Post by Henny Macc on Jul 28, 2020 22:41:58 GMT
George Peter John Criscuola (December 20, 1945 - )
Years active: 1964-2017
Country of origin: United States of America
Recorded vocal range: F♯2-A♯5 (G♭5-B♭5) - 3⅓ octaves
Featured bands:
- 1970-1971 - Chelsea (drums)
- 1971-1972 - Lips (drums, vocals)
- 1973-1980 - Kiss (drums, vocals)
- 1978-1984 - Peter Criss (lead vocals, drums)
- 1991-1996 - Criss (lead vocals, drums)
- 1996-2001 - Kiss (drums, vocals)
- 2002-2004 - Kiss (drums, vocals)
- 2004-2017 - Peter Criss (lead vocals, drums)
{Full band history}
- 1964-1967 - The Barracudas (drums)
- 1967-1969 - Sounds of Soul (drums)
- 1969-1970 - The Vintage (drums)
- 1970-1971 - Chelsea (drums)
- 1971-1972 - Lips (drums, vocals)
- 1973-1980 - Kiss (drums, vocals)
- 1978-1984 - Peter Criss (lead vocals, drums)
- 1984-1985 - Penridge-Criss Alliance (drums, lead vocals)
- 1986 - Balls of Fire (drums)
- 1989-1990 - The Keep (drums, vocals)
- 1991-1996 - Criss (lead vocals, drums)
- 1996-2001 - Kiss (drums, vocals)
- 2002-2004 - Kiss (drums, vocals)
- 2004-2017 - Peter Criss (lead vocals, drums)
Recorded high notes:
A♯5/B♭5: "The Cat"
A5: "Good Times", "The Cat", "Walk the Line"
G♯5/A♭5: "Bad People Burn in Hell, "Getaway", "Nothin' to Lose"
F♯5/G♭5: "Down with the Sun", "Hooligan"
F5: "Let Me Go, Rock 'n' Roll" live Cobo Hall 1975
E5: "Baby Driver", "Down with the Sun", "Do You Know What I Mean", "First One to Admit It" demo, "The Cat"
D♯5/E♭5: "Baby Driver", "Black Diamond" live Cobo Hall 1975, "Nothin' to Lose" live MTV Unplugged 1995, "The Cat"
D5: "Nothin' to Lose" live Cobo Hall 1975
C♯5/D♭5: "Baby Driver", "Getaway", "One for All", "Strange Ways" live Danbury 1995
C5: "Bad Attitude", "Bad Reputation", "Baby Driver", "Blue Moon Over Brooklyn", "Dirty Livin'", "Kissin' Time", "Love for Sale" live New York City 1992, "My Life", "Nothin' to Lose" live MTV Unplugged 1995, "Strange Ways", "Where Will They Run?"
B4: "Bad Attitude", "Bad People Burn in Hell", "Baby Driver", "Bad Boys", "Black Diamond", "Destiny", "Down with the Sun", "Do You Know What I Mean", "Easy Thing", "Feel Like Letting Go", "Hooligan", "I Found Love", "Jealous Guy", "Last Night", "Let Me Go, Rock 'n' Roll" live Telstra Dome 2003, "Nothin' to Lose", "Out of Control", "Rock and Roll All Nite" live MTV Unplugged 1995, "Strange Ways", "Strike", "That's the Kind of Sugar Papa Likes", "The Truth", "Walk the Line", "Where Will They Run?", "You Better Run", "You Wanted the Best"
A♯4/B♭4: "Baby Driver", "Bad People Burn in Hell", "Dirty Livin'", "Feels Like Heaven", "Heart Behind These Hands", "Hooligan", "I Found Love", "Mainline", "My Life", "Rock Me, Baby", "Nothin' to Lose", "Rock and Roll Survivor", "Some Kinda' Hurricane", "That's the Kind of Sugar Papa Likes", "There's Nothing Better", "The Truth", "This Bud's for You!", "Tossin' and Turnin'", "Where Will They Run?", "You Better Run", "You're My Woman"
