"Nothin' to Lose" is the debut single by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band

Kiss A kiss is the touching or pressing of one's lips against another person, animal or object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely; depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sex ...

, released on their self-titled debut album in 1974. It was the lead single off the album, with "Love Theme from KISS" as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

. Although the song failed to chart, it has remained a concert staple during the 1970s and was featured on many live albums and compilations.

Background

Gene Simmons Gene Simmons (born Chaim Witz; ; born August 25, 1949) also known by his stage persona "The Demon", is an Israeli-born American musician. He was the bassist and co-lead singer of the hard rock band Kiss (band), Kiss, which he co-founded wit ...

, the sole writer of the song, admitted that the song's lyrics chronicled the singer coercing his girlfriend into trying

anal sex Anal sex or anal intercourse principally means the insertion and pelvic thrusting, thrusting of the Erection, erect human penis, penis into a person's Human anus, anus, or anus and rectum, for sexual pleasure.Sepages 270–271for anal sex inform ...

, and his subsequent enjoyment of it. Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, and

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

share the lead vocals on the song. The song was the first Kiss song to feature an extra player, as Bruce Foster played piano on the track. His contribution was noted on the sleeve of the album. "Nothin' to Lose" was one of the first songs Kiss performed on their first national appearances, on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

's '' In Concert'' on February 19 (the show aired on March 29). Other songs performed on the show were " Firehouse" and " Black Diamond".

Reception

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' said that "one of the finest, new heavy metal bands to come out of New York City in some time debuts here (with Kerner-Wise at the controls) with a very heavy, very tasty rocker reminiscent of

Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock, although their musical style has varied throughout their career. Originally for ...

, yet able to stand freely alone on its own merits." ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of three major weekly music industry trade magazines in the United States, with ''Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 as ''Music Vendor''. In 1964, it was changed to ''Record World'' under the ...

'' called it a "hard rocker par excellence" with "big gutsy vocals and heavy instrumentals."

Live performances

"Nothin' to Lose" was played often during the 1970s and featured on Kiss's breakthrough album '' Alive!'' but largely ignored during the 1980s. The band performed the song at the Kiss Convention (one time with

) and ''

MTV Unplugged ''MTV Unplugged'' is an American television series on MTV. It showcases recorded live performances of popular music artists playing acoustic instrument, acoustic or "unplugged" variations of songs. The show aired regularly from 1989 to 1999. F ...

'', and during the Psycho Circus show in Los Angeles in the 1990s.

Appearances

"Nothin' to Lose" has appeared on the following Kiss albums: *''

'' - studio version *'' Alive!'' - live version *'' The Originals'' - studio version *''

Kiss Unplugged ''Kiss Unplugged'' is a live album by the American rock band Kiss, released in 1996. It was recorded in studio for the television program ''MTV Unplugged'' and released as part of a series of live and video albums. It is the first Kiss live al ...

'' - live version *'' The Box Set'' - studio version and the Unplugged version *''

Gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

'' - studio version *'' Kiss Chronicles: 3 Classic Albums'' - studio version *'' Kiss Alive! 1975–2000'' - Alive! version *'' Kiss Alive 35'' - live version Other appearances: *

of the " Kissin' Time" single *B-side of the " Shout It Out Loud" live single

Track listing

Personnel

;Kiss *

– bass, lead vocals *

– drums, lead vocals *

Paul Stanley Paul Stanley (born Stanley Bert Eisen; January 20, 1952) is an American musician who was the co-founder, frontman, rhythm guitarist, and co-lead vocalist of the hard rock band Kiss (band), Kiss from the band's inception in 1973 to their retireme ...

– rhythm guitar, lead vocals *

Ace Frehley Paul Daniel "Ace" Frehley (, ; born April 27, 1951) is an American musician who was the original lead guitarist, occasional lead vocalist and founding member of the rock band Kiss (band), Kiss. He invented the persona of The Spaceman (a.k.a. ...

– lead guitar, backing vocals ;Additional personnel * Bruce Foster –

acoustic piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an action mechanism where hammers strike strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a chromatic scale in equal tempe ...

, additional guitar

References

{{authority control 1974 songs 1974 debut singles Kiss (band) songs Songs written by Gene Simmons Casablanca Records singles Warner Records singles Anal eroticism