Today in History—September 18: KISS Makes a Solo Statement

Written by

Kara Rogers

Fact-checked by

Britannica Editors

History

By 1978, KISS wasn’t simply a band. It was an empire—platform boots, face paint, pyrotechnics, comic books, lunch boxes, and an army of devoted fans. So when members Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley, and Peter Criss decided to go solo, naturally they did it the most KISS way possible: all at once.

On this day in 1978, all four members released solo albums simultaneously, a rare feat in the history of rock.

The records were designed to look like a matched set, with striking painted portraits of each member and coordinated packaging. But drop the needle and the similarities quickly disappeared: Each musician was given room to follow his own instincts without the other three bandmates appearing on his record.

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Stanley stayed closest to the arena-ready hard rock that had helped make KISS famous. Simmons went eclectic, surrounding himself with guest musicians and exploring sounds beyond the band’s usual territory. Criss leaned into his affection for R&B and pop, while Frehley cranked up the guitars and delivered perhaps the biggest surprise of the experiment.

His cover of “New York Groove,” written by Russ Ballard and previously recorded by the British band Hello, became the solo project’s breakout hit, climbing to number 13 on the charts in the United States.

Fun Fact

Each solo album came with a poster, and the four could be combined to create a mural.

The four-album gamble was more than a publicity stunt. KISS has said that the projects offered an outlet amid growing tensions within the group, and their recording contract also called for solo records. What resulted was something wonderfully excessive, even by 1970s KISS standards: four stars, four musical personalities, and four albums competing for fans’ attention on exactly the same day.

Call it KISSmas Day: September 18, 1978, when being one of the biggest bands in the world apparently wasn’t enough. KISS had to be four acts at once.

By the Numbers

39: Total tracks across the four original albums
13: Peak of Frehley’s “New York Groove” on the Billboard Hot 100
23: Weeks that Frehley’s album spent on the U.S. charts, longest of the four

Also on This Day

1793: Pres. George Washington lays the cornerstone of the U.S. Capitol building
1872: Oscar II becomes king of Norway and Sweden
1965: Two Japanese amateur astronomers discover Comet Ikeya-Seki

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