A4: "Baby Driver", "Bad Attitude", "Bad Boys", "Bad People Burn in Hell", "Blue Moon Over Brooklyn", "Destiny", "Down with the Sun", "Do You Know What I Mean", "Easy Thing", "Faces in the Crowd", "Feel Like Letting Go", "Feels Like Heaven", "First Day in the Rain", "First One to Admit It" demo, "Getaway", "Good Times", "Hooked on Rock 'n' Roll", "Hope", "I Can't Stop the Rain", "In Trouble Again", "Kissin' Time", "Kiss the Girl Goodbye, "Let It Go", "Let Me Rock You", "Love Bite", "Love for Sale" live New York City 1992, "Move on Over", "One for All", "Out of Control", "Rock Me, Baby", "Tell Tale Valentine", "That's the Kind of Sugar Papa Likes", "The Cat", "There's Nothing Better", "The Truth", "Tossin' and Turnin'", "Where Will They Run?", "You Matter to Me", "Zig Zag"
G♯4/A♭4: "Bad Reputation", "Beth" live MTV Unplugged 1995, "Black Diamond", "Dirty Livin'", "Down with the Sun", "Hard Luck Woman", "Heart Behind These Hands", "Hope", "I Finally Found My Way", "I'm Gonna Love You", "Let It Go", "Love Bite", "Mainline", "Nothin' to Lose" live at The Coach House 1995, "Rock and Roll All Nite" live at The Coach House 1995, "Rock Me, Baby", "Space Ace", "That's the Kind of Sugar Papa Likes", "You Wanted the Best"
G4: "Bad Boys", "Beth", "Blame It on Love", "Blue Moon Over Brooklyn", "Destiny", "Dirty Livin'", "Doesn't Get Better Than This", "Down with the Sun", "Feel Like Letting Go", "Feels Like Heaven", "Heart Behind These Hands", "Hooked on Rock 'n' Roll", "Hooligan", "I Finally Found My Way", "I Found Love", "In Trouble Again", "Jealous Guy", "Let Me Rock You", "Love for Sale" live New York City 1992, "Memories", "Move on Over", "My Life", "Nothin' to Lose", "Rock and Roll All Nite" live at The Coach House 1995, "Rock and Roll Survivor", "Rumble", "Some Kinda' Hurricane", "Strike", "There's Nothing Better", "Tossin' and Turnin'", "Walk the Line", "Where Will They Run?", "You Better Run", "You're My Woman"
Recorded low notes:
E3: "Baby Hold On", "Blue Moon Over Brooklyn", "Doesn't Get Better Than This", "Don't You Let Me Down", "Easy Thing", "Falling All Over Again", "Feels Like Heaven", "First One to Admit It" demo, "I Finally Found My Way", "I Found Love", "I'm Gonna Love You", "Jealous Guy", "Kiss the Girl Goodbye", "Last Night", "One for All", "Tears", "What a Difference a Day Makes", "Whisper", "Words", "You Matter to Me"
D♯3/E♭3: "Beth" live MTV Unplugged 1995, "By Myself", "Faces in the Crowd", "I Finally Found My Way", "Last Night", "Memories", "Nothin' to Lose", "Send in the Clowns", "Some Kinda' Hurricane", "Words"
D3: "Bad People Burn in Hell", "Blame It on Love", "Doesn't Get Better Than This", "Easy Thing", "Faces in the Crowd", "Falling All Over Again", "First Day in the Rain", "I Can't Stop the Rain", "I Finally Found My Way", "Memories", "Seeds", "Send in the Clowns", "Tell Tale Valentine", "What a Difference a Day Makes", "You're My Woman", "Zig Zag"
C♯3/D♭3: "Baby Hold On", "Beth '94", "Don't You Let Me Down", "Good Times", "Last Night", "Space Ace", "This Bud's for You!", "What a Difference a Day Makes", "Whisper"
C3: "Dirty Livin'", "Faces in the Crowd", "Falling All Over Again", "First Day in the Rain", "First One to Admit It" demo, "Heart Behind These Hands", "I Can't Stop the Rain"
B2: "Falling All Over Again", "Hope", "I Finally Found My Way", "Last Night", "Space Ace", "Whisper", "Words", "Zig Zag"
A♯2/B♭2: "Heart Behind These Hands", "Send in the Clowns"
A2: "Faces in the Crowd", "I Can't Stop the Rain", "Memories", "Where Will They Run?"
