Kiss Albums Ranked

After 50 years of being the Hottest Band in the World Kiss decided to hang it up, at least for now. Who knows what their new holographic avatars will do, and we all know they love money enough to pump out a few more dozen products. In honor of them hanging it up I thought about my own rankings of their albums. Turns out Marty Friedman beat me to it and this ranking is as much a rebuttal of his as it is my own profoundly personal ranking. You see this is in no way an attempt to make a greatest Kiss album list. Simply my two cents. I expect no one to agree with me completely but hopefully you find some validation in some of my choices. Apologies in advance all the album covers were taken from kiss.fandom.com and you would think they'd all be the same size but here we are.

29. Peter Criss
Something had to fall at the bottom and sorry Peter. Even after many years I dusted this one off and filler city. “Easy Thing” would have been right at home as a late 80s power ballad from some shitty hair metal band and it’s the closest thing to a highlight here. The solo albums really did highlight what kind of music they would have made if left to their own devices and from Peter’s later solo albums it’s clear the man wanted nothing to do with Kiss.

28. Alive IV
Arriving several years too late, the last official Kiss live album was their most forgettable. The Tommy/Peter lineup is an odd mix for sure. There are some interesting ideas here, but the unplugged section was done substantially better on their actual Unplugged album. The straight live songs are all better featured on the first 3 Alive albums. Then the orchestral arrangements start. Sure Metallica did it about 6 years earlier, and where that album feels like they integrated the arrangements into their songs, all the embellishments here feel like an afterthought. No one really needed this in their lives.

27. Sonic Boom
One of my biggest complaints with Alive IV was that I would have rather had a new studio album. Well careful what you wish for I guess. Tommy Thayer made his studio album debut (at least officially), and he became the first Kiss guitarist told to play like Ace Frehley. All of his solos are competent slop that are instantly forgettable. A few songs come close to being highlights but ultimately this feels like a collection of filler.

26. Monster
The final studio album from Kiss was marginally better than Sonic Boom. Sure it is still full of filler but “Hell or Hallelujah” and “Freak” sounded better than anything on their previous album. By the end of it those good vibes have largely faded, and Kiss’s recording career more or less went out with a whimper than a bang.

25. Gene Simmons
It’s well worn territory to point out how mediocre Gene’s solo album was. The intro to “Radioactive” was quite the bait and switch from the rest of the album. I do happen to enjoy his Beatles worship songs “See You Tonight” and “Mr. Make Believe”, but the largest problem is every song is about a minute too long. More than Peter’s album I do have a little nostalgia for some of the excessive nonsense here, but Gene needed Paul (or someone) to refine his songs. There are some good songs here but some editing was very needed.

24. Psycho Circus
I don’t think there ever was an album I was more excited in my life for than Psycho Circus. The reunion in a lot of ways was a Monkey’s Paw wish. It killed what was in my opinion Kiss’s best period of new music, but hey Ace and Peter were back. Well Kiss foolishly decided to channel Destroyer and churn out as many arena ready songs as they could. The results ranged from mixed to embarrassing. The title track is certainly a banger and no matter how lame it might appear I do love “We Are One”. The closing track “Journey of a Thousand Years” also closed things out with a bang. However from the Carnival outtake “Within” which at least features some Bruce playing. Ace and Peter appear pretty much only on “Into the Void” and the aforementioned “Journey”. So much for a reunion.

23. Hot in the Shade
The last Kiss album of the 80s and the end of the Eric Carr era was somewhat bittersweet. “Forever” and “Hide Your Heart” are two of the all time greatest Kiss songs, the problem though is there is just too much Kiss. Their longest studio album by a wide margin, it is about half filler. The album does close out with a couple gems but by then you’re more relieved things are over. Kiss would also abandon this era with a new and harder edge on Revenge. As a result this takes the place as their weakest 80s offering.

22. Destroyer
Trying to capitalize on a breakthrough is tricky business. Kiss grabbed Alice Cooper’s producer Bob Ezrin to over produce the shit out of their sound, and Destroyer was a mixed bag. By many standards it is an iconic album, after all it produced “Detroit Rock City”, “Beth”, and “God of Thunder”. Unfortunately it also produced “Great Expectations”, “Flaming Poo”, and “Sweet Pain”, not necessarily bad songs just forgettable. The other problem is actually partially Ezrin, where every song seems convinced of its own importance despite still writing mostly juvenile songs. Ace has virtually nothing to do on this album and aside from those sweet “Detroit Rock City” harmonies there is no memorable lead playing. Some people may be confused with how low this is, but I stand by it.

