The exact three notes WITH the fade out? Because if not, I believe that's basically the same three notes - in a different key - right before the main riff in Gene's almost Daddy Long Legs' "Panama."
I think Coverdale had a secret vocal surgery recently. He's improved a bit in recent years. He sounded really good (for his age) live in 2015 when I saw him. Paul may have had multiple surgeries but it hasn't helped much. Dokken I think still smokes so he's a mess.
Absolutely not! In fact stagnation is death to any band, but even more so when the artists concerned are considered to be "elite" in their form. ie YES, after Going For The One, sounded the same on every album and lost a lot of fans amongst my friends. While a certain band who I won't mention, changed and kept their fans and gained more. I'm speaking of course about people I personally know, but I would think that translates to the general public. I could be wrong, I thought I was once before but I was mistaken. pax
My stodgy prog rock friends back in the 70s would say, "How can you listen to Kiss?". I would calmly and intelligently answer with "shut up or I will punch you in the face."
Nah, man, he used to. Apparently, the union went on strike and he ended up down on his luck. His woman, Gina, worked the diner all day to cover their asses though so, it's not all doom and gloom And what a band they were, I've been lucky enough to see them five or six times and they were a true force of nature. At one show, just before Streetcleaner was out, the drum machine just would not play ball and finally gave up during Devastator. It received a fairly hefty stamping from Mr. Broadrick and the howl from the P.A. instantly folded half of the crowd in seconds, myself included haha. They took five and managed to salvage it though. My first band played a show with his other mob, Head Of David, really nice guys. Some really good picks there, man! Props for Sandman, Kozelek, PJ, Bon, and for rating Ian Astbury so highly....when he's on it, he's first class! I'd have his protege, John Garcia, in there too. His vocal on Unida's 'If Only Two' alone gains him instant entry to mines, hehe. Nice you included Chris Goss as well, Masters Of Reality are one of my favorite bands! Anyways, enough of that...back to the main attraction. Still loving the thread/posts but i'm not chiming in on new stuff 'til Revenge. I only listened to that and Sonic Boom after recommendations from @Diamond Star Halo and @bartels76 so i'll look out for those two. Ahh, i'm possibly being really unfair in my outright rejection of the band through the mid-late eighties but, at the time, I just couldn't relate to their image/music whatsoever. Admittedly, I've never heard any album in full since 'Lick It Up' as most of the singles I did hear cemented the notion that I wasn't going to give them airtime against the other stuff I preferred. This isn't going to change anytime soon, sorry. Anyways, i'm holed up in hospital with a broken hand, ribs and punctured lung (don't ask) so i've got a few days to fart out some 'reviews' (for want of a better word). I apologize in advance for the lack of eloquence/intellect. KISS (1975) STRUTTER First song out the bag on their first album and i'm sure i'm not alone in reckoning it's one of the best things KISS have written. I love how the guitars ape the Stones, yet the bass is pure McCartney. I can also imagine Jagger singing the verses, yet just as easily picture the Beatles doing the pre-choruses. I do hear Genes love for all things Macca shining through in his some of his bass lines, plus they were always were on point with their vocal harmonies and that's also who I hear as their main influence in that dept. Especially their early stuff. Paul comes across pretty reserved here in the vocals but that's nothing to get pissy about, i'm possibly thinking like that because 'Alive' is, by far, the most played album of theirs in my house and it contains the definitive versions of almost every song for me. Still, it's definitely got a hell of a swagger in any form and it's aptly named! I like how Ace basically just adlibs licks over the top of the rythmn guitar and then the unison chorus riff just slams it home, the ****ty guitar tones get an instant 'f**k yeah' and headbang from me everytime it's on. I'm a big fan of Peter's drumming too, sure, he's not (insert 'better' drummer here) but he had a feel that suited them perfect at the time. It might be an unpopular opinion but, I also like his voice the best out of them all too. 8.5/10 NOTHIN' TO LOSE Didn't hit as hard for me as the opener and I found myself liking the production ideas more than the song. The way the guitar sits in the middle for the verse then jumps to opposing speakers for the little licks at the breaks/chorus is neat and I get the Beatles again in the vocal harmonies, but the tune itself sounds kinda old fashioned and the lyrics are terrible. I don't mind how it's sung but, yet again, I'm liking Peter's bits the most. Interestingly, as i've only got headphones/laptop at my perusal, it's the first time I've noticed the piano on the outro. Still a pass though. 