G♯2/A♭2: "Send in the Clowns", "Space Ace"
G2: "Faces in the Crowd", "Send in the Clowns"
F♯2/G♭2: "Last Night"
{Questionable notes}
C6: "Love for Sale" live New York City 1992
E5: "Blue Moon Over Brooklyn" live New Haven 1992
B4: "Don't Come Crying to Me" live New Haven 1992
G♯4/A♭4: "Don't Come Crying to Me" live New Haven 1992
G4: "Don't Come Crying to Me" live New Haven 1992
These are all notes that may be one of Criss' other bandmates. During the '90s he had several other members of his solo band who also did vocals, so it's not always possible to tell who's singing what parts.
.......................................................C6: "Love for Sale" live New York City 1992
E5: "Blue Moon Over Brooklyn" live New Haven 1992
B4: "Don't Come Crying to Me" live New Haven 1992
G♯4/A♭4: "Don't Come Crying to Me" live New Haven 1992
G4: "Don't Come Crying to Me" live New Haven 1992
These are all notes that may be one of Criss' other bandmates. During the '90s he had several other members of his solo band who also did vocals, so it's not always possible to tell who's singing what parts.
*Blue marks soft falsetto notes.
*Green marks harsh distorted screams.
*Italics mark non-melodic notes.
*Underlines marks notes in backing vocals or otherwise muffled/obscured in the song mix.
{Detailed bio}
Best recognized as the original drummer, vocalist, and "Catman" persona from Kiss, Peter Criss is easily recognizable for his raspy, rough-sounding voice, somewhat reminiscent of Rod Stewart. In spite of this vocal quality though, he is known for often singing ballads, both in Kiss and in his solo career - the most famous of which being the 1976 hit single "Beth", which went on to become one of Kiss' best-known songs. In addition to this, however, he has also performed his fair share of more belty numbers such as "Black Diamond" (another famous Kiss song that Criss originally sang), on which his voice's rasp and grit lend themselves well to the musical power of such songs. This side of his voice tends to extend up to about C5 or so, after which he transitions into a full on false cord screaming type of approach for higher notes, which can sound oddly foreshadowing of 2000s nu metal at times (despite Criss using it as far back as 1974). Such notes can be annoyingly difficult to pitch at times, but I've done my best to figure them out for the purpose of this thread.
Criss' career has been surprisingly extensive, though select portions of it remain relatively unknown or buried in obscurity. As the oldest member of the original Kiss lineup, he began playing in bands earlier than the other members, dating back as far as the mid 60s. His first somewhat known project was in 1970 when he joined the band Chelsea as drummer, who recorded and released a self-titled album under a deal with Decca Records later that year. It was through this band that Criss met Stan Penridge, who would become a longtime songwriting partner for him, and a bandmate in other projects. The first of these other projects was Lips, which was formed in 1971 from the remaining members of Chelsea after that band's dissolution. It was in this band that Criss started to make singing and songwriting contributions in addition to drums, one of which was "Beck" - an early version of what would later go on to become the Kiss song "Beth".
Lips eventually dissolved to just Criss and Penridge, at which point Criss began seeking other opportunities, and began posting ads for himself as a drummer for hire. He was then contacted by Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons, who were seeking a drummer for a band after the dissolution of their previous project, Wicked Lester. This led to the formation of Kiss in 1973, who quickly catapulted to fame in the mid 70s after the release of their debut self-titled album in 1974. Though Stanley and Simmons primarily handled vocal duties in this band, Criss was included from the beginning as a "secondary vocalist" of sorts, usually singing lead vocals on 1-2 songs per album. Some of these songs became well-received hits for the band, including the aforementioned "Beth" and "Black Diamond", but also others such as "Strange Ways", "Hard Luck Woman", and "Nothin' to Lose". Despite his success in Kiss, however, Criss' tenure with the band was heavily weighed with turmoil as issues between him and the rest of the band arose, including complaints about his drumming not being up to par by other members. Because of this, he eventually was forbidden from recording on the majority of the band's 1979 album, Dynasty, aside from the song "Dirty Livin'", which he wrote and sang. Conditions continued to worsen between Criss and the rest of the band on the tour following this album, after which they stopped recording with him entirely and had session musician Anton Fig record all drums on their next album, 1980's Unmasked (though Criss is still credited for drums in the liner notes). Criss did not write or sing any songs on this album either, and following its release was officially fired from Kiss and replaced by Eric Carr.