21. Crazy Nights
Paul Stanley’s visible man thong bumped this up at least 4 spots. After the hair metal reset of Creatures, Kiss like many other bands of the era pushed more and more towards the pop charts. This even featured a collaboration with walking Academy Award inside joke Diane Warren on the by the numbers “Reason to Live”. The other singles didn’t do much commercially but I think they’re all awesome. Crazy Nights also produced possibly Gene’s best 80s song “No No No” which essentially was a Bruce Kullick exercise in shredding which Gene contributed Gene lyrics to.

20. Ace Frehley
The second best of the solo albums Ace found himself in a particularly creative period. He would go on to contribute more songs than Gene on the following two Kiss albums, and word is he was the one leading the solo album charge. In the effort of keeping the band together, and never missing an opportunity to cash in on a gimmick they all decided to do solo albums. That said Ace seems like the only one who actually meant to make one and it shows. After singing a whopping two songs up to that point Kiss fans got their fill of the space man here. Ace also scored the only hit of the albums with his cover of “New York Groove”. However “Rip it Out”, “Speeding Back to My Baby” and “Fractured Mirror” were all instant classics. Ace still couldn’t write lyrics for shit, but who cares when the playing is that inspired?

19. Alive III
The final tour featuring Bruce and Eric in the lineup was promoting one hell of an album. Kiss not to miss an opportunity saw a number of early 90s live albums drop, one from Van Halen, one from Ozzy in particular. So Alive 3 happened right along with them. The only Alive album to fit on one disc, the set list is still spectacular. There isn’t a real need for this album, and honestly I often find myself listening to the studio versions of these, but who doesn’t want to hear one of the best bands in the world at their peak making great music?

18. Love Gun
The 3 albums comprising the Alive 2 era followed a similar format. The first was full of live staples and became a defining album for the group. The second was by far the best (to me anyways), and the third showed a band on the verge of burn out digging deeper into the backlog to fill an album. This definitely feels like Paul and Gene were running low on ideas, hence letting Peter contribute “Hooligan”, who the hell drops out of school at 22? Anyways, Ace took the mic on “Shock Me” which naturally was far superior live. I love “Then She Kissed Me” way more than any Kiss fan should, but it was clear they were running low on ideas. Gene delivered some filler with “Plaster Caster” and “Christine Sixteen”, but also unleashed a masterpiece with “Almost Human”. Paul however did contribute “I Stole Your Love” and the title track which forever remains one of the band’s signature tunes. Overall it is a bit hit and miss which is ultimately its downfall.

17. Dressed to Kill
The Alive counterpoint to Love Gun comes just one spot ahead of it. For their third album in less than two years Kiss dug deep into the Wicked Lester days to fill out another album of tunes. On the plus side “Love Her All I Can”, “Come on and Love Me”, “She” and half of “Rock Bottom” are perfect. The downside is the rest of the album sounds like filler and songs not strong enough for their first two albums. Yeah “Cock and Balls All Night” is on it, but I can safely spend the rest of my life never hearing it. Along with “She” the superior version is on Alive as well.

16. Animalize
For one glorious moment in the 80s, Kiss had a true shredder. Mark St. John was a man of the moment, and a very, very brief moment it was. He did not have the songwriting chops of Vinnie Vincent, or the iconic status of Ace, but he could absolutely play rings around both of them. Seems slightly ironic that the album’s best known song “Heaven’s on Fire” doesn’t even feature a solo. After Vinnie gifted Gene a bunch of songs on Lick it Up, this began a four album stretch where Gene was firmly in the filler category. I don’t hate the infamous “Burn Bitch Burn” as much as others but Paul definitely reasserted his dominance in the group. “Get All You Can Take” and “Thrills in the Night” being definite standouts.

15. Asylum
Fresh off filling in for Mark St. John on the Animalize tour, Bruce Kullick was asked to permanently come on board for their next album. Asylum had the band leaning towards a more pop friendly sound while still banging heads. However the three singles “Uh! All Night”, “Tears are Falling” and “Who Wants to be Lonely” were three of the most glorious Kiss songs of any era. “King of the Mountain” has Eric Carr blowing down the doors immediately. Hell even after enough listens “Secretly Cruel” and “Anyway You Slice It” start to rock.

14. Alive II
It was inevitable that Kiss would make a “sequel” to their big breakthrough. For reasons modern music fans might not comprehend, live albums were quite the style at the time. What makes Alive 2 stand out however is the side of new studio tracks. Ace had already grown considerably by the time “Rocket Ride” was recorded. “Larger than Life” and “All American Man” are also awesome, featuring some sweet Bob Kullick leads. There are also some awesome versions of “I Stole Your Love”, “Shock Me”, and “God of Thunder”.

