Peter Criss

Gene about Peter 1999:

From 'Modern Drummer', February 1999:

Peter, out of all the drummers who have worked in this band, has the most soul or feeling when he plays. Technically, Peter is nowhere near the same league as an Eric Singer. Eric Carr had more chops than Peter. But clearly there is something intrinsic to what Peter does that has more to do with KISS, in the same way that Charlie Watts does in the Stones or Ringo Starr did in The Beatles. Motown was really the exemplary institution for how drummers should play the instrument, as far as where the backbeat should be played. What Peter does just has the soul of KISS locked into it. When I hear Keith Richards talking about how Charlie Watts is the Stones, I think that in a very real way, Peter really is KISS.

Back in 1972, Paul and I were going to put together a new band - something we had never seen on stage. We didn't know where we were going to go and how we were going to get there, but we knew we would be on our way. We didn't want to have rules about what we could do in a band, except we knew what fired us up inside: British music and being visually outlandish. We weren't interested in shock just for shock's sake, because all you had to do was show up on stage nude to do that. It had to strike right at the heart.

In the beginning, Peter placed an ad that said "Drummer willing to do anything to make it", and I said 'Whether this guy happens to be the right drummer or not, that's the right idea.' Paul and I went to see him at a place called The King's Lounge, a little dive at the end of Brooklyn. It was completely empty and there were three guys playing: bass, guitar, and Peter on drums. The two guys in front were bar band guys - - very sweet, but not stars. Peter was there with this scarf, his long hair, this shag haircut. They were playing and all of a sudden they broke into a Wilson Pickett song and Peter started singing and Paul and I just about flipped. He had kind of an R & B snare/kick approach, and he sang great with this smoky/whiskey voice. We said to each other, 'It's not what we originally thought of' because we were thinking white English sounds. Peter clearly had a black R & B approach.

When Peter joined the band, we became a trio and worked on what became the first record and part of the second record. We didn't know if we wanted a fourth member, so we filled in the holes as a trio. The first time we played with Peter he said, 'This is the way I feel it, this is what I'm playing. I'm laying it down, and you've got to join me." The mark of a great drummer is that he marks his territory like all animals do. He pees all over the place and says, "This is mine, this is who I am and this is how I play, and you've got to play with me because I set the tone". That's exactly what we were looking for. He was very Italian - - very Frank Sinatra - - 'It's my way or the highway'. Paul and I took the point of view that it wasn't the vibe we originally thought of, but it worked and it was very exciting - - so we didn't argue with it.

When we did the 'we're going to move on without Peter' routine, it was really survival. We tried to find another Peter and really couldn't. So we took the point of view we had taken with Peter, which was bring somebody in who has got an excitement level, who has got his own point of view and see how that affects the music. With Eric Carr, it was much heavier on the kick because he was more of a Bonham protege. With him it was more of an English thing, whereas Peter was more of an R & B player. So the songwriting started to change. With every new drummer, you play completely differently, and the songwriting changes. If you program a particular beat on a drum machine, it's going to immediately affect the music you write.

Playing again with Peter after so many years felt like a rebirth. The original Line-up had died, which was really embarassing because it broke up under very stupid circumstances. But when it got back together it felt like the Second coming. A tip of the hat goes to the fans for hanging in there through thick and thin, and for believing in the dream and that we had a legend to protect. As far as I'm concerned, the stage is a holy place. It's where Peter Criss belongs because he's a star. I want to be where he is.