Gene Simmons recently reflected on a surprising 1982 encounter when Eddie Van Halen approached him about joining KISS. He shared details of the conversation in a statement covered by MusicRadar.
The KISS bassist explained how Van Halen reached out during a difficult period with David Lee Roth. Van Halen expressed frustration with his bandmate and interest in joining KISS.
“It happened in 1982. It was when KISS was doing a record called Creatures Of The Night. Eddie Van Halen told me, ‘David Lee Roth is driving me nuts. I can’t take it. I gotta leave. I know you’re looking for a lead guitar player. Do you want me in the band?'” Simmons said.
Simmons described the memorable studio visit that followed Van Halen’s initial approach.
“Where Eddie lived, it wasn’t far away. So he got into his Jeep and came to the studio. Him driving that Jeep was the scariest thing in the world – it had no doors and he’d drive at 100 miles an hour. It was insane. So he came down and we had lunch across the street, and then he came into the studio and heard some of the tracks and was like, ‘Oh, I really like that!'” he continued.
Despite Van Halen’s enthusiasm, Simmons ultimately advised against the collaboration. He cited fundamental differences in musical approach.
“I said, ‘Eddie, a band is worse than a marriage. You’re going to have ups and downs and stuff. But with Van Halen, everything begins and ends with you – it’s all about the guitar. And likewise for AC/DC or Led Zeppelin with Jimmy Page – those riffs, that’s the backbone of what it is. That’s the sound. It’s a point of view which is not necessarily the point of view of Kiss,'” Simmons explained.
“There wouldn’t be room for Eddie in KISS. It would be like putting Jeff Beck or Hendrix in AC/DC. Hendrix would suck up all the oxygen. He needed just one bass player and a drummer so he’d got that room without a rhythm guitar player there. Eddie was like Hendrix in that sense. He needed a lot of room. With Van Halen it was a lot of room for the guitar player to take up, and there just wasn’t that room unless we wanted to gut what Kiss was all about. And Eddie would have taken over,” he added.
Simmons concluded by reflecting on his decision to encourage Van Halen to remain with his original band.
“Morally, I think I did the right thing, which is telling Eddie, ‘You’ve got to stick it out. No matter what the problems are in the band, you’ve got to hang in there,'” he said.
This revelation provides new insight into the tensions that had been building within Van Halen during the early 1980s. These tensions ultimately led to one of rock’s most significant lineup changes.
The friction between Eddie Van Halen and David Lee Roth had been escalating for years before the 1982 conversation with Simmons. Ultimate Classic Rock reported that tensions between Roth and Eddie had gotten so bad over the years that Eddie had wanted to depart Van Halen even before approaching KISS. The creative differences between the two musicians created an increasingly volatile working environment that would eventually prove unsustainable.
The band’s internal struggles became particularly evident during the creation of their 1984 album. American Songwriter noted that the rift between David Lee Roth and Van Halen reached a breaking point during this period. Creative disagreements over musical direction became more frequent and intense. The album’s success masked the growing discord within the band.
Despite Simmons’ advice to “stick it out,” the relationship between Eddie and Roth continued to deteriorate. The Tapes Archive documented that after six albums and millions of concert tickets, David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen eventually split in 1985. Questions remain about whether Roth quit or was fired from the band.
The 1982 conversation between Simmons and Eddie Van Halen now stands as a fascinating “what if” moment in rock history. It highlights how close one of music’s most influential guitarists came to joining an entirely different legendary band during a period of personal and creative turmoil.
