Elton John's Greatest Hits 1974 was my first album owned (gift from my sister). I'm not sure it was in '74 though. My first album purchased was Destroyer, in fact. But my first rock albums enjoyed were my sister's (when she wasn't home): Aerosmith (s/t), Toys in the Attic, Alice Cooper Welcome to my Nightmare, Foreigner (s/t) and the Eagles Greatest Hits. (Soon to be followed by Hotel California). Oh, and REO Speedwagon, Live, you get what you play for and Styx Grand Illusion. She raised me right! The first 45 I liked was another sister: Shirley Purley (recorded well before my time):
The first albums I remember listening to religiously at 3 years of age were The Guess Who - 20 Greatest Hits and The Eagles - Greatest 1971-75. My first purchase was Michael Jackson - Thriller, at age 7, on vinyl. My first rock purchase was The Beatles - 20 Greatest Hits cassette at age 9. From there I got the Beatles discography, then The Who, followed by The Stones. I got my first Kiss album at age 14. Smashes Thrashes and Hits. The rest is Kisstory......
MR. SPEED Is it simply because this follows LEALE that this sounds so fresh ? That might work in it's favor, but it gets a big tick purely because it just finds it's groove from the first note, our guys are smart enough to realise that it doesn't need to be screwed with and they just ride it. As mentioned, that guitar riff and tone are just about perfect in conjuring this loose, infectious vibe that you can't help but move some part of your anatomy to. The whole band are on board for it and no-one overplays their hand 'cause they know that it's not required. Gene sounds like he's having a blast on the bass. I especially get the wiggle on in the section starting at 1:55 through to 2:40 ..... the solo through to the "I don't care !" from Paul after which they just cruise-control that groove until the vocal returns. It's tasty !
You know how I know this thread has gotten completely out of hand for me? Today I listened to a couple of Megadeth songs at random and there's a circular riff in Tornado of Souls at about 9 seconds in. And I was thinking it sounded like the riff in Mr. Speed. Seriously.
Oh so because you are traveling is an excuse to miss a day? You may not know it but there is something called a laptop? Just kidding of course. I have to say that there are only a handful of SH members that could keep this thread moving so hot considering most members opinion of this band. You are one of those few that can make it interesting and a learning experience. Everyone else has been great as well. Your thread has made me forget about finishing my Humble Pie thread but it has been worth it. Great job!
I am not sure what my top ten favorite KISS songs are, but "Mr. Speed" is very near the top; to me, it is quintessential KISS. Having said that, now I am going to get controversial... I have listened to this song literally hundreds, if not thousands of times in my life, and I think this may be Paul Stanley solo, except for the drums and I am not even entirely convinced on that account. The guitars panned left and right sound to me like the same guitar part, split between two amps. I cannot hear any variation at all--well almost--more on this in a bit. Next, the guitar solo. It's very short, and I hear no Ace-isms at all, unlike "Baby Driver" where there are Ace-isms everywhere throughout the song. This solo sounds much more like Paul's solos on "I Want You," "I Stole Your Love" and particularly "Hold Me, Touch Me." There's also some very weird mixing right after the solo; the guitars are centered in the mix, as opposed to being panned, and I hear two distinct sounds, one from 2:13-2:16, and then a second sound starting at about 2:19. Then, right before the last chorus starts around 2:36-9 there's some more weirdness, where it sounds like they were riding the faders during the mixing and didn't catch it. The bass line is a little more suspect, as I do hear some fills that sound like Gene, but considering that Paul did the bass on "Love Gun," I literally don't hear anything Paul couldn't play. The vocals seem to be all Paul, if Gene or anyone else is there I have a tough time hearing him. The drums are very simple, literally no more than half-dozen fills and none of them are particularly reminiscent of Peter. Interestingly, the drummer on the demo is listed as "unknown." I have never seen any documentation at all about the sessions that produced this track. Thoughts?
I don't think it's a Paul solo track. It's quite possible Paul might be playing bass and rhythm guitar, but that's about it (I have long suspected this myself actually). The solo sounds like Ace to me. The drums sound like Peter. Interesting theory though. Who knows, maybe you're on to something.
The drummer on the demo is a guy called Bill Lettang. He says in Behind the Mask that Paul told him to play like Charlie Watts.
Thoughts??? Well, two pages back I said "Ace seems like he's doing all the Ace-isms in his solo". So my thoughts are that you've made me nervous.
I think the solo is very Ace, especially the first few seconds, the 1:56 to 1:59 part. It does seem sort of perfunctory though, almost like a guide solo that never got redone. So, Mr. Speed. I absolutely love this song. One of my all time favorites in the KISS Kanon. Can't think of much to add except I think Peter kind of missed the mark on what the feel is supposed to be. Love the Catman and usually defend his playing...but he didn't get this right.
"Mr. Speed" is an awesome song, my second favorite Paul-sung on here, love the guitar on here, the harmonies are killer, so catchy, the bass has some bite and teeth, a great song and one of the standouts on this record.
