From Publishers Weekly
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The "Phantom of the Park," aka Simmons, needs nary a
ghostwriter to pen his bio, for he ably delivers this season's
most fascinating backstage pass. Articulately detailing his life
from his birth in Israel through the 30-year life span of Kiss,
he charts how glam-metal's greatest pioneers provided the most
outrageous spectacles of arena rock in the 1970s. Those same
pyrotechnics, pneumatic drum risers, jacked-up personas and
frightening face paints have sold 80 million records worldwide.
Simmons, the "guy who sticks his tongue out and spits fire,"
boasts other onstage innovations, including "throwing up blood"
and creating the ubiquitous headbanger's hand sign for the devil.
All in all, the rock 'n' roll extravaganzas of the Kiss empire
hardly run short of the obvious wild parties, famous faces, hotel
fiascoes, banging up cars and getting busy with groupies. Though
no Wilt Chamberlain, Simmons describes at length how he has slept
with 4,600 women. But when the smoke clears, the book is as well
written as it is interesting: the story of a Jewish kid from
Brooklyn, the endearingly sincere struggles Simmons faces over
the years, his eventual marriage and herhood as well as juicy
material like his extended romances with Cher and Diana Ross.
While moldering rock stars who have tales to tell may be a dime a
dozen, Simmons's enjoyable and intriguing autobiography deserves
attention. 50 b&w photos. (Jan.)Forecast: Thanks to Kiss comic
books, dolls and other paraphernalia, the band's quasicult fan
base runs the gamut of age and cultural orientation. Expect big
sales garnered from mass e-mails, author interviews and a 50-city
radio tour.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
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From Library Journal
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Best known for their pyrotechnic concerts and outrageous
makeup, KISS has inexplicably endured for more than 30 years.
Frontman Simmons here speaks to that longevity, as well as to the
band's sale of 80 million records. After covering his childhood
in Haifa, Israel, he quickly moves into the evolution of KISS,
which he cofounded with Paul Stanley in New York City in 1972.
Interspersed with commentary on the band are plenty of details on
Simmons's social life. He clearly takes pride in his rise from an
underprivileged kid to a stinking-rich cult figure, disclosing
the number of women he has slept with and including early
comic-book sketches drawn as an adolescent. These divulgences
will entertain only the most loyal KISS followers, many of whom
are probably not that interested in the man behind the grease
paint. This is the first authorized biography of the band (and a
self-aggrandizing one at that), so there may be some demand.
Fans, however, are better off with Dale Sherman's more objective
portrait, Black Diamond: The Unauthorized Biography of KISS
(Collectors Guide Pub., 1997). Not recommended. Caroline Dadas,
Hickory Hills, IL
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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