Artist : Kiss
Country : USA
Release : The Casablanca Singles 1974-1982
Year : 2012
Genre : Hard Rock
File Type : mp3 320
Info:
Kiss were half-heavy metal band, half-circus act in their heyday, a time known as their "golden age" amongst fans, "the make-up era" to the rest the world, or 1974-1982 if you're being generous by a couple years on either end. Those happen to be the years the group were signed to Neil Bogart's label Casablanca Records, a successful '70s hypemachine that found success at the far ends of the pop spectrum with comic book heavy metal (Kiss) and disco (the Village People, Donna Summer, Lipps Inc., Irene Cara, and a truckload of producer-based acts). The Casablanca Singles: 1974-1982 collects all 29 singles Kiss released on Bogart's label, making them available on vinyl 7" or CD singles with picture sleeves from around the world faithfully reproduced (which in the case of 1974's "Nothin' to Lose" b/w "Love Theme from Kiss" means all-white promo packaging). Career-defining A-sides like "Rock and Roll All Nite," "Detroit Rock City," "Beth," "New York Groove" (officially an Ace Frehley track, but singles from all four of their 1978 solo albums are included), and even the disco-flavored "I Was Made for Loving You" are all on the track list thanks to the A-sides, which are also responsible for lesser-known gems like "Rocket Ride" and "C'mon and Love Me." The B-sides vary wildly as "Shock Me" sits on the back of "Christine Sixteen" like a bonus prize, while the great heavy metal rocker "Sweet Pain" is here thanks to the Japanese single of "Shout It Out Loud," but there's also the awkward and not-so-sexy "She's So European" and redundancy as well, with "Rock and Roll All Nite" showing up as a B-side twice, and an A-side once.