Ep. 69 - Ace Frehley 1978 KISS Solo Album - A Look Back 

40 plus years later & this album still kicks ass! ACE rules!

What's On Your Mind, Wiped-Out, Snow Blind. I still choose to think of being stranded in a snow storm. The beauty of music is interpreting it any way we want.

I got ACE's Solo the day of release and it was 7.99 ! At a place called the Record Bar. ACE'S SOLD better than the other 3. Cheers ! From, the Rockies of Utah.🍻

Excellent analysis, having lived through the KISS golden era, the Ace album was the first one I purchased. Fantastic record, well done!!

Eddie Kramer always got the best out of Ace!

This is a classic that never gets old, and truly showed what Ace could do at his best....started his prime period, 78-81

Great conversation! Thank you

Love this album and got it along with Paul's great album the week it came out. Rip it out!

One song after Kiss Alive because he held songs back from the band. Fact. He has admitted to this fact.

Great album and the best of the 4. There's a reason it sold the most. But I have to admit Paul's is a close 2nd fav.

Best of the 4 and the only one still listen to. My top 3 in no particular order are 'What's On Your Mind', 'Fractured Mirror' and 'Speedin back To My Baby'

Hey Mike gr8 Episode once again I agree with your opinion that Ace had a safe approach for his 78 solo but it was his most Honest & arguably the Smartest approach.......he would have been 27 or 28 yrs old way back then & to think that all those songs on his first Solo album still Stack up to this day God Bless him

What’s on your mind is my favorite too! Rip it out is great!!!

Great episode guys! This is a top 5 kiss album for me period! Fav songs are Rip it out, snow blind, and ozone! I sometimes wish ace would have left kiss in 1978! I think he would have been huge! By the time his album came out in 87 he had just been gone to long to have major success! Same with peter; in 1978 everyone knew both ace and peter so well from kiss! Plus this would have been major news in the world of rock music! you guys should do a what if on this very topic!

Holding back songs for some years Ace delivered a great record. However, I hate and I mean hate New York Groove, absolute throwaway tune. It was a song that became "popular" with little girls. Eddie Kramer and whomever else developed his writings created something special.

This record also featured a very new and pricey ARP Avatar guitar synth

Why do so many of Ace's fans pronounce his name incorrectly? It's pronounced Fray-lee not Free-lee. He's a freaking living legend!!! Come on, give him enough respect to at least pronounce his name correctly.

I disagree about the “taking chances” comment....Paul was the one who played it safe to me....

1. Fractured Mirror 2. Snow Blind 3. Rip It Out

I totally forgot about the poster. Have the original vinyl 78.

AHH so refreshing! "Is it underrated I don't know?" - ACE underrates it Yes!!! Also Gene and Paul thought he'd bomb. They apparently asked him if he needs help to call them ;)

just because he only had x amount of songs on KISS records doesn't mean he didn't have songs that he never gave to the band.

Too bad Ace quit Kiss! The Frehleys Commet songs and solo album stuff would have been great with kiss. Imagine Paul singing rock soldiers and something moved. Peter singing speeding back to my baby. Gene singing rip it out and I’m in need of love. Huge missed opportunity for old Kiss.

Easily the best of the 4 solo albums. Is hard to believe that Gene and Paul seemed to dominate the songs that were on the regular KISS albums when these songs were just so straight ahead hard rock? Not sure if he held back to avoid rejection or what but you can see how much Ace got from the Unmasked album which happens to be my favorite KISS album (production is weak and thin but songs and performances are great).

I would venture a guess that the reason Ace doesn't play Speeding Back To My Baby live very often is because of the backward guitar solo. Maybe it's too hard to recreate in concert.

This is a tough one to pick 3! But I'll pick 1 rip it out 2 speedin back to my baby 3 ozone. 4. Honorable mention - snow blind. I don't know if I'm correct ! Was (all or nothing) a contender for the solo album ?

Fractured mirror is about Paul's Ibanez😆

It is well documented that Gene and Paul r control freaks. Iam not excusing Ace's behavior, but by the same token it wouldn't be easy to be around those guys. The solo album gave him much needed freedom.

I like Peter's drumming better than Anton because he has a looser feeling although Anton is a great drummer.

Easily the best of the four. Rip It Out, Ozone and Wiped Out.

Ace played it safe? The same goes for Paul's solo album. In my opinion Paul is "only" silver, because of too many cheesy ballads on his effort. "Ain't quite right" and "Hold Me Touch Me" are stinkers, At any rate there is no stinker with Ace! Peters's album is also strong, but far away from the KISS style. Gene's is totally out of this world. It's overproduced , I see only 2 decent songs ("See You Tonight" and "Radioaktive", but RA doesn't rock too), the rest is bad songwriting. Only his demon persona sold this LP. Ace rules!