Every day is KISS-ing day with Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Gene Simmons
It�s International Kissing Day.
What better day to speak with Gene Simmons, a man who, for the past 40-plus years has made Kiss-ing time his life and his career?
The bassist for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame members is in a typically quippy and self-promoting mood on this particular afternoon, acknowledging the greeting of �Happy you day,� with an insistence that you �should use your lips anyway, whether it�s a day for it or not because women don�t wear makeup for nothing, so you�ve got to take care of them.�
That�s the only reason they wear makeup?
�Well they don�t wear it for any other reason: they want attention from you, right?� Simmons says. �Specifically from you.�
Prior to The Demon and the rest of the makeupped members of Kiss � fellow founding member Paul Stanley, guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer � hitting Edmonton and Calgary with their Freedom to Rock Tour, Simmons spoke with Postmedia.
Q: The tour just kicked off (in Arizona on July 4), it sounds like Tucson was a hot, hot time?
A: It was literally 108 degrees (Fahrenheit) when we went outside to do a photo with the American flag, which I�m guessing was 300 or 400 feet long. I mean it was two football fields length and we went out and did, you know, what a lot of people should do, which is not take this stuff that�s hanging on poles for granted, including the Canadian flag. People have died for it. Just take a moment and give it the respect it demands.
Q: I also know that you continue that by having service members as your roadies.
A: It goes farther than that � We have a deal with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and in every single one of the cities we�re giving vets jobs, which means they�re getting paid � We do give vets jobs because it�s the least we could do. They rightfully take their place along with our road crew and put on the greatest show on Earth.
