He’s been known as a fire-breathing, blood-spewing demon. The God of Thunder.
Gene Simmons has menaced stages the world over as the bass player for KISS. But as he prepares for a May 11 engagement at Mohegan Sun (mohegansun.com) with his Gene Simmons Band, the man born in Israel as Chaim Witz is also an unabashed mama’s boy.
“Yes, we’re playing Mother’s Day, but in my opinion every day should be Mother’s Day,” Simmons says. “We owe everything to the women who literally gave us life.”
The Raven caught up with Simmons for a freewheeling interview that brushed upon his association with the Rat Pack, veered into the fabled '70s-scene staple Studio 54 and took a left turn at self-described “groupie/visual artist” Cynthia Plaster Caster.
Here’s some of what went down:
RAVEN: Hi, Gene. Big fan. My wife would say your biggest but, although I have been to countless concerts, have all the albums and all that, in the KISS ARMY world (KISS’ fan club) I could maybe make Master Sergeant at best! I know you have fans with tattoos from head to toe, had KISS weddings, shrines in their home …
GS: There are. And all of this is so good for my ego. Please continue!
RAVEN: That said, I have read and seen all of the interviews and now podcasts. So I know the top 100 questions you are asked and your responses. If you could indulge me, I’d like to ask a few things I don’t think others have asked. For example, I know you worship at the altar of the Beatles and you never met Presley ... at least not directly. As an Italian-American, there is one other icon of this caliber I am wondering if you ever met. And I think you had a connection to him via Liza Minnelli? You had managed her while she did a stint with the Rat Pack, correct? And the man, of course, I am thinking of is Frank Sinatra.
GS: I did manage Liza and we got the Pet Shop Boys to come in and work with her on the album that went on to be her biggest seller. And, you know, our drummer Peter Criss’ real last name is Criscuola and he is also Italian and a big Sinatra fan. So one night I did use my connection to get Peter and myself great seats to see Sinatra at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles. We were right in front and every time Frank sang the word "you" he pointed to Peter and Peter was so excited. In fact, he did tell me later that that was the greatest night of his life. But I’ll do you one better. Even Sinatra has said the greatest crooner is Tony Bennett, and (KISS co-founder) Paul Stanley is a big Bennett fan. So I used the connection again to see if Bennett would fly out for Paul’s wedding and sing a couple of songs. It was a big ask, which is why I wasn’t surprised when he said no. But he did send a video with some lovely words and even a couple of songs. Paul and his new wife were over the moon. That was a great question, though. I thought you were going to ask me about my band and my concert in your area, but this OK too, I guess.
RAVEN: It’s coming I promise. We’re building up to it. Right now I’m thinking about all of the metal magazines you were in when I was kid. Metal Edge, Kerrang!, CIRCUS ... every edition teasing us with supposed photos of KISS unmasked only to find an occasional photo with one or two of you holding a newspaper or wearing a bandana so only your eyes could be seen. Back then I remember thinking, “Well, it makes sense." The take off the makeup after the show and walk into a restaurant or store and who would know?
But now as I read your book, Paul’s book, I’m like ... Everyone knew? You and Paul would go to Studio 54, the Playboy Mansion, where you met your wife, walk into rock clubs like Gazzarri's or The Whisky with no makeup on and everyone knew it was you. For years – and no one ever snuck a photo? I mean with cellphones, TMZ, that level of mystique wouldn’t last 10 seconds today. But you went, what, at least a decade without your proverbial cover being blown?
GS: Well, no cellphones was certainly a major reason for this. Someone would literally have to have a camera around their neck when they saw us. But you are right, and when I was with Cher there was actually a $25,000 bounty on my head for an unmasked photo. But the bigger thing is, back then people weren’t as obsessed about getting photos. There was no social media to put them on.
RAVEN: I had also heard that the press had a vested interest in keeping the sort of cat-and-mouse game going. They were selling a lot of magazines.
GS: That’s also true. They did the same thing with JFK, by the way. They knew about his encounters with Marilyn Monroe and others, but they chose not to report it for similar reasons.
