Gene Simmons recently opened up about Ace Frehley’s departure from KISS. He shared candid details about the guitarist’s behavior during the recording of their album ‘Destroyer’ in a statement made on Professor of Rock.
The KISS bassist discussed Frehley’s self-destructive behavior that began affecting the band’s recording sessions during that era.
“And so Ace, and again we love him to pieces and his memory will always be with us and so on. This was al this was also the time when Ace stopped coming to the studios to the studio while we were recording,” Simmons said. “And this is not mudslinging. This is just you’re all grown up. We all love the band, but it’s time to know the truth. Ace was going through the beginning stages of self-destructive behavior either what he ingested or not.”
Simmons then recalled a specific incident that highlighted the guitarist’s priorities at the time.
“But at one point, I remember calling him and saying, ‘Hey, we’re recording. It’s time for you to do solos.’ And he says, ‘I can’t come down. I’ve got a card game.’ And I’m not doing Ace’s voice or making fun or anything. That was a quote,” he continued. “So, we replaced Ace with Dick Wagner, who appeared on Alice Cooper Records, and Aerosmith. Some of those early Aerosmith songs you think are Joe, it’s not. It’s Dick Wagner. You know, every band’s got their thing. And by the way, I don’t really care. At the end of the day, you either like a song or you don’t, no matter how you get there. So there are no rules.”
These revelations provide new context to what was already a challenging period for KISS during the creation of one of their most important albums.
Wikipedia reported that the first recording sessions for ‘Destroyer’ took place on September 3-6, 1975, at Electric Lady Studios in New York City. The band was working with producer Bob Ezrin, who had been brought in to toughen up their sound and bring more discipline to their studio work. Ezrin’s demanding approach made Frehley’s frequent absences even more problematic for the recording process.
The sessions were particularly crucial for KISS. ROCK 103 noted that the band had gained significant momentum following their breakthrough live album ‘Alive!’ The commercial success put extra pressure on the ‘Destroyer’ sessions. This made reliability in the studio more critical than ever for the band’s continued rise.
Dick Wagner’s uncredited contributions to the album later became part of KISS lore. Wikipedia documented that Wagner, who was known for his work with Alice Cooper’s band, stepped in to replace Frehley on several tracks without receiving official credit. Fans only learned years afterward that another guitarist had performed some of the solos they thought were Ace’s work.
The ‘Destroyer’ album would go on to become one of KISS’s most successful releases. It featured hits like “Detroit Rock City” and “Beth.” However, Simmons’ recent comments reveal that the creative process behind this landmark album was marked by internal tensions that would eventually contribute to Frehley’s departure from the band years later.
