Paul Stanley (born Stanley Bert Eisen; January 20, 1952) is an American musician who is the co-founder, frontman, rhythm guitarist and co-lead vocalist of the hard rock band

Kiss A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...

. He is the writer or co-writer of many of the band's most popular songs. Stanley established The Starchild character for his Kiss persona. Stanley was inducted into the

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and othe ...

in 2014 as a member of Kiss. In 2006, ''

Hit Parader ''Hit Parader'' was an American music magazine that operated between 1942 and 2008. A monthly publication, it focused on rock and pop music in general until the 1970s, when its focus began turning to hard rock and heavy metal. By the early 1980s ...

'' ranked him 18th on their list of the Top 100 Metal Vocalists of All Time. A Gibson.com readers' poll in 2010 named him 13th on their list of Top 25 Frontmen.

Early life

Stanley Bert Eisen was born January 20, 1952, in upper

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, New York City, near 211th St. and

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

; the Inwood neighborhood near

Inwood Hill Park Inwood Hill Park is a public park in the Inwood neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, operated by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. On a high schist ridge that rises above the Hudson River from Dyckman Street to the n ...

. Both of his parents are Jewish. He was the second of two children; his sister Julia was born two years earlier. Their mother came from a family that fled

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

, Netherlands, and then to New York City. His father's parents were from Poland. Stanley was raised Jewish, although he did not consider his family very observant and did not celebrate his bar mitzvah. His parents listened to classical music and

light opera Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue. Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a ne ...

; Stanley was greatly moved by

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...

's works. Stanley's right ear was misshapen from a birth defect called

microtia Microtia is a congenital deformity where the auricle (external ear) is underdeveloped. A completely undeveloped pinna is referred to as anotia. Because microtia and anotia have the same origin, it can be referred to as microtia-anotia. Microtia ...

until having reconstructive surgery at age 30 in 1982; he was unable to hear on that side, he found it difficult to determine the direction of a sound, and he could not understand speech in a noisy environment. Attending PS 98, he was taunted by other children for his deformed ear. Despite his hearing problem, Stanley enjoyed listening to music, and he watched ''

American Bandstand ''American Bandstand'', abbreviated ''AB'', is an American music-performance and dance television program that aired in various versions from 1952 to 1989, and was hosted from 1956 until its final season by Dick Clark, who also served as the pro ...

'' on television. His favorite musical artists included

Eddie Cochran Ray Edward Cochran (; October 3, 1938 – April 17, 1960) was an American rock and roll musician. Cochran's songs, such as " Twenty Flight Rock", "Summertime Blues", " C'mon Everybody" and " Somethin' Else", captured teenage frustration and desir ...

Dion and the Belmonts Dion and the Belmonts were an American vocal trio prominent throughout the 1950s. All of its members were from the Bronx, New York City. In 1957, Dion DiMucci joined the vocal group the Belmonts. The established trio of Angelo D'Aleo, Carlo M ...

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as "rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis made ...

and

Little Richard Richard Wayne Penniman (December 5, 1932 – May 9, 2020), known professionally as Little Richard, was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was an influential figure in popular music and culture for seven decades. Described as the " ...

. Stanley learned to sing harmony with his family, and he was given a child's guitar at age seven. Stanley's family relocated to the

Kew Gardens Kew Gardens is a botanical garden, botanic garden in southwest London that houses the "largest and most diverse botany, botanical and mycology, mycological collections in the world". Founded in 1840, from the exotic garden at Kew Park, its li ...

neighborhood in

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

in 1960. He listened to a lot of

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

music, but when

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

and

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

played on U.S. television he was inspired by the performance aspect, which he thought was not out of his reach. Stanley received his first real guitar at age 13, an acoustic one that he would have preferred to be electric. He played tunes by

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

the Byrds The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole cons ...

the Lovin' Spoonful The Lovin' Spoonful is an American rock band popular during the mid- to late-1960s. Founded in New York City in 1965 by lead singer/songwriter John Sebastian and guitarist Zal Yanovsky, the band is widely known for a number of hits, including ...

and more. All through his childhood Stanley had been recognized for his talent at graphic arts, so he attended the

High School of Music & Art The High School of Music & Art, informally known as "Music & Art" (or "M&A"), was a public specialized high school located at 443-465 West 135th Street in the borough of Manhattan, New York, from 1936 until 1984. In 1961, Music & Art and the High ...

in New York City, graduating in 1970.