Like the other three founding members of Kiss, Criss released his first self-titled album in 1978, but unlike the rest (who went back to focusing on Kiss as their primary project immediately after), he followed up on this shortly after and started a solo career in the early 80s. His second solo album, Out of Control, was released in 1980, followed by Let Me Rock You in 1982, but neither managed to chart or received much attention. Thus by 1984, Criss had moved on to focusing on other endeavors, which resulted in a string of projects that he played in until the '90s - first reuniting with Stan Penridge to create the Penridge-Criss Alliance, then joining the female-fronted band Balls of Fire as drummer, then eventually forming The Keep with Mark St. John, an ex-Kiss guitarist from after Criss' time in the band. None of these bands recorded or released much during Criss' time with them however, and thus his career remained rather stagnant for most of this period. It wasn't until 1991 that he reformed his solo band, this time simply under the moniker Criss, and resumed touring for the next several years, as well as releasing the album Cat #1 in 1994. This album demonstrated a return to a hard rock style again (as opposed to the more pop sounds of Criss' last three albums), and also featured guest appearances from former Kiss bandmate Ace Frehley, marking the first time that the two had played together since 1980. Additionally, this album showed Criss occasionally using an otherwise unheard side to his high register, with some unexpected clean wailed A5s in the songs "Walk the Line" and "Good Times", and even a B♭5 in "The Cat"! I have no idea where these sudden high notes came from, but they seem to be something of an anomaly in Criss' discography, as almost all of his other highs are much more screamy and distorted.
In 1995, Criss and Frehley's solo bands embarked on a joint tour together, which drew the attention of Kiss fans who had longed to see the original lineup back together. Later that year, the two of them were invited to perform as guests as part of Kiss' MTV Unplugged concert, and played and sang on the songs "2,000 Man", "Beth", "Nothin' to Lose", and "Rock and Roll All Nite". This reunion was so well-received by fans that Simmons and Stanley chose to let both of them rejoin the band as full-time members, and embarked on a highly successful reunion tour in 1996. In 1998, they recorded their first album with the original lineup since 1979, entitled Psycho Circus, but once again internal band issues led to Frehley and Criss being shut out of some of the recording sessions. Criss only performed drums on the song "Into the Void", and performed vocals on the songs "I Finally Found My Way" and "You Wanted the Best". Kiss continued to tour with this lineup for several more years, but in 2001 Criss abruptly quit the band due to disagreements over his salary. He rejoined in 2002 and partook in the recording of the band's Kiss Symphony: Alive IV live album with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in 2003, but in 2004 was fired once again when the band elected to not renew his contract. He was replaced by Eric Singer, who had played for Kiss in the 1990s prior to the reunion tour, and continues to serve as their drummer to this day.
Since then, Criss has largely disappeared from the public eye, but released one more solo album in 2007, entitled One for All. This album was almost exclusively built around ballads and slower numbers, and unlike his previous albums (which had largely focused their vocals around Criss' raspy high and mid range), it demonstrated much more use of his low range than he had ever shown before, proving a nice warm resonance that he has to that part of his voice as well. This album was also much less geared towards higher singing than previous ones, though several songs did still feature upper fourth octave notes that indicated that that side of his voice was still intact as well. Criss has also done some limited touring in the years that have passed since the release of this album, but ultimately retired from music in 2017 at the age of 71.