13. Lick it Up
The first “official” album with Vinnie Vincent was also Kiss’s first album without makeup. Unlike every other 80s Kiss album that followed, it is extremely Gene heavy. Paul does handle the lead vocals on “Exciter”, “All Hell’s Breakin’ Loose”, and of course the title track, but this is Gene’s time to shine. It was also a fine showcase for Vincent who co-wrote about 8 of the songs on the album. Musically it definitely picked up where Creatures of the Night left off. Although it might not be as overall strong as Creatures it did prove to be far more successful commercially.

12. Unmasked
Here we find arguably Kiss’s most divisive album. Sure Music from the Elder was a commercial disappointment but most Kiss fans still dig it. Unmasked had Kiss shamelessly embrace the pop charts. Depending on which Kiss fan you ask, the results are amazing or embarrassing. Placing it in the upper half of Kiss albums I am definitely a fan. “Shandi” is the highlight and the closest thing the album had to a hit. Ace continues his creative host streak contributing more songs than Gene. Speaking of Gene, “Naked City” was always one of my favorites. This is the first album Peter Criss was completely absent from, with no songs of his own and playing none of the drums.

11. Kiss
Way to go Kiss having multiple all-time classics right out of the gate. 50 years later Kiss was still playing “Strutter”, “Deuce”, and “Black Diamond” on a nightly basis. “Kissing Time” is the only dud on the album, which was apparently included at the insistence of Casablanca records. Not to say Kiss didn’t have awesome covers of other people’s songs, but that isn’t one of ‘em. The end of “Let Me Know” was reprised for the live version of “She”, and the song itself seems quite true to what Paul and Gene wanted Kiss to be. “100,000 Years” has one of Ace’s greatest solos and if you want to hear it without a drum solo and Paul’s banter this is the version for you. Decades later, “Love Theme from Kiss” remains their best instrumental, with all respect to "Carr Jam".

10. Alive!
The album that changed everything for Kiss. It is not uncommon for Alive to top most fans' lists of the best Kiss record. It did serve as the group’s breakthrough for sure. Not a stretch to say without Alive I might not be making this list or even give a shit about Kiss. The album offered superior versions of nearly everything included and set the standard for one of rock history's greatest live acts. It did offer the definitive versions of “Black Diamond”, “100,000 Years”, “She”, and of course “Rock and Roll All Night”.

9. Hotter than Hell
I’m not exaggerating when I say Hotter than Hell has the worst production of any Kiss album. In fact it’s about 5% more professional sounding than a Mayhem demo. Demo quality production aside, the songs themselves are some of the strongest Kiss ever recorded. “Going Blind”, “Let Me Go Rock and Roll”, “Parasite”, and of course “Watching You” make this album quite Gene heavy but the only filler is probably “Mainline”. Paul naturally gets the title track, later immortalized as “Rip and Destroy”. I do prefer the “Coming Home” from Unplugged but it’s still a great song.

8. Carnival of Souls
In an alternate reality this album would have come out on schedule and gone down as one of Kiss’s greatest triumphs. Like Vincent with Lick it Up, Carnival of Souls was when Bruce Kullick clearly stepped up. The album is all his, abut ironically the weakest moment is Bruce’s own powerfully weak vocals in “I Stand Alone”. The first 7 tracks on this album are all phenomenal. It even has some odd time signatures, revolutionary for Kiss. The Eric and Bruce lineup deserved better, but at least we got two perfect albums.

7. Music from the Elder
In 1976 Bob Ezrin overproduced the shit out of Destroyer. A few years later he helped produce Pink Floyd’s iconic The Wall. Kiss figured they could do a concept album, and brought Ezrin back on board to shed the pop sheen of their previous two albums. The result was a wildly out of character album that failed disastrously. A damn shame because would be prog-rockers Kiss are awesome. The story kinda works and I still claim “The Oath” birthed the entire power metal genre. “A World Without Heroes” is fantastic, but Gene was also responsible for “Mr. Blackwell” which is on the short list of worst songs Kiss ever recorded. Ace contributed “Dark Light” which had very little to do with the rest of the story, but at least features one of his longest and awesomest solos.

