Kiss fans eager for a final reunion of the original members are feeling that much more hopeful after reading Gene Simmons' Twitter feed. Simmons, who along with Paul Stanley, has been alternately demeaning towards — and nostalgic about — co-founding guitarist Ace Frehley over the years, but now seems to want him on board for the band's final victory lap.
On Wednesday (April 27th), Gene Simmons tweeted well wishes to Frehley for his 71st birthday and posted an open-ended offer to the guitar legend: “Happy Birthday Ace. And many more… The invitations still stand. Jump up on stage with us for encores. The fans would love it. – Gene Simmons (@genesimmons) April 27, 2022
Not too long ago, we asked Gene Simmons what it feels like to turn around and see the spitting image of his former bandmates — yet it's replacement musicians Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer: “Y'know, we still have a tug of the heart. It's like your drunken dysfunctional father who was a bum and you finally had to get rid of him — but you still remember the beginning when he was a good dad. Ace and Peter are beloved, as they should be, for the beginning. For helping launch the band — if you don't mind me saying so — that changed the face of rock 'n roll, literally and figuratively speaking. But equally as important part of the beginning of Kiss, it's also important to know that with them in the band today, Kiss wouldn't be around.”
Kiss kicks off its North American farewell dates on May 11th at Milwaukee's American Family Insurance Amphitheater.