Best recognized as the original drummer, vocalist, and "Catman" persona from Kiss, Peter Criss is easily recognizable for his raspy, rough-sounding voice, somewhat reminiscent of Rod Stewart. In spite of this vocal quality though, he is known for often singing ballads, both in Kiss and in his solo career - the most famous of which being the 1976 hit single "Beth", which went on to become one of Kiss' best-known songs. In addition to this, however, he has also performed his fair share of more belty numbers such as "Black Diamond" (another famous Kiss song that Criss originally sang), on which his voice's rasp and grit lend themselves well to the musical power of such songs. This side of his voice tends to extend up to about C5 or so, after which he transitions into a full on false cord screaming type of approach for higher notes, which can sound oddly foreshadowing of 2000s nu metal at times (despite Criss using it as far back as 1974). Such notes can be annoyingly difficult to pitch at times, but I've done my best to figure them out for the purpose of this thread.
Criss' career has been surprisingly extensive, though select portions of it remain relatively unknown or buried in obscurity. As the oldest member of the original Kiss lineup, he began playing in bands earlier than the other members, dating back as far as the mid 60s. His first somewhat known project was in 1970 when he joined the band Chelsea as drummer, who recorded and released a self-titled album under a deal with Decca Records later that year. It was through this band that Criss met Stan Penridge, who would become a longtime songwriting partner for him, and a bandmate in other projects. The first of these other projects was Lips, which was formed in 1971 from the remaining members of Chelsea after that band's dissolution. It was in this band that Criss started to make singing and songwriting contributions in addition to drums, one of which was "Beck" - an early version of what would later go on to become the Kiss song "Beth".
Lips eventually dissolved to just Criss and Penridge, at which point Criss began seeking other opportunities, and began posting ads for himself as a drummer for hire. He was then contacted by Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons, who were seeking a drummer for a band after the dissolution of their previous project, Wicked Lester. This led to the formation of Kiss in 1973, who quickly catapulted to fame in the mid 70s after the release of their debut self-titled album in 1974. Though Stanley and Simmons primarily handled vocal duties in this band, Criss was included from the beginning as a "secondary vocalist" of sorts, usually singing lead vocals on 1-2 songs per album. Some of these songs became well-received hits for the band, including the aforementioned "Beth" and "Black Diamond", but also others such as "Strange Ways", "Hard Luck Woman", and "Nothin' to Lose". Despite his success in Kiss, however, Criss' tenure with the band was heavily weighed with turmoil as issues between him and the rest of the band arose, including complaints about his drumming not being up to par by other members. Because of this, he eventually was forbidden from recording on the majority of the band's 1979 album, Dynasty, aside from the song "Dirty Livin'", which he wrote and sang. Conditions continued to worsen between Criss and the rest of the band on the tour following this album, after which they stopped recording with him entirely and had session musician Anton Fig record all drums on their next album, 1980's Unmasked (though Criss is still credited for drums in the liner notes). Criss did not write or sing any songs on this album either, and following its release was officially fired from Kiss and replaced by Eric Carr.
Like the other three founding members of Kiss, Criss released his first self-titled album in 1978, but unlike the rest (who went back to focusing on Kiss as their primary project immediately after), he followed up on this shortly after and started a solo career in the early 80s. His second solo album, Out of Control, was released in 1980, followed by Let Me Rock You in 1982, but neither managed to chart or received much attention. Thus by 1984, Criss had moved on to focusing on other endeavors, which resulted in a string of projects that he played in until the '90s - first reuniting with Stan Penridge to create the Penridge-Criss Alliance, then joining the female-fronted band Balls of Fire as drummer, then eventually forming The Keep with Mark St. John, an ex-Kiss guitarist from after Criss' time in the band. None of these bands recorded or released much during Criss' time with them however, and thus his career remained rather stagnant for most of this period. It wasn't until 1991 that he reformed his solo band, this time simply under the moniker Criss, and resumed touring for the next several years, as well as releasing the album Cat #1 in 1994. This album demonstrated a return to a hard rock style again (as opposed to the more pop sounds of Criss' last three albums), and also featured guest appearances from former Kiss bandmate Ace Frehley, marking the first time that the two had played together since 1980. Additionally, this album showed Criss occasionally using an otherwise unheard side to his high register, with some unexpected clean wailed A5s in the songs "Walk the Line" and "Good Times", and even a B♭5 in "The Cat"! I have no idea where these sudden high notes came from, but they seem to be something of an anomaly in Criss' discography, as almost all of his other highs are much more screamy and distorted.