Kiss

Before Kiss, Stanley was in a local band, Rainbow and was a member of Uncle Joe and Post War Baby Boom. Through a mutual friend of

Gene Simmons Gene Simmons (born Chaim Witz; he, חיים ויץ, ; born August 25, 1949) is an Israeli-American musician. Also known by his stage persona The Demon, he is the bassist and co-lead singer of Kiss, the hard rock band he co-founded with Paul ...

, Stanley joined Simmons' band

Wicked Lester Wicked Lester was a rock band based in New York City. Two notable members were bassist Gene Klein and rhythm guitarist Stanley Eisen. Originally formed in 1970 as Rainbow, the band changed its name to Wicked Lester in 1971 to avoid confusion with ...

in the early 1970s. The band recorded an album in 1972, but it was never officially released. Wicked Lester fell apart and Stanley and Simmons answered

Peter Criss George Peter John Criscuola (born December 20, 1945), better known by his stage name Peter Criss, is a retired American musician, best known as a co-founder, original drummer, and vocalist of the hard rock band Kiss (band), Kiss. Criss establi ...

's advertisement in ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

''. Soon after recruiting Criss, they held auditions for a lead guitarist, with Stanley placing an ad in the ''Village Voice''.

Ace Frehley Paul Daniel "Ace" Frehley (; born April 27, 1951) is an American musician, best known as the original lead guitarist and co-founding member of the hard rock band Kiss. He invented the persona of The Spaceman (a.k.a. Space Ace) and played wit ...

won the group over with his playing, and was nearly a perfect fit to the group's sound. Kiss released their self-titled debut album in February 1974. At this point, Stanley had the idea of changing his name not only for marketing purposes but also the fact he had always hated his birth name. Inspired by

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

and

Paul Rodgers Paul Rodgers (born 17 December 1949) is a British singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He was the lead vocalist of numerous bands, including Free, Bad Company, The Firm, and The Law. He has also performed as a solo artist, and co ...

, he legally changed his name to Paul Stanley. Stanley's persona in Kiss is "the Starchild" displaying one star over his right eye. For a brief time, Stanley tried out a new character "the Bandit", with a "

Lone Ranger The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked former Texas Ranger who fought outlaws in the American Old West with his Native American friend Tonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture. He first appeared in 1933 in ...

" style mask design make-up pattern. This make-up design was used during a few 1973–74 shows and photo-shoots, some of which he was photographed with both designs in the same session. "I even tried painting my face all red," he admitted. "I looked like a longhaired tomato! Before settling on the star, I'd just paint a black ring around my eye… Each of us wears something that reflects who we are. I always loved stars and always identified with them – so, when it came time to put something on my face, I knew it would be a star." KISS Pictures 165

In his book ''Sex Money Kiss'',

says Stanley was the driving force for KISS during the period in the 1980s when the band performed without makeup. Those years, Stanley noted, "were fine for me. I found them very satisfying because I got a chance to be out there without makeup, which I craved at that point. I think it was easier for me '' han Simmons' because my persona was one that wasn't really defined by the makeup… The makeup was just reinforcing what you were seeing and who I was." In 2007, Stanley was hospitalized with

tachycardia Tachycardia, also called tachyarrhythmia, is a heart rate that exceeds the normal resting rate. In general, a resting heart rate over 100 beats per minute is accepted as tachycardia in adults. Heart rates above the resting rate may be normal (su ...

. In his absence, Kiss performed live as a trio for the first time in decades. The concert was the first Kiss performance Stanley missed.

Solo career

Stanley released his first solo album ''

Paul Stanley Paul Stanley (born Stanley Bert Eisen; January 20, 1952) is an American musician who is the co-founder, frontman, rhythm guitarist and co-lead vocalist of the hard rock band Kiss. He is the writer or co-writer of many of the band's most popula ...