6/10 FIREHOUSE Not one of my favourite KISS songs and it comes across as pretty pedestrian here, compared to the version on Alive anyways.....I don't mind the Stonesy riff and I love Ace's chicken pickin' solo but that's about the highlights for me. I find it plods along a little too much and it doesn't hold me as much as other songs. 5/10 COLD GIN I realize this is a KISS classic but, yet again, it's not one of my favorites. I like the mid section the most and feel it comes across much better live. I guess i'm unfairly comparing it to the Alive version again...something that's proving hard to bear in mind when dishing out a retroactive 'review' of earlier studio versions. 5/10 LET ME KNOW Again with the Stonesy vibe, i'm liking Paul and Genes vocals, Paul's moreso, and also Ace's solo for the most part but, again, it's not really a top-teir, show stopping KISS number. At the 2;15 mark it breaks down to a twee little vocal harmony....then...all hell breaks loose. The riff that comes in from here is pure Zeppelin and the vibe is fantastic...the dual hard panned leads reminds me of some stoner bands I like and I would have much preferred four minutes of this part instead! I did rate the debut as my favorite at one point so it's surprising me that i've been as harsh on side one. Ah well. 5-6/10 KISSIN' TIME I absolutely love the ****ty guitar tones on the intro riff and I love the verses and how Gene/Paul/Peter share turns singing on each. I can't stand the chorus though. Love the guitar bends/ride cymbal flourishes through the second verse...then the chorus f***s everything up again. Luckily saved by a peach of a solo by Ace and Peter's vocals through the last verse. Did I mention I hate the choruses? 5/10 DEUCE Comes across a bit neutered here, again unfairly holding it against the version from Alive, but it's one of my favorite songs regardless. It's quite a dark sounding riff and the vocals sound pretty menacing, only being offset by the vocal harmonies. Also, the more early stuff i've been listening to, the more I realize I prefer Ace's understated playing style to any of the guys that came after him. 8/10 LOVE THEME Sounds like a southern rock jam/soundcheck. It's okay, I suppose, I like Gene's bass tone and some of his breaks but it sounds kinda unfinished and a bit out of place alongside the other numbers. I don't dislike it, I just find it a bit 'meh'. 4/10 100,000 YEARS Top five KISS tune for me, absolutely brilliant! The bass intro is dark and menacing and this vibe is kept up through the verses, the guitar stabs that hang under the main riff just do it for me on this one. Love Paul's snide sounding vocal, gives it a real earthy and aggro vibe. Peter's drumming is **** hot as well, although i'm glad the drum break doesn't take up too much space on the studio version. The leads are really nice as well. Love it! The version from Alive is the business! 10/10 BLACK DIAMOND Along with rank outsider, 'Save Your Love', this could possibly be my favorite KISS song. My better half is a huge KISS fan and this is also one of her favorites, so that's a good thing to have..(she wouldn't join just to comment here but she has read, and liked, some of the posts on my behalf haha ) The song opens here with a simple 12-string guitar and Paul's soft vocal and some nice harmonies, then it kicks into a fairly simple riff/progression with some nice bass fills and some cool unison licks between Ace/Paul and a short but cool solo. The outro chord progression/solo is just beautiful. I understand Paul wrote this but i'm so, so glad he handed the reigns over to Peter for the main because it's his vocal that make this one for me, his raspy/gritty delivery just ticks all my boxes and I don't think any other member could have nailed it and done it as much justice. I get similarities between the sparseness of the verses, then the double time feel at the chorus as I do with 'SYL', so maybe that's why i'm drawn to both of them? I dunno. The first time I had the vinyl on and heard the slowed down ending, I got a fright because I thought the belt on my Dad's turntable had shat out of it, haha. Again, the version from Alive is pounding, Peter screaming his tits off for all he's worth. He also gets supermega extra props for cowbell. 10/10 Overall for a debut album, it's a solid effort. I'll give it an 8/10....which is coincidentally how many working fingers I have right now.