In 1995, Criss and Frehley's solo bands embarked on a joint tour together, which drew the attention of Kiss fans who had longed to see the original lineup back together. Later that year, the two of them were invited to perform as guests as part of Kiss' MTV Unplugged concert, and played and sang on the songs "2,000 Man", "Beth", "Nothin' to Lose", and "Rock and Roll All Nite". This reunion was so well-received by fans that Simmons and Stanley chose to let both of them rejoin the band as full-time members, and embarked on a highly successful reunion tour in 1996. In 1998, they recorded their first album with the original lineup since 1979, entitled Psycho Circus, but once again internal band issues led to Frehley and Criss being shut out of some of the recording sessions. Criss only performed drums on the song "Into the Void", and performed vocals on the songs "I Finally Found My Way" and "You Wanted the Best". Kiss continued to tour with this lineup for several more years, but in 2001 Criss abruptly quit the band due to disagreements over his salary. He rejoined in 2002 and partook in the recording of the band's Kiss Symphony: Alive IV live album with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in 2003, but in 2004 was fired once again when the band elected to not renew his contract. He was replaced by Eric Singer, who had played for Kiss in the 1990s prior to the reunion tour, and continues to serve as their drummer to this day.
Since then, Criss has largely disappeared from the public eye, but released one more solo album in 2007, entitled One for All. This album was almost exclusively built around ballads and slower numbers, and unlike his previous albums (which had largely focused their vocals around Criss' raspy high and mid range), it demonstrated much more use of his low range than he had ever shown before, proving a nice warm resonance that he has to that part of his voice as well. This album was also much less geared towards higher singing than previous ones, though several songs did still feature upper fourth octave notes that indicated that that side of his voice was still intact as well. Criss has also done some limited touring in the years that have passed since the release of this album, but ultimately retired from music in 2017 at the age of 71.
{Album ranges}
Kiss:
Peter Criss:
Criss:
Kiss:
- Kiss (1974) - E♭3-A♭5
- Hotter Than Hell (1974) - F♯3-C5
- Dressed to Kill (1975) - F♯3-G♯5
- Alive! (1975) - G♯3-D♯5-F5
- Destroyer (1976) - G3-F4-G4
- Rock and Roll Over (1976) - F♯3-E5
- Love Gun (1977) - B3-F♯5
- Alive II (1977) - F♯3-G♯4
- Dynasty (1979) - C3-B♭3-C5
- MTV Unplugged (1996) - E♭3-G3-B4
- Psycho Circus (1998) - B2-E♭3-B4
- Kiss Symphony: Alive IV (2003) - G3-B4
Peter Criss:
- Peter Criss (1978) - A2-B4
- Out of Control (1980) - A2-B2-C5
- Let Me Rock You (1982) - C3-B4
- One for All (2007) - F♯2-A4-C♯5
Criss:
- Criss (1993) - C♯3-A♯5
- Cat #1 (1994) - C♯3-A5
{Best displays of vocal range}
"Good Times" (C♯3-A5)
"Last Night" (F♯2-B4)
"Bad People Burn in Hell" (D3-G♯5)
"Nothin' to Lose" (E♭3-A♭5)
"Where Will They Run?" (A2-C5)
"Faces in the Crowd" (G2-A4)
"Heart Behind These Hands" (B♭2-B4)
"I Can't Stop the Rain" (A2-A4)
"Space Ace" (G♯2-G♯4)
"Good Times" (C♯3-A5)
"Last Night" (F♯2-B4)
"Bad People Burn in Hell" (D3-G♯5)
"Nothin' to Lose" (E♭3-A♭5)
"Where Will They Run?" (A2-C5)
"Faces in the Crowd" (G2-A4)
"Heart Behind These Hands" (B♭2-B4)
"I Can't Stop the Rain" (A2-A4)
"Space Ace" (G♯2-G♯4)
Previous version of this thread by 1999 on TRP3.