'' as part of the four simultaneously released Kiss solo albums, but he has rarely recorded or performed outside of Kiss. He wrote and recorded material for another album in 1987–88, but it was shelved in favor of the Kiss compilation ''

Smashes, Thrashes & Hits ''Smashes, Thrashes & Hits'' is a compilation album by the American hard rock band Kiss. It was the fourth hits album overall but the second hits album released by the band in the United States ('' Killers'' and '' Chikara'' were not released t ...

''. While never officially released, songs such as "Don't Let Go" and "When Two Hearts Collide" have circulated as

bootleg recording A bootleg recording is an audio or video recording of a performance not officially released by the artist or under other legal authority. Making and distributing such recordings is known as ''bootlegging''. Recordings may be copied and traded ...

s. One song from the project, "Time Traveler", was released as part of Kiss' 2001

box set A box set or (its original name) boxed set is a set of items (for example, a compilation of books, musical recordings, films or television programs) traditionally packaged in a box and offered for sale as a single unit. Music Artists and bands ...

. In 1989, Stanley embarked on a brief club tour. His touring band included guitarist

Bob Kulick Robert Joel Kulick (January 16, 1950 – May 28, 2020) was an American guitarist and record producer, who worked with numerous acts such as Kiss, W.A.S.P., Alice Cooper, Lou Reed, Meat Loaf and Michael Bolton. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, ...

and future Kiss drummer

Eric Singer Eric Singer (born Eric Doyle Mensinger; May 12, 1958) is an American drummer. Associated with the hard rock band Kiss since 1991, he has also performed with artists such as Black Sabbath, Alice Cooper, Lita Ford, Badlands, Brian May and Gary ...

. The same year, Stanley sang lead on the title track for the soundtrack of the

Wes Craven Wesley Earl Craven (August 2, 1939 – August 30, 2015) was an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and editor. Craven has commonly been recognized as one of the greatest masters of the horror genre due to the cultural imp ...

horror film ''Shocker''. Twenty-eight years after releasing his first solo album, Stanley released a second album, ''

Live to Win ''Live to Win'' is the second solo studio album from Kiss vocalist, guitarist and co-founder Paul Stanley, released on October 24, 2006. The album's title track was featured in the ''South Park'' episode " Make Love, Not Warcraft", twenty days p ...

'', on October 24, 2006. Its title song "Live to Win" appears in the ''

South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boys Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand th ...

'' episode "

Make Love, Not Warcraft "Make Love, Not Warcraft" is the eighth episode in the tenth season of the American animated television series ''South Park''. The 147th episode overall, it first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on October 4, 2006. In the episode, nam ...

". In October and November 2006, Stanley embarked on a theater tour in support of ''Live to Win''. His touring band was the house band from the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

TV show '' Rock Star'', composed of

Paul Mirkovich Paul Mirkovich (born March 20, 1963) is an American musician from Los Angeles. He has been the band leader, keyboardist and duet singing partner for Cher for the last 16 years. He has also been the band director for Janet Jackson and Anastacia an ...

(keyboards),

Jim McGorman Jim McGorman (born c. 1974), a native of Philadelphia, is an American musician, songwriter/producer and multi-instrumentalist: guitarist, keyboardist, vocalist and drummer. McGorman is best known for his work with the House Band on the CBS televi ...

(guitar),

Rafael Moreira Rafael Moreira is a Brazilian-American guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and record producer, best known as the lead guitarist / vocalist on the hit CBS television shows '' Rock Star: INXS'' and '' Rock Star: Supernova'', MTV's ''Rock The Cradle ...

(lead guitar),

Nate Morton Nate Morton (born December 30) is an American drummer. He is the drummer for the house band on NBC's TV show ''The Voice''. In 2005 and 2006 Morton appeared on the Mark Burnett's '' Rock Star: INXS'' and '' Rock Star: Supernova'' reality shows, ...

(drums), and

Sasha Krivtsov Alexander Sasha Krivtsov, (born June 6, 1967) is a Russian bassist, best known as the bass player for the house band on the TV reality shows '' Rock Star: INXS'', '' Rock Star: Supernova'' and ''The Voice''. He has played with singer-songwriter Van ...

