Customer Reviews

The Kiss Album Focus, Vol. 2: Hell or High Water, 1983-96

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I did enjoy this book, although I was looking forward to it being focused on Kiss' albums. It was approxamately 60% album focus and 40% Kiss common knowledge info. I was expecting something more like "The Beatles Recording Sessions" type of format where the albums, the songs and the recording sessions are analized in great detail. Don't get me wrong, after being a fan of Kiss for 25 years, I did still learn some things from reading this book- but there was still too much non-album focus.....

The Kiss Album Focus Volume 2 book is good, but not nearly as good as the first volume. And not because I'm biased toward the original line up of Kiss, (isn't every Kiss fan?!), but because this book doesn't go through album by album and song by song like the first book did. I was looking forward to detailed information about the recording of especially Lick It Up, Animalize, and Asylum, and it's more of an overview. Don't get me wrong this volume 2 IS a good book for Kiss fans and probably the best stuff on the Vinnie Vincent-Mark St.John-Eric Carr era you'll find. Actually the chapter on Vinnie is outstanding. But, compared to volume one... just not nearly as much about the recording of the albums and the in-studio insights and stuff like that. It doesn't go through each song on each album like the first book did. This volume 2 is more like "Kiss 1983 to 1996 Biography" not an "Album Focus." Volume 2 does include the Unplugged reunion and into the launch of the '96+ era and it's probably the best book available on this specific era of KISStory. Still a must-read for the major Kisshead, but a bit of a let-down after volume one.

Volume II was replaced by an updated/revised "4th edition" in 2010 with ISBN 0982253702 - The Kiss Album Focus, Fourth Edition, Volume II: Hell or High Water 1983 - 1996...