RAVEN: Speaking of encounters, I had the pleasure of interviewing various members of Stone Temple Pilots in the past. I am a big fan of theirs and they – like many of their contemporaries – are big fans of KISS. But bassist Robert DeLeo and I had a good chuckle when he recounted an encounter he had with Paul out in LA. Robert had jury duty and looked around the courtroom to see none other than Paul Stanley was a fellow juror. He wasn’t sure if Paul knew who he was, and they never connected until lunch break when Paul walked over and said, "Hey, Robert, want to grab lunch?" But it was in the same interview where Robert also confided that KISS had asked STP to open for their huge, upcoming reunion show. The band was ecstatic, but STP lead singer Scott Weiland fell off the wagon and this caused a major chasm in the band for years. Robert and brother Dean (guitarist in STP) were devastated.
GS: You know, I cornered Scott just before we were supposed to go out together. It was my wife’s sister's birthday party and I got him alone and said, "You know Scott, this is a great opportunity. We’re giving you full stage, lights, arenas. But you have to stay away from the bad stuff." He said something like, "I’ve been good for so long, I don’t even think about it anymore. I’d never ever, ever ...." But of course he did and we had to kick them off the tour. Incidentally, STP was replaced with another great band, Alice In Chains. And their singer Layne Staley had a similar reputation. So I also cornered him and gave him the same spiel. And he of course said "Oh I would never do that. I’m in such a good place now ... ya-da, ya-da." And of course, he died a few years later.
RAVEN: I remember. I think Layne was, like, 34. I know you also wrote a book about the fabled “27 Club” if I’m not mistaken?
GS: I did. So many of the rich and famous killed themselves at the age of 27. Some did it quickly, others slowly with substances. But, yeah, Hendrix, Winehouse, Cobain. So tragic and uncanny that they were all 27.
RAVEN: And as promised: We know that after 50 years KISS called it quits with the End of the Road tour in 2023. Now we have the Gene Simmons Band coming to town and I am wondering what the impetus for this project is? I’m thinking either you simply miss the live interaction with fans or perhaps you had some past material that wasn’t really quite right for Kiss or you're writing new stuff?
GS: Well, all of the above. This is a great band; everyone is an exceptional player and singer and this allows us to do lots of things. Someone from the crowd can call out say “Tush” by ZZ Top or “Sunshine of Your Love” and we can look at each other, say ‘"key of A" and we’re off. And we do play a KISS song that was never before released or performed called “Are You Ready?” We even do a Van Halen song that some people have heard the title of – “House of Pain” – but few have ever heard this version. We do the original from the Van Halen demo tape. I discovered Van Halen by the way. Google it.
RAVEN: Oh, I don’t have to. I am a big fan of KISS and Van Halen and know the story. In fact, Alex Van Halen chronicles the “Gene” chapter of the band’s development in his new book, “Brothers,” and he’s very kind to you.
GS: Well, that’s very nice of him. Such a great band and that original “House of Pain” is such a sledgehammer. And while we are not yet performing any of my new stuff live yet, I am also writing. So everything from KISS classics to our favorite covers and really just the ability to keep everything loose are what the Gene Simmons Band allows me to do.
RAVEN: Having attended dozens of KISS concerts, I know these are huge, highly-coordinated affairs and you really do need to stick to the script – in this case, the setlist. If you start to improvise and end up standing in the wrong spot at an unscheduled time you could probably get hit with everything from flashpots, smoke, lasers ...
GS: This is very true and very real, shall we say, potential occupational hazards.
RAVEN: OK, and since I have five minutes left and you brought up Hendrix – I have to be careful how I phrase this: When I was a kid I gleefully sang along to your song “Plaster Caster,” not having any idea what it was about. As I started to interview musicians for a living, I learned what it was about. A group of female fans would make plaster of Paris molds of rock stars' … anatomy, shall we say? Now I’m thinking, geez, did Gene actually “model” for this himself?
GS: (Laughs) No, no. I heard about it. Cynthia Plaster Caster, I think her name was, and yeah, Hendrix, Jagger, I’m not sure who else. So I thought it was good fodder for a song, but I never participated. I think Frank Zappa actually financed a tour of the exhibit later on, though.”
(Then, a personal favorite part of the interview as Simmons starts to recall some of the words to "Plaster Caster.’" He fumbles at the line “She wants my love to last her” but The Raven jumps in to save the day and we finish out the chorus together as a duo.)
RAVEN: That was great Gene. Thanks for the time. I know you’re a busy man, and I’d add “powerful and attractive” (a common Simmons-ism), but I’m sure being the businessman that you are you have that phrase trademarked and it would cost me.
GS: I don’t, but hey, that’s not a bad idea. Thanks for that.
RAVEN: It's the least I could do for the lifetime of music and entertainment you have given me. See you on Mother's Day!
