Gene Simmons recently attempted to dispel the “mythology” surrounding Kiss‘ biggest hit, “Beth,” claiming drummer Peter Criss “had nothing to do with that song” despite singing it and receiving a writing credit on the track.
In a new interview with Professor of Rock, Simmons detailed the origins of “Beth,” which appeared on the band’s fourth album, Destroyer, and peaked at a career-high No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100.
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How ‘Beth’ Started With a Clunkier Title
Simmons said that during a limousine ride through Michigan, Criss hummed him a primitive version of the song, which at the time had the working title “Beck.” The melody piqued Simmons’ interest, and the bandleader suggested Criss show the song to Kiss producer Bob Ezrin.
“But before then, I suggested in the car, ‘Why don’t you change it to “Beth”?'” Simmons said. “Because when you say ‘Beck,’ that hard syllable stops the melody. … And ‘Beth’ is a much more romantic idea.”
Gene Simmons Says Peter Criss ‘Does Not Write Songs’
Simmons then offered two reasons why Criss was not actually a co-writer of “Beth,” despite it becoming one of his and Kiss’ signature songs.
“Peter is always family,” Simmons continued. “But it’s time for the truth: Peter does not write songs. He doesn’t play a musical instrument. Drums are not a musical instrument, by definition. They’re called a percussive instrument. Really important, sometimes extremely important in a band. It was for us. But you cannot play a drum fill that could be [copyrighted]. But you can come up with a riff that you can own, and a melody and a lyric. Those can be [copyrighted]. But nothing you do on drums will prevent anybody else from directly copying whatever you did and applying it to another song.
“OK, that’s number one,” he continued. “Number two: As far as I know, Peter plays no other instruments that I’ve ever seen. Not keyboards, six-string instruments. Peter’s got a great whiskey voice in the early days.”
Listen to Kiss’ ‘Beth’
So … Who Actually Wrote ‘Beth’?
“The person who wrote ‘Beth’ and ‘Baby Driver’ and one or two more is a guy named Stan Penridge,” Simmons explained. “Stan Penridge was with Peter in a group called Chelsea. They had a record out actually. I think it was on MCA. So Peter did not write ‘Beth.’ Peter did not write ‘Baby Driver.’ Stan Penridge wrote that.
“But through politics and hint, hint, nudge, nudge — and I wasn’t there when the conversation went down — Stan Penridge apparently agreed that Peter’s name would go in the songwriting credit. It appears first. Peter Criss, Bob Ezrin, Stan Penridge, or the other way around. But Peter’s first. Peter had nothing to do with that song. He sang it.”
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How Another Legendary Boy Band Inspired ‘Beth’
Simmons also explained how “Beth” received its iconic string arrangement. “To fix all the mythology and the gossip and the outright lies, it was Bob Ezrin who said, ‘I want to do this like “Yesterday” [by the Beatles],'” he said. “More like a string quartet and piano, so more acoustically, because the melody of the song demanded it. And we’d never done that. We never thought we’d be doing a song like that, but we all went, ‘Sure.'”
In conclusion, Simmons said, “The mythology of ‘Beth’ is exactly that: mythology. The real story is Peter was lucky enough to be in the same place at the same time as a guy who wrote a song called ‘Beth.’ And then Bob Ezrin, when he heard the song, went home before it was recorded, and then Bob added the middle section of the piano, which was taken legally because it’s public domain. I believe it was a Mozart piano concerto. And that is the story behind ‘Beth.'”
See where “Beth”‘s parent album Destroyer ranks among Kiss’ discography below!
Kiss Albums Ranked Worst to Best
We rank all 24 Kiss studio albums – including their 1978 solo efforts – from worst to best.
Gallery Credit: UCR Staff