Don't go anywhere near a Steven Wilson thread on here or FB then...the worst kinds of prog Billy Goat Gruffs live there!
And today he adds (still in all caps, mind you): I GOT 2 MEET AND GREETS AND PHOTO OPPORTUNITY'S WITH MY BLOOD BROTHER, VINNIE VINCENT...ATLANTA HERE I COME...ITS TIME THIS HAPPENS.......
He thinks he looks like Vinnie. Or plays like him. or something. To my knowledge he's never stolen money from his fans though (allegedly )
Vinnie talked a lot of crap in the late 80's...listen to Treasure and you can hear Vinnie could play anything he wanted to.
I think someone like Vinnie (or Randy, or Yngwie) have a style of rhythm playing that maybe is stiffed when playing with another guitarist.
One note regarding the Whitesnake '87 reissue... Gene? Paul? This is how the big boys do a special edition.
SILVER SPOON 1989 (Stanley, Poncia) (4:38) Reportedly one of Paul’s favorite songs from Hot In The Shade, “Silver Spoon” features some nasty slide guitar from Bruce Kulick as well as three female background singers (Charlotte Crossley, Valerie Pinkston, and Kim Edwards-Brown). The song was written by Paul Stanley and Vini Poncia (one of five co-writes he has on this album). “Silver Spoon” is an uptempo rock tune sounding like equal parts Aerosmith, Cinderella or even Gary Moore; very driving blues rock here (maybe also sounding a bit like Free). Musically, Eric Carr propels the song well with his creative drumming often adding interesting fills and little bits of cymbal flourishes here and there. Gene’s bass just kind of pumps along adding the bottom layer for Kulick to work over. I don’t particular like Bruce’s guitar solo as it sounds fairly stock. I guess if there’s a section of the song that I like the best it’s at 3:45 where the rhythm guitar seems to gain a bit of delay (flange?) to it changing the attack a bit. I think this effect is to make things a bit more pulled back so the three female vocalists can shine at the end. As for them, I’m not crazy about their participation either, but I guess kind of works. Lyrically, the song seems about a self made man (a “six foot, hot look, All American Man” oh, wait, that's a different song) who isn’t that impressed with a girl that’s born into wealth. Paul states the song is about "being proud of who we are and embracing where we come from” (KISSMONSTER.com). (Isn’t it kind of unusual for Paul to use “his daddy” as reference to any lyrics? Did he not have a pretty cold and distance relationship with both his parents? More educated Paul experts could weigh in here; never the less, I realize the "daddy/mommy told me" thing is fairly common in rock music lyrics, so moving on ...). If anyone can help me figure out what song the beginning chord structure (to about 0:15) reminds me of I’d be grateful as I’ve listened to it several times and can’t come up with it. I can’t really find too much good to say about this song. Like many of the songs on HitS it’s decent, but I don’t find anything that remarkable about it.
I took that comment to mean he flat did not like playing in a two guitar band. Basically, the focus should have been on him and him alone. He decides what to play for the rhythm parts and all eyes are on him when it comes to soloing or anything else concerning the guitar playing in a band.
Silver Spoon: Well, it's not the worst song on here. But I can't offer much praise beyond that. Boring, generic tune, it blows, and let me guess, this is one of those albums where all the highlights are pushed toward the front. Except for one song it's all downhill from here.
