Former KISS guitarist Bruce Kulick opened up about a pivotal early career lesson he learned from Gene Simmons.
The conversation centered on an incident shortly after Kulick joined KISS in late 1984, when equipment failures on tour led to a tense exchange with Simmons that ultimately shaped how Kulick approached raising concerns within the band going forward.
“I know one time I got emotional with Gene about some equipment that was failing while I’m on tour,” Kulick said. “And I compared it to the fact that a younger band – that is now one of the biggest bands, Bon Jovi – was opening for us, and they had new gear.”
“Well, it might have been because they just got their record deal and they spent it on all that, where I’m inheriting stuff from the warehouse, ’cause the band started in ’73. Now it’s ’84, and my wireless kept failing,” he continued.
Kulick went on to describe how Simmons reacted to the comparison and why it left such an impression on him.
“And it was so funny, I just started to bring it up to Gene. And again, I didn’t know them that well. And it’s a great story, because I probably did…he started to act like I was being Jerry Lewis with Dean Martin. And he really shut me down,” Kulick said. “And it was a big lesson I learned and I appreciated it: if you’ve got a gripe like that, don’t be emotional about it. Don’t be tying it to, ‘And what about the opening act? They have it?’ I thought that was a good argument – but not for Gene Simmons.”
He explained further how he viewed the argument in hindsight and how he would have handled it differently.
“I thought I was painting a fair picture, ‘Why should they have it?’ It would have been easier to say, ‘Gene, we’re Kiss. My thing is failing, and please don’t leave me out there where the roadie doesn’t know, ‘Do I need to plug it in’?” Kulick said.
Reflecting on the takeaway, Kulick noted how the moment influenced his approach with the band moving forward.
“That was a great lesson ’cause I saw how pissed he was. And again that was a fail, but it was a win because now I knew going forward…and then with any other band if I wanted to present something, I certainly was trying to be diplomatic,” he said.
That equipment dispute unfolded during a formative stretch for Kulick, one that came with plenty of pressure and uncertainty about his own footing in the band.
Kulick stepped into KISS’s lineup in September 1984, taking over lead guitar duties after Mark St. John departed due to a rare form of reactive arthritis that made it impossible for him to continue playing. He initially joined as a temporary fill-in during the Animalize World Tour, brought aboard to cover St. John’s parts while the band figured out its next move.
Rather than remaining a short-term solution, Kulick’s role solidified as the tour progressed. He was ultimately named the band’s permanent lead guitarist. That transition placed him squarely in the KISS touring machine at a moment when the band was still finding its footing in the aftermath of Ace Frehley’s departure and the rapid turnover that had followed at the guitarist position.
The timing also explains the gear disparity Kulick referenced in his story. KISS had been operating since 1973. By 1984, much of its touring equipment reflected over a decade of wear, a stark contrast to the fresh gear a newly signed act like Bon Jovi would have had at its disposal.
Kulick went on to hold the lead guitarist position for twelve years, remaining with KISS from 1984 to 1996. He became one of the longest-tenured guitarists in the band’s history, a run exceeded only by founding members Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley. That extended stint gave him ample time to internalize the diplomatic approach Simmons pushed him toward early on, a lesson he credited with shaping how he handled disagreements with the band for years afterward.
