Customer Reviews

Hit Collection '75

5 star:		(53)
4 star:		(30)
3 star:		(19)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

THE BAND: Gene Simmons (Gene Klein), Paul Stanley (Stanley Eisen), Ace Frehley (Paul Frehley), Peter Criss (Peter Crisscoula).

THE DISC: Released 3/19/75. Recorded at Electric Lady Studios (NYC). 10 songs clocking in at approximately 32 minutes (amazingly short in this day and age... 8 of the 10 songs were under the 3 minute mark). A classic black and white photo of the band in their face paint and leisure suits standing on a NYC corner is simply classic (not to mention Peter's buck saddle shoes and Gene's clogs). Originally released on Casablanca Records in 1975; this remastered edition was released in 1997 on Mercury's label. Much improved sound in my book (deeper bass guitars and crisper highs). Liner notes are slim - a 2 page fold out with song titles, writing credits and times. Underneath the disc on the inside cover, there's an informative 5 paragraph history of what the band was going through at the time.

COMMENTS: "Dressed To Kill" was the band's 3rd album in 13 months. Where I have a hard time listening to Kiss' 1973 debut and "Hotter Than Hell" (due to a very slow/labored feel to the songs and extremely poor sound production), I have absolutely no problem sitting down and listening to "Dressed To Kill" for repeated spins. Neil Bogart was at the helm for "Dressed To Kill" (Kiss' first 2 albums were produced by Ken Kerner and Richard Wise)... maybe that's the main difference. The band's first big hit is here - "Rock & Roll All Nite" - and it's a worthy anthem for our youth (even 30 years later). The song symbolized the inimitable relationship between Kiss and their hardcore fans. But, the deeper tracks on "Dressed" are totally captivating. The fast paced "Room Service", "Getaway", and "Love Her All I Can" simply don't let up. The slower songs like the now classic "She", "Two Timer" and "Ladies In Waiting" are all Gene Simmons penned songs about the opposite sex (surprised?). Still, their beats are unforgettable. And perhaps the most daring song, "Rock Bottom" with it's delicate acoustic intro, mixes the soft and hard side of Kiss. 4 songs from this album made it to the infamous "Alive!" album released in the same year. 1975 was a pivital year for Kiss - their unique brand of music entertainment was in high demand, but Kiss was shut out of major concert tours because they routinely performed better than the top-billed acts. Greater things were to come in the same year with "Alive!" being released - catapulting them into rock stardom. I love "Dressed To Kill" and it is easily my favorite "early" Kiss.

All the people who say Kiss was not talented, that they were for 9-14 year old boys, who dismissed them as a joke, I wonder if they've noticed that Kiss is still selling millions of albums after over 25 years of the best. This album is really a great piece of music. Paul Stanley shines throughout, but especially on Room Service, Rock Bottom, C'mon and Love Me and Anything FOr My Baby. Gene is his usual outstanding self on Two Timer, Ladies In Waiting, and She, possibly the heaviest song the band ever recorded. Peter Criss' drumming is good as always and his lead vocal on "Getaway" is really cool. Ace's guitar playing is what makes the album, though. He is the greatest guitarist ever born and he gets so little respect. But the crown jewel is "Rock And Roll All Night", an ageless anthem that will play on throughout the next millenium. And now that Kiss has decided to call it quits, their music and impact on the world will stand undiminished and live on through the ages at truly the greatest and most influental band ever.

Situation;KISS is an unknown band that made is appearance 2 years earlier,after two respectable album sales KISS`s 3rd album,the last from the pre-Alive!sequence their record breaking album Alive that would follow up months latter.Dressed to kill is the record that came out after hotter than hell,and as you can expect it has better sound.Many good tracks here rarities like classics.

Songs;The most known song on the album is `rock n roll all nite`the original version this song would become big after they performed it on Alive.Many songs are about love like;c mon and love me,love her all i can,anything for my baby,she,ladies in waiting.As i said earlier it has way better sound than hotter than hell but its less heavy.

They took some stuff from the wicked lester era and putted it here `She`,`love her all i can`were co-wrote by Gene with Steve Coronel and it fits very well here.They took these songs because the record company wanted another album and a that time KISS were running out of songs.

So they came out with `she`and `love her all i can` and they fit well on dressed to kill.Its a pre alive album so definetly a must have for fans.They didnt rush anything they did a simple album with short time little more than 30 minutes but the result is awesome.

Dressed to kill was also the band`s first album to reach the top 40 and it went gold like the other begening albums and it has 10 tracks that are KISS classics.While hotter than hell was more about their basic rock n roll they got fancy on this one,short running time and tracks under 3 minutes but the result is the same ,a great kiss album.The band was worried with its airtime because it was so short but in the end it was great.

