Smashes Thrashes & Hits

Kiss | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• Original Release Date: November 14, 1988
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Island / Mercury
• ASIN: B000001FPE
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,688 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Compact KISS time capsule for Gen X-ers., August 23, 2002

By 

Daniel J. Hamlow (Narita, Japan) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Smashes Thrashes & Hits (Audio CD)

Of the three new songs "Let's Put The X" is another hot song by the foursome, with Bruce Kulick's guitars echoing Ace's. The woman in the song is another teaser in the same vein as the vixens in Animalize's "Murder In High Heels" and Asylum's "Secretly Cruel." As another line in the song says, "You're begging for an eyeful but you only get a peak." Tipper Gore would definitely "love" this song. "You Make Me Rock Hard" is okay, but more refined and smooth. Both lack the loud, sometimes overdone production Crazy Nights, but it's harder than anything on Hot In The Shade, their next studio album.

Eric Carr sings solo for the first time and he does not ruin "Beth," listed here as the Carr vocal version. His voice is considerably smoother than Peter Criss's rough but lovely vocals. Fans will have considerable debate on whether Eric Carr ruined a great song or did proper tribute to it. I like both versions, so that puts me on the fence as I find myself on many occasions.

This is the second official greatest hits compilation after Double Platinum, which comprised everything from KISS to Love Gun. S,T&H is pared down in term of representative hits, one or two key tracks from nearly each album. Here's a breakdown:

KISS "Deuce", "Strutter"
Dressed to Kill "Rock And Roll All Nite"
Destroyer "Detroit Rock City", "Shout It Out Loud"
Rock And Roll Over "Calling Dr. Love"
Love Gun "Love Gun"
Dynasty "I Was Made For Lovin' You"
Creatures/Night "I Love It Loud"
Lick It Up "Lick It Up"
Animalize "Heaven's On Fire"
Asylum "Tears Are Falling"

As one can see, tracks from albums considered lesser, such as Hotter Than Hell, Unmasked, and The Elder, as well as the solo albums, have been omitted. What, "Reason To Live" from Crazy Nights wasn't considered good enough to be included?

As for the older songs, "Detroit Rock City" is the radio edit version, minus the opening diner sounds and radio and the crumpling kerrang of metal that leads to "King Of The Night Time World" on Destroyer. "Shout It Out Loud" has a sudden ending, not the gradual fade of the original. KISS and Destroyer have two songs each, justified considering the importance of the songs.

So what does this selection imply? My theory is as follows: KISS was five years without makeup and the post-makeup songs stress the importance of the present. However, there wouldn't have been a present without a past, hence the need for the classics. The song ratio is 8:7 makeup, non-makeup (I count Beth '88 as non-makeup). As Double Platinum was "the story so far" aimed for late-Boomers, this compilation was for MTV era Generation X-ers, who grew up with Lick It Up through Crazy Nights and who now had an opportunity to go back in time and get the other albums--hey, that's what I did.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great collection for those who want different versions of classic songs..., June 20, 2009

By 

J. Williamson "Son of the North" (Standish, Maine USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Smashes Thrashes & Hits (Audio CD)

I think this is a great collection of songs from the early eras of KISS. Some may complain that most, if not all, have been tampered with. The thing is, if you actually own all of these songs in the original formats, then this compilation is a great addition to any KISS fan's collection. It's neat to hear different takes on all of the classic songs, and the version of BETH with Eric Carr of vocals is, hands down, the better the version of the two. Eric Carr just has a better singing voice, no offense to Peter Criss. The new songs, (Let's Put The X In Sex, You Make Me Rock Hard) are great 80's rockers by themselves, and the only way to get these 2 songs is to buy this compilation.
All in all, this is a good little compilation for those who appreciate the phenomenon of KISS...I have all of their albums, so I may be a bit biased, but I think every die-hard KISS fan should give it a chance, (but then again, if you are a KISS die hard you probably already own this). If you are a new KISS fan, then I would probably stick with Double Platinum, so you can get more of the classic era, in their original form, for your money.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An enjoyable compilation, February 7, 2011

By 

sauerkraut - See all my reviews

This review is from: Smashes Thrashes & Hits (Audio CD)

Smashes, Thrashes & Hits is a Kiss compilation that was released in 1988. It is made up of fifteen songs. Two of these tracks--"Let's Put the X in Sex" and "(You Make Me) Rock Hard"--were recorded especially for inclusion on this compilation. The rest of the cuts are taken from ten studio albums. All of the studio albums released by the band are not represented on Smashes, Thrashes & Hits; Crazy Nights is an example. In addition, some of the compositions are remixed. Eric Carr does a nice job singing on "Beth." I also enjoy the sequencing of Smashes, Thrashes & Hits--it is not in chronological order. "Let's Put the X in Sex" and "(You Make Me) Rock Hard" are pleasant tunes. The remix of "Love Gun" is my favorite version of this excellent, classic song, one of my favorite songs in general. The CD is just over 53 minutes. When it comes to the CD insert, it includes the song lyrics to all fifteen of the tracks. I procured this album because of the new songs that were recorded for it and Carr's vocal rendition of "Beth." The remixes were a surprise to me, but I am not bothered by them--they are interesting. I actually rate this compilation 3.5 stars. Smashes, Thrashes & Hits is recommendable.