(bass). In April 2007, Stanley extended the tour to include Australia, playing in Coolangatta, Wollongong, Newcastle, Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Adelaide. Portions of the tour were filmed for a documentary titled ''Paul Stanley: Live to Dream'' by the Chicago-based Film Foetus. The band's performance at the

House of Blues House of Blues is an American chain of live music concert halls and restaurants. It was founded by Isaac Tigrett, the co-founder of Hard Rock Cafe, and Dan Aykroyd, co-star of the 1980 film ''The Blues Brothers''. The first location opened at ...

in Chicago was captured on film and released in 2008 on DVD and digital audio download formats as ''One Live Kiss''. In 2008, Stanley sang a duet with

Sarah Brightman Sarah Brightman (born 14 August 1960) is an English classical crossover soprano singer, actress and dancer. Brightman began her career as a member of the dance troupe Hot Gossip and released several disco singles as a solo performer. In 1981, ...

, " I Will Be with You", on her ''

Symphony A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning com ...

'' album. In 2016, he guested in

's covers album ''

Origins, Vol. 1 ''Origins Vol. 1'' is the fifth studio album by American guitarist Ace Frehley, released on April 13, 2016 in Japan and April 15 in the United States. It is a covers album which features guest appearances from Slash, Lita Ford, John 5, Mike M ...

'', singing " Fire and Water" by Free. In 2015, Stanley established Paul Stanley's Soul Station, a tribute band playing a mix of soul oldies from the 1960s and 1970s with original songs in the same style. Paul Stanley's Soul Station released its first album in 2021, along with its lead single, the original "I, Oh I."

Vocals

Possessing a tenor vocal range, Stanley tends to sing in the high registers and is known for his

falsetto ''Falsetto'' (, ; Italian diminutive of , "false") is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous ed ...

Other projects

In 1999, Stanley starred in a Toronto production of ''

The Phantom of the Opera ''The Phantom of the Opera'' (french: Le Fantôme de l'Opéra) is a novel by French author Gaston Leroux. It was first published as a serial in from 23 September 1909 to 8 January 1910, and was released in volume form in late March 1910 by Pierr ...

'', in which he played the role of the Phantom. He appeared in the musical from May 25 to August 1, and again that year from September 30 to October 31, 1999, closing the show's ten-year run in Toronto. Stanley made his debut as a painter in 2006, exhibiting and selling original works of art. Stanley collaborated with

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

-based

power pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, an energetic performance, and ch ...

group

Click Five The Click Five (often abbreviated as TC5) was an American rock band from Boston, Massachusetts. The original members, most of them students at Berklee College of Music, started on January 1, 2004, and played in various local venues. They then ...

on their

hit single A hit song, also known as a hit record, hit single or simply a hit, is a recorded song or instrumental that becomes broadly popular or well-known. Although ''hit song'' means any widely played or big-selling song, the specific term ''hit record' ...

, "Angel To You (Devil To Me)". Stanley produced a debut album for the band

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

. Their first single from that album in 1978 "Don't Ever Wanna Lose Ya" reached the Top 40 in 1979. In 2012, Stanley partnered with Gene Simmons and three other investors to form the restaurant franchise Rock & Brews. On August 15, 2013, Stanley, Gene Simmons and manager

Doc McGhee Doc McGhee is an American music manager, best known for working with hard rock bands Kiss, Bon Jovi and Mötley Crüe. The latter two groups experienced their rise to stardom under his management. He has also worked with Hootie & the Blowfish. H ...

became a part of the ownership group that created the L.A. Kiss

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

team, which plays their home games at the

Honda Center The Honda Center (formerly known as the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim) is an indoor arena located in Anaheim, California. The arena is home to the Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League. Originally named the Anaheim Arena during construction ...

Anaheim, California Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the 10th-most p ...

. The team folded in 2016. In April 2014, Stanley published his memoir, ''Face the Music: A Life Exposed'' (). In the memoir, Stanley, who is Jewish, accused former bandmates Ace Frehley and Peter Criss of

antisemitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

. An unreleased song written by Stanley along with

Jean Beauvoir Jean Beauvoir is an American singer, bassist, guitarist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, producer and entertainment executive. He came to prominence in the early 1980s with the punk group the Plasmatics and went on to work with Little Steven ...

