“Being asked to be the guitarist in Kiss was a career highlight,” former Kiss guitarist Bruce Kulick tells Guitar Player. “I would be one of the four members onstage, so the pressure was very real. While touring the world with the non-make-up version of Kiss, I knew I had to deliver onstage every night.”
As Ace Frehley's most successful — and beloved — successor on the electric guitar, Bruce Kulick did deliver, show after show. During his 13 years as Kiss’s primary six-stringer, Kulick — who last year launched his own brand to offer period-correct guitars inspired by his Kiss era — played on six studio albums and two live records. But more importantly, he participated in hundreds of shows while on tour.
We asked him to turn back the clock and reveal his best and worst live moments with the Hottest Band in the Land.
The Best
Although I’d grown up in New York City and seen many famous performers at Madison Square Garden, those NYC shows were more of a hometown hero vibe for me. Sort of a ‘look at me now’ to family and friends.
“So, thinking of my best show with Kiss would take me to a very faraway place: across the Pacific Ocean In 1988, during the Crazy Nights tour, Kiss went to Japan, and it was the first time the band had been there without their Kabuki makeup. I was super excited, and it was also my first time out of the United States. My fascination with the Japanese culture — and especially their electronics — was always part of my life. I loved Sony Walkmans, Panasonic boom boxes, Lafayette stereos, and especially ESP Guitars, which Japan was home to!
“Tokyo’s most famous venue is called Nippon Budokan. The arena was created for the first martial arts competition in the 1964 Olympic Games. The Beatles performed there in 1966, but more iconically, it would host Cheap Trick’s fantastic live recording, At Budokan, released in 1978 in the United States. So the name Budokan was forever etched in my brain as somewhere I would love to perform.
“Having said that, when we played there on April 22, 1988, the Japanese fans, who were almost trained to restrain their enthusiasm, showed their love for Kiss! Knowing that this concert was filmed professionally by Japan’s best broadcasting company, NHK, gave me the opportunity to relive the show. They captured the evening's magic, and my playing was filled with accuracy and emotion.
“My solo in the set meant I had to work the stage running from one side to the other, never stopping riffs from my red ESP Horizon guitar. I played flashy, but with tons of emotion. It felt like I was at my best, and between the venue and the crowd, it’s certainly a career highlight. Possibly my best show ever.”
The Worst
“My worst gig ever would have been a Kiss show in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The religious and political strife in this region of the U.K. was not easily understood by this Brooklyn-born musician. The feeling of danger when arriving in Belfast and seeing the armed police in full force gave me an uneasy feeling.
“The venue we played at was called King’s Hall, and bands like the Beatles, Thin Lizzy and U2 had performed there in previous years. This show would be our last show of the long Crazy Nights tour, taking place on October 3, 1988.
“At the time, I could never really figure out why — and maybe it was due to unrest in the city of Belfast — but the excited fans at King’s Hall were spitting all over us! They were quite gifted at spitting, even reaching my fingerboard, while I was doing my best to play guitar!
“As you can imagine, this was incredibly horrific. I had their spit in my hair and all over my clothes! Gene [Simmons] and Paul [Stanley] suffered as well, though Eric Carr was spared being behind the drum kit.
“Later, we were told that’s how audiences in Ireland express their love for a band — by drenching them in phlegm. Sorry, no, thank you! I was glad when that show ended and happy to return home to America.”
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