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A review by jlmb
KISS and Make-up by Gene Simmons
4.0
I picked this up at the library on a whim - great cover! Before this book, I could have only named two KISS songs. I don't own any of their albums; although I do own an awesome KISS lunchbox. Never saw Gene's reality show either. So I came to this book with hardly any preconceived notions about Gene Simmons or the band.
The book turned out to be a really interesting read. I had no idea he was Israeli or that his mom had been in the camps during the war & had most of her family killed by the Nazis. He & his mom immigrated to NYC when he was 9. And then he went to a yeshiva in Brooklyn! He was a good boy who did well in school. Gene explained that his decision to never drink or do drugs or smoke stemmed from not wanting to hurt his mother. She had been through so much and lost so much, who was he to break her heart by turning to drugs or drink?
I'm glad he never used, because it made his clear headed account of KISS much more interesting. I've read rock memoirs where the musician was such a complete & utter fuck up that it is hard to follow the story of the band. Looking at you, Keith Richards! And Ron Wood. And Vince Neil. And Belinda Carlisle. A memoir where the musician is so flummoxed by how the music industry works that they can't give any explanation or insight as to what was going on. It becomes a story about how "the suits" fucked him over and how he is a musician, man, not a square. And did I tell you about this celebrity I hung out with? Or the wacky high times I had destroying hotel rooms and blowing through money like water? Those memoirs are like reading a memoir written by a 12 year old with an IQ of 90.
Gene is nobody's fool. He got a BA in education before starting a band so he'd have something to fall back on if music didn't work out for him. A back up plan! Wow. He taught 6th grade for a while & worked in various offices(including Vogue) while attempting to build a successful band.He actually read contracts before signing them. He looked at bills before he paid them. He spent his money on practical things like houses for his family rather than gold toilets and marble statues of himself. He got to know people in the industry who could teach him things & give him opportunities. In terms of the band, I found it fascinating to read about why things were done the way they were. About the costumes & stage design & tours and the marketing & merchandise.
I think the one aspect he did not fully deal with was his incredible promiscuity. At the beginning of the book he writes that he has had sex with 4,600 women. I immediately wondered how he came up with that number - he must be rounding to the nearest even number, right? And estimating? Later in the book he talks about how he would take a photo of a woman after he had sex with her. Sort of like keeping baseballs cards but with pics of naked women instead. So I am guessing that he counted the photos. He does mention that several people told him he needed to be in therapy to deal with his intimacy issues. And he does admit that since he did not get drunk or high, his chosen vice was one night stands. I started thinking he might be slightly Asperger-ish. He doesn't understand small talk, he didn't really have close friends, he never got close with women, he is smart etc.
I think this memoir is worth reading even if you aren't a KISS fan. Anyone interested in the music industry would find his book engrossing.
The book turned out to be a really interesting read. I had no idea he was Israeli or that his mom had been in the camps during the war & had most of her family killed by the Nazis. He & his mom immigrated to NYC when he was 9. And then he went to a yeshiva in Brooklyn! He was a good boy who did well in school. Gene explained that his decision to never drink or do drugs or smoke stemmed from not wanting to hurt his mother. She had been through so much and lost so much, who was he to break her heart by turning to drugs or drink?
I'm glad he never used, because it made his clear headed account of KISS much more interesting. I've read rock memoirs where the musician was such a complete & utter fuck up that it is hard to follow the story of the band. Looking at you, Keith Richards! And Ron Wood. And Vince Neil. And Belinda Carlisle. A memoir where the musician is so flummoxed by how the music industry works that they can't give any explanation or insight as to what was going on. It becomes a story about how "the suits" fucked him over and how he is a musician, man, not a square. And did I tell you about this celebrity I hung out with? Or the wacky high times I had destroying hotel rooms and blowing through money like water? Those memoirs are like reading a memoir written by a 12 year old with an IQ of 90.
Gene is nobody's fool. He got a BA in education before starting a band so he'd have something to fall back on if music didn't work out for him. A back up plan! Wow. He taught 6th grade for a while & worked in various offices(including Vogue) while attempting to build a successful band.He actually read contracts before signing them. He looked at bills before he paid them. He spent his money on practical things like houses for his family rather than gold toilets and marble statues of himself. He got to know people in the industry who could teach him things & give him opportunities. In terms of the band, I found it fascinating to read about why things were done the way they were. About the costumes & stage design & tours and the marketing & merchandise.
I think the one aspect he did not fully deal with was his incredible promiscuity. At the beginning of the book he writes that he has had sex with 4,600 women. I immediately wondered how he came up with that number - he must be rounding to the nearest even number, right? And estimating? Later in the book he talks about how he would take a photo of a woman after he had sex with her. Sort of like keeping baseballs cards but with pics of naked women instead. So I am guessing that he counted the photos. He does mention that several people told him he needed to be in therapy to deal with his intimacy issues. And he does admit that since he did not get drunk or high, his chosen vice was one night stands. I started thinking he might be slightly Asperger-ish. He doesn't understand small talk, he didn't really have close friends, he never got close with women, he is smart etc.
I think this memoir is worth reading even if you aren't a KISS fan. Anyone interested in the music industry would find his book engrossing.