, ‘Ma, someday I’m going to play there for you.’”
When the big moment came, he added, “my parents were there in the audience crying their eyes out. That was my magical moment, and if we’d never got any bigger, that would have been fine with me.”