The list of songs is;

1.Room service

2.Two timer

3.Ladies in waiting

4.Get away

5.Rock bottom

6.C mon and love me

7.Anything for my baby

8.She

9.Love her all i can

10.Rock n roll all nite

Some of the songs here would be on Alive in a few months this is the last album until they get famous as Alive would get quadruple platinum and destroyer triple platinum.An album fans shoudnt be without ,really good, awesome you will love it!

While most people justifiably point at "Alive" as the album that shot KISS to the top of the rock scene, they had three solid studio albums that set the tone before it. Their self-titled debut and "Hotter Than Hell" have gained in popularity over the years. Somehow the third album from KISS, "Dressed To Kill," doesn't seem to gain as much respect.

I personally believe that "Dressed To Kill" is quite possibly the strongest of KISS' three early albums. It is known primarily for having the first studio recorded release of "Rock And Roll All Nite," which ranks as one of, if not the, greatest rock anthem in history. However, the entire album offers up some great rock n' roll tunes.

In addition to "Rock And Roll All Nite," a few lesser known KISS classics included on this album are "Rock Bottom," "She," and "C'mon And Love Me." While all of these songs are great, I think that every other song on this album can hold its own in the KISS catalogue.

For instance, the album opener, "Room Service," is a nothing short of a fun rocker. "Ladies In Waiting" and "Two Timer" are a couple of other standout tracks. All of the songs have an unpolished, real feel to them that hints at what is to come in "Alive."

Even though "Rock And Roll All Nite" is the popular favorite on this album, I personally believe that the rolling rocker "Getaway" featuring Peter Criss on vocals is the true gem on "Dressed To Kill."

While I wouldn't go as far as to say that "Dressed To Kill" is on the same level as "Destroyer" or "Rock And Roll Over" when compared to KISS' studio albums, I will say that it is definitely in the upper echelon of KISS' work. Of the pre-"Alive" albums, it is definitely the best overall.

Recommended to KISS fans who've been around awhile and have yet to pick up "Dressed To Kill." Newer fans will most likely buy it for "Rock And Roll All Nite," but I think that they'll soon see just how great the rest of this album really is. If you enjoy fun rock and hard rock, I highly recommend KISS' "Dressed To Kill."

Way back in 1975, if memory serves me correctly, KISS Dressed To Kill was the very first record album that I had ever bought. I was just getting into music at the time and maybe owned a few 45s, but after hearing Rock and Roll All Nite, I just had to have this album. Needless to say, it was worth every penny that I scraped up doing odd jobs like grass cutting and a paper route to get. In fact, I ended up playing this album so many times, the grooves in the vinyl were so worn out as to be pretty much useless after a couple of years or so. So, admittedly, this album has a very special place in my heart.

Years later, sometime in the late 1990's, as I was revisiting some of the old music that I had enjoyed as a teenager, I bought this album on CD, and fell in love with it all over again. It once again started my KISS craze. Listening to it today, it sounds just as great as it ever did.

This album, to me, is THE definitive KISS album. It features 10 great songs with all the original band members working together harmoniously at a time when, in my opinion, they were at their very best. Every song on here is an awesome work of art. It's also an air guitarist's dream come true. Especially on tracks like She, with it's amazing guitar licks, and it's heavy bass grooves, to Rock Bottom, with it's beautiful two minute acoustical opening, which leads into some blistering guitars accompanied by Paul Stanley's great vocals! Or, C'Mon and Love Me, featuring one of Spaceman Frehley's best solos, and again, on Love Her All I Can, which also has excellent drumming by Peter Criss, cowbells and all.

Then there's Room Service, which features more blistering Ace Frehley guitars, and Two Timer, with the great Gene Simmons doing some very cool vocals. The song Getaway features Peter Criss singing his heart out along with more amazing guitar riffs backing him up throughout. And, Anything For My Baby features some outstanding drum playing by Peter, while Paul Stanley sings once again proving that he is without a doubt the Starchild Rock God. Gene Simmons does the main vocals on Ladies in Waiting, another great rocker.

lastly, there is the album's closer which has got to be the best end song on any album that I have ever heard, the mighty and well-known KISS signature anthem song, Rock and Roll All Nite. Man, Oh Man, albums just do not get any better than this!

I thought 'I can't get no satisfaction' was a boys' song, teeniebopper DNA, chewing gum, but after hitting middleage, middleage HIT ME, married kids wiped out every night, vertigotohell, I discovered my difficulties getting some satisfaction had ONLY BEGUN! Voice to skull, idiot! That's why "I wanna rock and roll all nite" means even MORE to adults.

Detox. Bills. Migraines. Pills. Flab. We're WAY MORE frustrated!