6. Dynasty
At no point in my life would I have guessed that “I Was Made for Loving You” would become Kiss’s most famous song. Seriously check Spotify it has about twice as many plays as “Rock and Roll All Night”. It was the official introduction of Desmond Child to the stable of co-writers Kiss would employ for the next decade or two. This was before Child ruled the 80s, but his ability to pen a catchy tune is on display immediately. It also unofficially was Peter Criss’s final contribution to Kiss with “Dirty Living”, substantially stronger than anything on his own solo album. “Sure Know Something” is an all time classic and fresh with “New York Groove” confidence Ace had three songs on the album. I can take or leave his “2,000 Man” but “Save Your Love” and “Hard Times” rule. More proof however that Ace couldn’t write lyrics for shit. The album doesn’t have a weak spot and from here on out we’re filler free.

5. Unplugged
It’s hard to explain what a big deal this was when even the rumors of it started. The thought that Kiss would reunite was too exciting to believe. Paul and Gene saved Ace and Peter for the end, instead delivering a phenomenal set of deep cuts with Eric and Bruce. The entire show was for fans and only members of the Kiss Army were given the opportunity for tickets. As a result we got a set list that was full of rarely or never played tracks. Paul also got to show everyone what a god damn legend he was with “I Still Love You”. As much as I love the acoustic “Beth”, if I had one criticism, the songs chosen for Ace and Peter were not exactly top tier. The nostalgia of seeing Kiss new and old sharing the stage for one night only. It remains my favorite of their many live albums.

4. Creatures of the Night
After the commercial failure of Music From the Elder Kiss decided to go all in on being a heavy metal band. After all, the young generation of spandex clad lads all owed a tremendous debt to Kiss. Creatures remains perhaps the band’s heaviest album and despite having plenty of hooks, feels anti-commercial by comparison to their follow ups. This was also the un-official debut of Vinnie Vincent who would shortly become an official member. Ironically Vincent wouldn’t appear on either cover for Creatures. Anyway, cool original cover aside, the reason this album is so high is because of how awesome the songs are. “Keep Me Coming”, “I Still Love You”, and of course the title track have Paul in fine form. Gene did have “War Machine” and “Rock and Roll Hell” to bookend each side.

3. Rock and Roll Over
For my money this was the finest album the original lineup gave us. Process of elimination should deduce which two are left. Top to bottom this album is great. Paul was absolutely on a roll, “I Want You”, “Take Me”, “Mr. Speed”, and perhaps the greatest of all Kiss songs “Making Love”. That last one in particular gets my vote for Ace’s best solo. “Calling Dr. Love” became one of Gene’s all time classics while “Love ‘em Leave ‘em” might be his finest of many songs about groupies. “Hard Luck Woman” was Paul’s attempt to write a Rod Stewart ballad, hence why he gave it to Peter. Surrounded by such greatness, even “Baby Driver” works.

2. Revenge
This should come as a surprise to no one that Revenge is this high. Bob Ezrin was once again brought back but this time the ambition was modest. Gone was the presence of Desmond Child and anyone else with pop sensibilities. Perhaps this was yet another pivot and trying to get on board with the anti-hair metal sentiments of the early 90s. Either way the album was a welcome breath of fresh air. Even Vinnie Vincent came back into the fold to co-write a couple of songs. “Unholy” instantly became possibly Gene’s best song, and was easily the heaviest at that point. The album also seemed to produce a renewed focus with the band. There are some honest to goodness collaborations between members. Paul and Gene even share lead vocal duties on “Spit” and “God Gave Rock and Roll to You”, the latter being a song I wish would supplant “Cock and Ball All Night” as their signature closer. Bruce’s playing certainly suited the new style and he had some of his best solos, fully emerging with his own style after several years of sounding like every other 80s guitarist. Eric Singer was a great new addition, and the production courtesy of Ezrin was probably my favorite of any Kiss album. Even the “filler” is still leagues above their last several albums.

1. Paul Stanley
It may seem baffling, it may seem silly, or it might seem ironic that the greatest “Kiss” album is Paul Stanley’s 1978 solo outing. He proved beyond a shadow of a doubt how he was the true guiding light of the band. When everyone branched out into separate genres Paul doubled down on the best damn collection of Kiss songs he ever penned. His one indulgence was the extra syrupy ballad “Hold Me, Touch Me (Think of Me When We’re Apart)”, a song I would laugh at if I didn’t absolutely love it. Picking a favorite song on this is a near impossible task, they’re all highlights. “Wouldn’t You Like to Know Me”, “It’s Alright”, “Take Me Away (Together as One)”, and “Tonight You Belong to Me” are easily among my all time favorite Kiss songs though. Kiss at their best in its purest form (Paul doing everything).