Welcome to the 9 Lives of Peter Criss

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Drummer gives old band the Kiss off

Peter Criss leaves glam-rock behind with mellow solo album
Jul 25, 2007 0430AM
Wayne Parry
Associated Press

NEW YORK–Peter Criss has had more than his share of goodbye Kisses.

He's on his third marriage, and his third breakup from Kiss, the glam-rock legends he co-founded 34 years ago. Best known for crooning the ballad "Beth," about how the rock 'n' roll lifestyle ends a marriage, the drummer has made peace with his tamer life.

Now 61 and about to become a grandfather, the jungle cat has become more of a house pet, with a solo album full of heartfelt ballads, One For All, coming out yesterday.

"I sing about the band, I sing about the good times, the bad times," Criss said.

"I'm re-creating me to be comfortable with me again. This is about what I've really felt. I tore a lot out of my heart to get to this.''

Much of the album is light-years away from what he recorded with Kiss, such as a cover of Stephen Sondheim's "Send In The Clowns." Criss got the idea soon after ending his final Kiss tour.

After quitting the band in 2000, Criss signed up for a summer tour in 2003 under the impression that guitarist Ace Frehley would be there. But talks with Frehley fell though and Kiss put road manager Tommy Thayer into Ace's makeup and had him play Ace's solos note-for-note each night – a move that still rankles many Kiss fans.

"Ace not being there was tough for me," Criss said. "So that last night, I just knew it was my last night with the band.... Putting other guys in our costumes and makeup is to make money. It's not the real deal. It's not the Lone Ranger, not Hopalong Cassidy, it's not Santa Claus."

Criss went home and started tinkering with the Sondheim classic; the rest of One For All followed.

It's all done in a subdued, laid-back style, and it's sure to knock Kiss fans raised on the likes of "Dirty Livin'" and "Strange Ways" for a loop.

"I have no one over my shoulder screaming, `I don't hear a hit!' or `This is too long for the radio!' or `This song is too schmaltzy!'"

That's what his bandmates and producers said in 1976 when Criss submitted "Beth" for what would become their defining studio album, Destroyer.

"They hated it!" he said.

"Beth" remains Kiss's biggest hit.
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