Paul Stanley - Paul Stanley (1978)

“Paul Stanley” is a 1978 solo album from Paul Stanley, the rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist of American hard rock band Kiss. It was one of four solo albums released by the members of Kiss on September 18, 1978. It is the only album of the four Kiss solo albums to feature all original songs, as Simmons, Criss and Frehley each recorded one cover song on their albums.
Paul Stanley's 1978 solo album was the most Kiss-like of the four, sounding more like an official band release rather than a solo outing. But this isn't necessarily a bad thing Stanley had become a seasoned hard rock songwriter by this point, churning out some of Kiss' best material ("Love Gun," "Detroit Rock City," "I Want You," etc.), and wisely stuck to his winning formula on Paul Stanley. With the help of studio musicians, as well as guitarist Bob Kulick (who was almost an original member of Kiss, and brother of future Kiss replacement guitarist Bruce) and Rod Stewart/Vanilla Fudge drummer Carmine Appice, Stanley's album is on par with Ace Frehley's as far as consistency is concerned. A couple of epic compositions (by Kiss standards) are highlights  "Tonight You Belong to Me" and "Take Me Away (Together as One)"  as are the more straightforward tracks "Ain't Quite Right," "Wouldn't You Like to Know Me?," "It's Alright," and "Goodbye." While his other Kiss bandmates took more chances with their solo records (with varying results), Stanley's album is more or less what a new Kiss album released in 1978 would have sounded like.

Track listing

01. "Tonight You Belong to Me"  (Paul Stanley)  - 4:41
02. "Move On"  (Paul Stanley, Mikel Japp)  - 3:12
03. "Ain't Quite Right"  (Paul Stanley, Mikel Japp)  - 3:34
04. "Wouldn't You Like to Know Me"  (Paul Stanley)  - 3:16
05. "Take Me Away (Together as One)"  (Paul Stanley, Mikel Japp)  - 5:26
06. "It's Alright"  (Paul Stanley)  - 3:38
07. "Hold Me, Touch Me (Think of Me When We're Apart)"  (Paul Stanley)  - 3:40
08. "Love in Chains"  (Paul Stanley)  - 3:34
09. "Goodbye"  (Paul Stanley)  - 4:09

Credits
Paul Stanley - lead and backing vocals, rhythm guitar, lead guitar, acoustic guitar, EBow, all guitars
Bob Kulick - lead guitar, acoustic guitar
Steve Buslowe - bass guitar
Richie Fontana - drums
Eric Nelson - bass guitar
Craig Krampf - drums
Carmine Appice - drums
Peppy Castro - backing vocals
Diana Grasselli - backing vocals
Doug Katsaros - piano, Omni string ensemble and backing vocals
Steve Lacey - electric guitar
Miriam Naomi Valle - backing vocals
Maria Vidal - backing vocals
Jeff Glixman - engineer, producer
Paul Grupp - engineer
Barbara Isaak - assistant engineer
George Marino - remastering
Paul Stanley - producer, mixer
Mike Stone - mixer

Notes
Recorded at Electric Lady Studios, New York City, The Record Plant Studios and The Village Recorder, Los Angeles, California
Genre: Hard rock
Length: 35:14
Label: Casablanca Records
Producer: Paul Stanley, Jeff Glixman

© 1978