Rarely critical, the guitarist this time pointed out that former colleagues contradicted themselves and reported strangeness with the situation
O Kiss ended its activities last December with two shows in New York. They were the final performances of a long farewell tour, “End of the Road”which began in 2019 and passed through Brazil twice — in 2022 and 2023.
Still at the beginning of the tour, the group leaders, Paul Stanley (voice and guitar) and Gene Simmons (voice and bass) said it would be interesting to have former members participating in the presentations. In this way, many fans expected that, in addition to the original members, Ace Frehley (guitar) and Peter Criss (drums), also guitarist Bruce Kulick could appear on a show. Part of the group between 1984 and 1996, Kulick always had a good relationship with Stanley It is Simmons.
That is not what happened. In an interview with Ultimate Classic Rock(via website Igor Miranda), bruce he said that he wasn’t even invited to the final performances, held at Madison Square Garden, in NY. Rarely critical of his former bosses, the musician this time ended up making a long rant.
“When they announced the tour ‘End of the Road’ for the first time, they said that everyone would receive an invitation, that this would be publicized as a gesture of goodwill from Gene It is Paul. But that doesn’t always mean it will happen in style. I’ll go a step further and just say: no, I wasn’t invited to be there. I already imagined it when they announced the final shows.”
Still according to Kulickthe main culprit for the situation would be the businessman Doc McGhee. An interview given by the manager not only made it clear that the special participation would not take place, but also undermined the way in which the collaboration would take place.
“Doc participated in a podcast and someone asked about my presence. He replied that the Kiss It’s not a jam band. In other words, it kind of made fun of me going up there and playing with them, which I had already done in the Kiss Kruise (themed cruise in 2018) together with Aceright? Doc He doesn’t like or understand the time I was part of the band. He did not participate in this period. Personally, he’s always been really nice to me and I know how important he is to the grand vision of what was done after I left. But I see what he stated about the Kiss not be a jam group as a way of announcing to the world that it wasn’t going to happen. I understand, okay? I wasn’t looking for a magical moment to play with them on stage, even though the fans loved it. But it does not matter.”
Bruce Kulick’s estrangement
Still during the interview, Bruce Kulick He described as strange the feeling of all his friends going to see the final shows in New York and some of them asking if he would go, receiving a negative answer. According to him, several fans got in touch to say they were hoping for his participation or at least his presence at the venue.
“They didn’t even mention anyone’s name. Not even from other important people in your career, such as Bill Aucoin (first entrepreneur, now deceased), the man himself Doc McGhee or other important figures who are part of the Kisstória, which helped the band become so successful. I’m not going to crash the party when I’m not invited. It certainly was their night. I paid tribute with a post on social media, congratulating them. It’s their night to do whatever they want. What would be wrong with mentioning the other guys? Or even shown some quality images? A five-minute video would have helped a lot in an event like this.”
Kulick He even celebrated the fact that the show ended with the recording of a song he participated in: “God Gave Rock and Roll to You II”reinterpretation of the original Argentreleased in the early 1990s. Still, the feeling was strange for bruceto the point where he said that the band’s controversial introduction to Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014 it represented more “Kisstória” than the final show — at the event held at the museum, only the original members were honored, but everyone was present.
“Gene It is Paul They invited me, took me first class and I was part of the entourage. I was there to support them, even though I wasn’t one of the honorees. I sat at the table with the family, Tommy (Thayer, guitarist) It is Eric (Singer, drummer). Tom Morello (Rage Against the Machine) kindly mentioned all the band members during his introduction speech. We all know this happened strangely, because the Hall of Fame I just wanted to introduce the originals. I thought it was wrong, but it was what they wanted to do. But I was there. A Kisstória was represented in Hall of Famebut not at the band’s last show.”
Source: Rollingstone
Earl Johnson is a music writer at Gossipify, known for his in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the industry. A graduate of USC with a degree in Music, he brings years of experience and passion to his writing. He covers the latest releases and trends, always on the lookout for the next big thing in music.