Back in '74 or '75, I didn't see the charm of this AT ALL. What, looks like Alice Cooper and sounds like Foghat. I just gotta Grand Funk vibe from it. Kiddies! I was busy, at age 15, trying to act 20, so I listened to all the tasteful boring propaganda Rolling Stone told me to like. HA HA on me! Wise up dummy! I'm back from the CRYPT, only someone in DIAPERS wants to be older.

I'm MUCH more FRUSTRATED now! And I'm LOVING it! Life is a SLOT MACHINE!

I love this record! It has it all. And they seemed to have settled on a sound that is a hard classic live -in- the studio sound that they would later replicate on other records. "Room Service" kicks major butt - Paul's vocals shine and the riffs on this song and every other one really rock. Every song is a highlight: Gene's "Ladies in Waiting" "She" and "Two Timer" are classic Gene on the prowl with cool riffs and baselines. Peter's playing is tighter as well on this record. Ace's riffs and solos shine on every track. Let's not forget my favorites; "Love Her all I Can" "Getaway" - penned by Ace, and "Rock Bottom". Of course, this album includes "Rock and Roll All Night" - and even though I prefer the "Alive" version, this one rocks and is tight. Overall I just feel this is the record that Kiss really settled into a sound all their own, their playing seemed tighter and the spirit on this album kicks major butt. It's no surprise that 1975 turned out to be their breakout year.

Dressed To Kill contains probably the band's biggest hit, Rock n Roll All Night, but there are several Kiss Klassics on this album that never appeared on any compilation or were rarely played live. I love the better known songs like She, Rock Bottom and C'mon And Love Me, but I also dig Gene's Two Timer & Ladies In Waiting as well as Paul's Anything For My Baby & Love Her All I Can. Ace's cool guitar playing is sprinkled throughout the album, especially on C'mon And Love Me and Love Her All I Can (great solo!). I wouldn't put this album in their top three (Destroyer, R&R Over, Love Gun), but it is worth buying.

This album was made in early 1975, but it still sounds fresh.

Dressed to Kill-- what else can I say? This album is straight-ahead rock n roll; very cleanly produced with very few frills or extras, and that's why it works. Everything on here sounds like it was recorded with the whole band at once, in one take. "Room Service", "Love Her All I Can", "Getaway", the heavy section of "Rock Bottom" and "Rock N Roll All Nite" all sound absolutely live. Ace's acoustic intro to "Rock Bottom" is the only real "studio product" on here, because it has a very quiet horn section in the background (which was highly aplified on Double Platinum's version), but it still sounds very clean.

The best music on here is done by Paul Stanley; his groove on some of the faster songs makes the "heavy Beatles" vibe come through. Gene's stuff is good, but some of it comes off as being "too Gene" ("well, I've been to the market/ and the meat looks good tonight..." from "Ladies in Waiting" is just one example).

Although he is best known for the sentimental "Beth", Peter's voice is very well used here. "Getaway" is a perfect showpiece for him, just as the first album's "Cold Gin" works for Gene. Ace is an amazing writer and musician, but I'm not sure that "Getaway" would have worked with his voice out in front.

This is perhaps the original band's tightest work, and they sound like they were having a lot of fun recording it. It's too bad that they let excess take over so quickly, but I'm very glad that this album was made when the band really knew "what rock n roll was all about".

KISS's 3rd album kept with the hard and heavy sound of KISS and helped propel them to stardom when they released ALIVE!. Dressed to Kill is one of the few KISS albums that remains consistent with songs and keeps a strong, heavy sound throughout the 30 minute album. The highlights of the album include: "Rock and Roll all Nite", "Room Service", and "C'mon and Love Me". Any KISS fan should own this outstanding compilation of rock and roll from one of the best Rock groups of all time.

Song by Song:

Room Service: A wonderful opening to the album. Gives you a great overview to what you can expect in terms of the KISS rock that you'll be hearing off the album. 9/10

Two Timer: Solid track, but not one of the stronger one's off the album. Still good solid rock n' roll. 8/10

Ladies in Waiting: A very catchy rock song with a nice to flow it. A good chorus and a good song. 8.5/10

Getaway: Pretty good track but you get the sense that there wasn't much effort put into making this track. 8/10

Rock Bottom: A wonderful guitar intro into a seemingly good rock track. The first 2 minutes are the real highlight of the song though. 8.5/10

C'mon and Love me: Classic KISS. Wonderful lyrics and a great rock melody. 9.5/10

Anything for My Baby: Seemingly one of the catchiest songs off the album, it will have you singing along in no time. 9/10

She: Great rock track featuring strong drumming a great intro. Good chorus as well. 9/10

Love Her All I can: This song features the best guitar solo off the album and it is fabulous. Catchy with a great melody within in the solo. 9/10

Rock and Roll All Nite: Possibly the highlight of the album. It's wonderfully catchy and just carries a magnificent beat to it. 10/10