The Very Best of Kiss

Kiss

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 27, 2002)
• Original Release Date: August 27, 2002
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Island / Mercury
• ASIN: B00006GFAB
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (134 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #10,655 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Sure, Detroit had the MC5 and the Stooges, but Long Island's Kiss threw down their own gauntlet. Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley, and Peter Criss cleaved a spot between glam, punk, waning Woodstock rock, and adult-oriented pop and became a phenomenon in the process. Kiss kept their music simple and, of course, sexual, with the likes of "Hotter than Hell," "Love Gun," and "Calling Dr. Love," paving the way for the waves of pop-metal sexpot wannabes and winning fans in such quantities that they launched the so-called Kiss Army. Their magnetism permeates this 21-song set, with Criss sounding so lonesome he could cry on "Beth," and the fire-breathing, blood-spitting Simmons unfailingly serving up a comical mix of menace and lasciviousness. The version of "Rock & Roll All Nite" comes from 1975's crowd-noise drenched Alive!, cut at the time when live albums were de rigueur. This collection was made smartly enough that only four songs come from the band's post-Dynasty period, making The Very Best of Kiss an essential primer on 1970s rock grandeur. --Andrew Bartlett

Product Description
Japan exclusive 'Memorial Edition' of 2002 compilation featuring 21 tracks. Details TBA. Mercury. 2004. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best KISS compilation, August 27, 2002

By	T. C Lane (Marina, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is the best KISS compilation. A perfect introduction for those who are curious and a good mix tape for the die-hards. It's better than Smashes, Thrashes and Hits and Greatest Kiss because it goes longer. All The way up to 1992. The versions on this CD are the original ones. Which means "Rock and Roll All Nite" is the live version from Alive. All but one of their Top 40 hits are here (1978's "Rocket Ride" from AliveII is missing). Also "New York Groove" is indeed the Ace Frehley hit from 1978. KISS fans may find something missing. A track from the 80's like "Heaven's On Fire" could be here, as could a 70's one like "Black Diamond". One caveat: their are NO liner notes here. Just Album info for each song. It would be nice if Mercury would put liner notes on one of these KISS collections. At over an hour, though, this is a great introduction to the KISS legend.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars ALMOST the Very Best, August 27, 2002

By	Frank M. Murtaugh III "fmurtaugh3" (Memphis, TN United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

With 18 studio, three live, and four solo albums to choose from, coming up with the definitive "Very Best of KISS" is a sizeable chore . . . if it's to be done right. This 21-track collection almost pulls the trick. You've got the six definitive KISS classics (songs that have been included on three previous greatest-hits packages): "Deuce," "Strutter," "Detroit Rock City," "Beth," "Calling Dr. Love," and the dynamic live version of "Rock and Roll All Nite." The finest song from the four solo albums of 1978  Ace Frehley's "New York Groove"  is an appropriate addition, as is one of the best power ballads of the late-Eighties, "Forever."
Where the album falls short is in the absence of the very best (!) song released in the post-makeup era of the band: "Heaven's on Fire." An omission the band should be ashamed of. Also, instead of including some rather average tracks, like "I Want You" and "I Stole Your Love" from the band's glory years in the late Seventies, the album would be better served with another one or two tracks from the more recent KISS catalog. Why not "Domino" from 1992 or "Psycho Circus" from 1998?
This is a fun album, particularly for newcomers to the KISS Army. Its only limitation is in not providing a full audio spectrum of a rock band whose impact has now grown for more than a quarter century.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Mercy!!! Please no more Rock n Roll all Nite!!, September 28, 2003

By	Johny Bottom "Insane and lonely guitarist" (Jacksonville, NC) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

I'm sorry KISS fans, I can't take no more. Yes I am a KISS soldier in the KISS Army. In fact I have probably been promoted to Lieutenant General by now. But enough is enough already!

Can you believe the promotional sticker on this album says 'Featuring Rock n Roll all Nite as heard on That 70's Show'? Run that by me again? Is there no end to this? Hey I love that song as much as the next KISS fan, but how many times do you have to purchase that song? Let's see.....

1. Dressed to Kill
2. Alive!
3. Double Platinum
4. Killers
5. Smashes, Thrashes, and Hits
6. The Kiss Box Set
7. 20th Century Remasters
8. ALIVE III
9. ALIVE IV
10. The Very Best of KISS
11. KISS Greatest Hits

I'm sure I missed one or two, but I've made my point. If you're a KISS fan, why bother buying this? No doubt in your CD collection you probably have every one of these songs at least three times over.