Maps of Music

Love Gun (1977)

Where the lyrics of Love Gun take you, and where it was really made.

Ace Frehley's first recorded lead vocal, 'Shock Me', was sung while he lay on the floor of the studio.

Key places

Where Love Gun was recorded (1977)

Recording site The Record Plant — Kiss began recording Love Gun at the Record Plant on May 3, 1977, and finished on May 28, according to the engineer's diary. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Love Gun: sixth studio album by American hard rock band Kiss
• Released June 17, 1977 by Casablanca Records
• Casablanca and FilmWorks shipped one million copies on the release date
• First Kiss studio album with a lead vocal by Ace Frehley, so all four members sing lead on it
• Remastered in 1997 and again in 2014

Background

• Before the album was finished, a Gallup poll ranked Kiss as the most popular band in the United States, ahead of Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin and the Eagles
• On August 26, 27 and 28, 1977, the band recorded three shows at the LA Forum for their next release
• That release was the second live album, Alive II (1977)

Recording

• Sessions took place at the Record Plant in New York; the album was mixed at Electric Lady Studios
• According to engineer Corky Stasiak's diary, recording began May 3, 1977 and finished May 28
• Frehley did not join the others until May 9
• Many basic tracks were completed by Stanley, Simmons and Peter Criss
• Stanley had recorded demos of his songs with every part arranged by himself, and the band recreated them for the final versions
• 'Then She Kissed Me' was the last song tracked

Cover

• Cover painted by fantasy artist Ken Kelly, who had also painted the cover of Destroyer (1976)
• A cardboard 'Love Gun' (assembly required) was included inside the album

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Kiss was formed in New York City in 1973 by Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley and Peter Criss.
• The band traces its roots to Wicked Lester, a New York rock band led by Simmons and Stanley.
• Their first performance took place on January 30, 1973, at the Popcorn Club (later Coventry) in Queens.
• Casablanca Records signed the band on November 1, 1973, as the label's first act.

Members

• The four original members were Stanley (Starchild), Simmons (Demon), Frehley (Spaceman) and Criss (Catman).
• Eric Carr replaced Criss in 1980; Vinnie Vincent, Mark St. John and Bruce Kulick later held lead guitar.
• Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer formed the final lineup.

Career

• Kiss became one of America's most successful rock bands in the late 1970s, with a 1977 Gallup poll naming them the most popular band in America.
• The band unmasked in 1983 and reunited the original lineup for the 1996 reunion tour.
• The band announced its retirement after its final show at Madison Square Garden on December 2, 2023.
• Kiss was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on April 10, 2014.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Casablanca and FilmWorks shipped one million copies on the release date
• The album was certified platinum and became the band's first top 5 album on the Billboard 200
• Spanish Wikipedia notes that Love Gun received mostly good reviews

Reappraisal

• Spanish Wikipedia says the album was later regarded as one of Kiss's best works
• Two singles were released: 'Christine Sixteen' and 'Love Gun'
• Neither single matched the chart impact of the singles from Rock and Roll Over (1976)
• Both singles, along with 'Shock Me' and 'I Stole Your Love', were performed regularly on later tours

Records

• Billboard 200: first top 5 album for the band
• French Wikipedia lists the album at number 4 on the Billboard 200 in the United States
• French Wikipedia lists the album at number 6 on the Swedish charts, dated 29 July 1977
• RIAA platinum certification
• One million copies shipped on the release date

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · es.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The album's rhythm guitar and bass parts were tracked by Stanley and Simmons, while Ace Frehley's vocal debut was recorded lying on the studio floor.
• Producer Eddie Kramer recalled recording Peter's drums in a hallway.
• Before the 1976 Lakeland, Florida concert, Frehley touched an ungrounded metal staircase railing during the opening song, which delayed the show and inspired 'Shock Me'.
• 'Christine Sixteen' was later sampled by Tone Loc for his 1989 hit single 'Funky Cold Medina'.
• 'Then She Kissed Me' is one of several gender-reversed covers of the Crystals' 1963 single 'Then He Kissed Me'.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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