, titled "Like a Bee to the Honey", was recorded and released by the Finnish hard rock band

Lordi Lordi () is a Finnish hard rock/ heavy metal band, formed in 1992 by the band's lead singer, songwriter and costume maker, Mr Lordi (Tomi Petteri Putaansuu). In addition to their melodic metal music, Lordi are also known for wearing monster ma ...

for their album, ''

Killection ''Killection'' is the tenth studio album by the Finnish hard rock band Lordi. It was released on 31 January 2020, via AFM Records. The band stated that the album is considered a 'fictional compilation' and would contain songs you would normally ...

''.

Personal life

PaulStanleyOfKissWithPhilKonstantin (cropped)

In 2001, Stanley's first wife, actress Pamela Bowen, filed for divorce after nine years of marriage. They have one son, born in June 1994. On November 19, 2005, Stanley married longtime girlfriend Erin Sutton at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. I ...

. The couple had a son in September 2006, a daughter in January 2009 and a daughter in August 2011. In 1982, after he turned 30 years old, Stanley had reconstructive surgery for his right ear done by Frederic Rueckert, who had been performing the procedure primarily on children. The new ear was formed from cartilage from one of the singer's ribs, with skin grafts put over it. Stanley said the surgery had given him "a new lease on life" and was so grateful to Rueckert that he gave the doctor a

Rolex Rolex SA () is a British-founded Swiss watch designer and manufacturer based in Geneva, Switzerland. Founded in 1905 as ''Wilsdorf and Davis'' by Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis in London, the company registered ''Rolex'' as the brand name of ...

watch upon his retirement. Because of his birth defect of

, Stanley is an ambassador for the charitable organization AboutFace, an organization that provides support and information to people with facial differences. He has appeared at fundraising events and in videos to raise awareness. Stanley has had two hip-replacement surgeries: one after the "Rock the Nation" tour in October 2004, and a second in December 2004 after complications arose from the first surgery. He had announced in 2005 that he will require a third hip surgery in the future. He regards the degeneration of his left hip as partly the product of thousands of shows performed in

platform boots Platform shoes are shoes, boots, or sandals with an obvious thick sole, usually in the range of . Platform shoes may also be high heels, in which case the heel is raised significantly higher than the ball of the foot. Extreme heights, of both ...

since the early 1970s. In October 2011, Stanley had surgery on his

vocal cords In humans, vocal cords, also known as vocal folds or voice reeds, are folds of throat tissues that are key in creating sounds through vocalization. The size of vocal cords affects the pitch of voice. Open when breathing and vibrating for speech ...

. He said, "I hold myself to a higher standard than others do. With that in mind, I wanted to remedy a few minor issues that come with 40 years of preaching rock 'n' roll."

Awards

*Inducted into the

Long Island Music Hall of Fame The Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame was incorporated in July 2005 under the New York State Board of Regents, as a nonprofit organization and holds a provisional charter to operate as a museum in the state of New York. It recognizes ...

in 2006 *Showman of the Year award of the Classic Rock Awards for 2008 *Classic Gold Telly Award for his concert film '' One Live Kiss'' in 2009 *Sound Partners Lifetime Achievement Award from the House Research Institute *Gibson.com's Reader's Poll listed Stanley among rock and roll's 25 top frontmen and -women. *Stanley, along with original Kiss members, Gene Simmons, Peter Criss and Ace Frehley, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014.

Discography

Studio albums

Solo

* ''

'' (1978) * ''

'' (2006)

Paul Stanley's Soul Station

* ''Now and Then'' (2021)

with Kiss

* ''

'' (1974) * '' Hotter than Hell'' (1974) * '' Dressed to Kill'' (1975) * ''

Destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...

'' (1976) * ''

Rock and Roll Over ''Rock and Roll Over'' is the fifth studio album by American rock band Kiss, released in 1976. It was recorded at the Star Theatre in Nanuet, New York. Album information To get the proper drum sound, Peter Criss recorded his tracks in a bathroom ...

