Mark St. John - Mark St. John Project [Limited Edition] (1999)

TRACKLIST:

01 AWOL (4:37)
02 Between The Lines (4:29)
03 Love For Sale (3:44)
04 No,I'm Not Afraid (4:17)
05 Baghdad (3:28)

Mark St. John (guitars)
Phil Naro (lead vocals)( ex-Criss, ex-Naro)
Roger Banks (drums) (ex-Empire, ex-Naro)
Stan Mizcek ( bass) (ex-Sass Jordon, ex-Honeymoon Suite)
Chris Sevdalis (grand Piano and keyboards on track 4)

Track 02 : according to the original 1990 copyright registration "Between The Lines" is written by Peter Criss, Mark St. John and Rick Delong.
"Between The Lines" first appeared on the 1991 The Tree (aka The Keep) demo which features members of White Tiger and Peter Criss on drums.
Track 03 : according to the original 1990 copyright registration "Love For Sale" is written by Peter Criss and Kevin Russell. "Love For Sale" first appeared on the 1991 The Tree (aka The Keep) demo which features members of White Tiger and Peter Criss on drums.
Following the transformation of the Keep into CRISS, the band would re-demo the song with the new line-up, featuring Phil Naro on lead vocals.
Track 04 : "No, I'm Not Afraid" first appeared on the 1991 CRISS demo, featuring Phil Naro on lead vocals.
Phil Naro would recycle this song as "Surrender (In The Name Of Love)", which forms parts of the lyrics at the beginning of the song, would get Peter Criss a co-writing credit on the 24K "Pure" album (2000).
This song would be performed live by the CRISS band with vocalist Philip Bardowell, who had replaced Phil Naro.

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Mark St. John - The Keep Demos (1990)

TRACKLIST:

Between The Lines
Do Ya Know What I Mean
Love For Sale
Been A Long Time
All Night Long
Love For Sale (Version 2)
Been A Long Time (Version 2)
All Night Long (Version 2)
Do Ya Know What I Mean (Version 2)

Peter Criss - Vocals/Drums
Michael McDonald - Vocals
Mark St. John - Lead Guitar
Michael Norton - Bass

Mark St. John & Peter Criss
Mark Leslie Norton (February 7, 1956 – April 5, 2007), better known as Mark St. John, was a guitarist known for his brief work with the rock band Kiss.
Peter George John Criscuola (born December 20, 1945), better known as Peter Criss, is an American musician best known as the original drummer for the rock band Kiss. Criss established the "Catman" character for his Kiss persona.

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Mark St. John - Magic Bullet Theory (2003)

TRACKLIST:

1. AWOL
2. Magic Bullet Theory
3. Bourbon Street
4. Slave Driver
5. Utopian Trip
6. Communicator
7. Baghdad
8. Wait No More
9. Between The Lines
10. The Lone Gunman

When ex-KISS guitarist Mark St. John passed away from a brain hemorrhage on April 5, 2007, he was referred to as a mere footnote in the history of a group that's been around for almost 35 years. In truth, St. John was a very gifted guitarist who did not get many chances to display his true ability.
In 2003 -- nearly 20 years after his stint with KISS -- he released Magic Bullet Theory, a solo album that was an instrumental showcase of his fretboard skills. Unfortunately, not many people ever got a chance to hear it before he died.
Featuring Mark's brother, Michael Norton, on bass and San Diego-based Dave Goode on drums, Magic Bullet Theory is comprised of ten instrumental tracks that range from balls-to-the-wall metal ("AWOL," "Slave Driver") to Middle Eastern-tinged flamenco ("Baghdad") and light jazz ("Bourbon Street".) While some tracks can get a little noodly, overall, the wanking is at a minimum. Most of the cuts are complete songs rather than just being book-ends for guitar solos.
Although the production on Magic Bullet Theory isn't the greatest, it's still easy to hear that when St. John appeared on KISS' Animalize in 1984, he was reined in as as a guitar virtuoso. On Magic Bullet Theory, when given carte blache to do as he pleases, he stays focused on making coherent musical ideas rather than just shelling out orgasmic solos (i.e. fellow ex-KISS'er Vinnie Vincent). That's not to say St. John was afraid to let loose on a few songs. For example, "Communicator," a song with origins in St. John's immediate post-KISS project, White Tiger, surpasses anything Vincent ever unleashed in terms of aural pyrotechnics and pure wankery.
What makes Magic Bullet Theory worth hunting down and buying is the palpable feeling that it's the work of someone who's enjoying himself rather than trying to impress everyone under the sun. Hearing the enigmatic St. John have fun playing -- even when he was out of the spotlight -- is somehow much more satisfying than it'd be hearing him try to convince everyone how much he rocked. He did that without even trying.

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