Man, I'm only gone for a few days, and I come back to more than 10 pages to catch up on! Way to go, guys! (And once again, kudos to Mr. GodShifter for keeping this thing going at such a great pace and at such a high level of quality!) BABY DRIVER This is just a great, balls-out rocker with attitude to spare. How could Peter have possibly been anything other than ecstatic with KISS' rendition? If it's true that he has expressed unhappiness with this version, it would certainly support the long-held belief that he could be an ornery cuss at times! This is Peter's high-water mark with KISS on one of his (ahem) own compositions. (And I'm definitely a fan of "Dirty Livin"). Props to @GodShifter for the ZZ reference. LOVE 'EM AND LEAVE 'EM Though the lyrics may be straight-up Spinal Tap, it's nevertheless Gene to a "t" and despite the rampant stupidity on display, I can't help but really dig this tune. The groove is infectious, and though I admit it almost feels like an unfinished idea, I still enjoy it, and its overall place on the album. MR. SPEED I freakin' LOVE "Mr. Speed". An absolute gem, and another member of the "Top Ten Underappreciated/Unheralded KISS Songs" list. (For those scoring at home, that list also includes - so far - "Let Me Know", "Rock Bottom" and "Love Her All I Can"). I could go on all day about the things I love about this song, but I won't. I love how the background singers sing the "I'm so fast" line while Paul is still finishing the previous line in the chorus! This song is just absolutely sublime. (It may also benefit from being "unheralded" in that it probably just sounds fresher to our ears because of not having heard it all that much. But nevertheless, I've loved this song since the album was new, and it's only gotten cooler as time's gone on). There were so many great comments the last few days that I regret not being able to single them out. But lots of nice insights and stories from our fine assemblage. One question that struck me while listening to these last few tunes is: is this Ace's greatest work of all the band's albums, in terms of guitar solos? Some of these are quite succinct, yet so perfect for the song in question. And some of the sounds he got really stand out in his body of work. I didn't comment the day we discussed "Calling Dr. Love", but did any of his other KISS solos ever sound like that one? I couldn't think of any. Someday I'll have to go through all of the KISS albums he played on and compare the quality of solos, but his work on this album is nothing short of brilliant!
Great post, and I do think this is Ace's best KISS album in terms of his guitar work. I wonder how much of this might have been related to Eddie Kramer's involvement? They certainly seemed to have chemistry together: Alive! Rock and Roll Over Love Gun Alive II Ace Frehley (1978) Is it just coincidence, or did Eddie Kramer help Ace to take things to the next level, both in terms of his songwriting and his playing?
That's well said. While each song can be enjoyed on its own, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. To me, this album should be enjoyed in total. They filmed "I Want You", "Love Em And Leave Em" and "Hard Luck Woman" for Don Kirshner's Rock Concert, and the show's producers added the faux crowd noise. For whatever reason, the video and audio are synched up very poorly on Youtube. I linked the "I Want You" clip back on Day One of our look at RARO, but didn't realize until afterwards that the sync was so far off. It was not that way when it aired, and it's not that way if you see the clips on KISSOLOGY VOL. 1, either. Despite the many criticisms of Gene's gyrations and overall performance in this clip from my esteemed colleagues, I'm going to dissent and say this is pure "Gene" in all his '76 glory! (Why they chose to film this song, over "Calling Dr. Love", is definitely a mystery, though!) At the end of the day, isn't that what this thread's all about?!? (If it isn't, it should be!) As I mentioned earlier, the last time a poll was conducted ranking KISS' studio albums at KissFAQ, ROCK AND ROLL OVER came out at #1. Just as it had a few years earlier when the poll was previously conducted. So rest assured, you're in good company in your love for this album. (I personally had it #2 when I voted). We're getting some variation from the Forum members participating here, but that's a good thing. I am thoroughly enjoying the perspectives from the thread participants. But there's no need to re-think your love for this album! (And even though I have a tremendous fondness for LOVE GUN, I still think RARO is much better.)
"Mr. Speed", nice rocking Stonesy number and there's little hint of T-Rex present (as someone mentioned earlier). Quinessential Kiss song and I think it never stood out for me when I first herd the album, now in the later years I have sort of found it's appreciation. Paul sounds great, lyrics are embassing again (that's the usual for Kiss) but I think I haven't cared to take too close look and listen of them. Gene's got some nice groove going and the bass sounds awesome. The whole band plays as unit, tight but loose enough and all of them do the best (without trying to steal the spotlight). The real deal for me again is Ace, he does yet again tremendous solo and I truly like it. I think I have mostly concentrated on Ace's work in these songs and how they show his skills. @GodShifter I think the song a day is good pace, I would like to keep it at this pace.
No, it's not a coincidence. They had great chemistry together from the day they first met. Eddie's affinity for Ace's personality, and his playing ability, made him a perfect sounding board for Ace's ideas. Eddie's work on Ace's solo album alone puts him in the pantheon of greatest KISS associates, in my book!
It's too bad they didn't work together again (at least prior to Alive III). I wonder why Paul isn't a big fan of Kramer? It seems strange, seeing that Kiss had so much success working with him - and mixed results without him post-Alive. Why the acrimony?
Can't believe I haven't dug into this thread. This will take some time. Thought I was watching/participating from earlier. Guess not. Time for bed soon, but look forward to digging in here.
Paul is a fan of Eddie Kramer. Paul reveres Hendrix, Zeppelin, Humble Pie, etc. and Kramer worked with all of them. I think Paul has bristled at some of the criticism Kramer has leveled at the band in various interviews about how "they couldn't play", etc. And I have to agree, that some of Kramer's put-downs have seemed kind of disingenuous. I think Kramer has been a little bit guilty of "playing to his audience" at times in a few of the interviews he's given. (But hey, Paul and Gene have been quite guilty of that themselves, so they shouldn't complain). I just think it's primarily that. I have read that he had some issues with how Kramer captured their sound (when they were at their peak) on RARO and LOVE GUN, but don't agree with him. (I think he wanted a heavier drum sound, for instance, but Peter's playing style has to factor into the equation, as well). They worked with him again years later on ALIVE III, so I think it's safe to say they admired and respected him. I love Paul, but you have to take some of his more recent comments with a grain of salt.
Good to see you here! The original thread was abandoned shortly after side 1 of the debut album was discussed, and we shifted to this one, so I'm sorry you didn't get the word. (We left a sticky-note on your desk, but the janitor must have thrown it out!) Have fun catching up and please share whatever pearls of wisdom you care to!!