'' (1976) * ''

Love Gun ''Love Gun'' is the sixth studio album by American hard rock band Kiss, released on June 30, 1977. Casablanca Records and FilmWorks shipped one million copies of the album on this date. It was certified platinum and became the band's first top ...

'' (1977) * ''

Dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...

'' (1979) * '' Unmasked'' (1980) * ''

Music from "The Elder" ''Music from "The Elder"'' is the ninth studio album released by American rock band Kiss on the Casablanca Records label in 1981. The album marked a substantial departure from their previous output with the concept and orchestral elements. ''Mus ...

'' (1981) * ''

Creatures of the Night ''Creatures of the Night'' is the tenth studio album by American rock band Kiss, released in 1982. It was the band's last for Casablanca Records, the only label for which Kiss had recorded up to that point. The album was dedicated to the memor ...

'' (1982) * ''

Lick It Up ''Lick It Up'' is the eleventh studio album by American rock band Kiss. Before its 1983 release, the band members appeared on MTV without their trademark make-up. It was the first public appearance without make-up by the band, and their first ...

'' (1983) * '' Animalize'' (1984) * ''

Asylum Asylum may refer to: Types of asylum * Asylum (antiquity), places of refuge in ancient Greece and Rome * Benevolent Asylum, a 19th-century Australian institution for housing the destitute * Cities of Refuge, places of refuge in ancient Judea ...

'' (1985) * ''

Crazy Nights ''Crazy Nights'' is the fourteenth studio album by American rock band Kiss, recorded from March to June 1987 and released on September 21, 1987, by Mercury worldwide and Vertigo in the UK. This was the second album to feature the line-up of Ge ...

'' (1987) * ''

Hot in the Shade ''Hot in the Shade'' is the fifteenth studio album by American rock band Kiss, released in 1989. It is the first Kiss studio album since 1981's ''Music From "The Elder"'' to feature lead vocals from someone other than Paul Stanley or Gene Simmons ...

'' (1989) * ''

Revenge Revenge is committing a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. Francis Bacon described revenge as a kind of "wild justice" that "does... offend the law ndputteth the law out of office." Pr ...

'' (1992) * '' Carnival of Souls: The Final Sessions'' (1997) * '' Psycho Circus'' (1998) * ''

Sonic Boom A sonic boom is a sound associated with shock waves created when an object travels through the air faster than the speed of sound. Sonic booms generate enormous amounts of sound energy, sounding similar to an explosion or a thunderclap to t ...

'' (2009) * '' Monster'' (2012)

Live albums

* '' Alive!'' (1975) * ''

Alive II ''Alive II'' is the second live album by American hard rock band Kiss, released on October 14, 1977, by Casablanca Records. The band had released three albums (''Destroyer'', ''Rock and Roll Over'', and '' Love Gun'') since the previous live ou ...

'' (1977) * ''

Alive III ''Alive III'' is a live album released by the American hard rock band Kiss in 1993. It is the third installment of the ''Alive'' series. The recording of ''Alive III'' took place over multiple dates (in Cleveland, Detroit and Indianapolis) d ...

'' (1993) * ''One Live Kiss'' (2008) (DVD and digital download)

Guest appearances

* "Fire and Water" (from the Ace Frehley album ''

'') (2016)

References

Citations

Sources

* *

External links

Paul Stanley official website
*
Interview with Paul Stanley
ClassicRockCentral.com, 1999 {{DEFAULTSORT:Stanley, Paul 1952 births American heavy metal guitarists American heavy metal singers American hard rock musicians American painters Record producers from New York (state) American tenors American people of German-Jewish descent American people of Polish-Jewish descent Jewish rock musicians Jewish singers Living people Musicians with disabilities Kiss (band) members People from Kew Gardens, Queens Singers from New York City Rhythm guitarists Artists from New York City People from Inwood, Manhattan American rock songwriters Jewish heavy metal musicians Guitarists from New York City The High School of Music & Art alumni 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers 21st-century American male singers 21st-century American singers American male guitarists Jewish American songwriters Musicians with fictional stage personas