"Beth"
Single by Kiss
from the album Destroyer
B-side"Detroit Rock City"
ReleasedAugust 1976
Recorded1976
StudioRecord Plant, New York City
GenreSoft rock[1]
Length2:49
LabelCasablanca Records
Songwriter(s)Bob Ezrin, Stan Penridge and Peter Criss
Producer(s)Bob Ezrin
Kiss singles chronology
"Flaming Youth"
(1976)		 "Beth"
(1976)		 "Hard Luck Woman"
(1976)

"Beth" is a song by American rock band Kiss, originally released on their 1976 album Destroyer. The song features drummer Peter Criss on lead vocals and was written by Criss, his friend Stan Penridge and producer Bob Ezrin. Casablanca Records released it as a single in August 1976, after it was released as the B-side of "Detroit Rock City". "Beth" is Kiss's biggest commercial hit in the United States; it reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100, received a Gold Record certification from the RIAA, and won the 1977 People's Choice Award for "Favorite Song". In 2003, "Beth" ranked #3 in VH1's 25 Greatest Power Ballads.[2]

Background

During drummer Peter Criss's time in Chelsea, he and the group's guitarist Stan Penridge decided to write a song that mocked a woman named Becky, the wife of their bandmate, Mike Brand. According to Criss, she regularly called the group during rehearsals to ask when her husband would come home, and this gave them the idea of composing the first verse of the song: "Beck, I hear you callin', but I can't come home right now. Me and the boys are playin', and we just can't find the sound".[3] Criss has said he composed the song for his first wife, Lydia.[4]

By 1975, Kiss had released three studio albums, in which Criss's compositional contributions were minimal;[5] the only track on which he appeared credited was the instrumental track "Love Theme from Kiss", written by the four members of the band and included on their self-titled debut.[6] Criss assumed the role of vocalist in other songs created by his bandmates;[7] however, for Destroyer, Criss set himself the goal of adding one of his own compositions. During a limousine ride, Criss sang an uptempo version of "Beck" for Simmons and Stanley, assuming they would not be interested in including a sentimental ballad on the album. Simmons and Stanley suggested that he sing it to producer Bob Ezrin, who agreed to record it and assured him that it would be a success. Ezrin's decision was motivated by the fact that the band's other songs were primarily about sex, and he believed that "Beck" was a love song that "everyone would relate to".[3]

Composition and recording

Ezrin made several arrangements of the song's melody and wrote part of the lyrics.[5] Gene Simmons suggested changing the name to "Beth" because it would be easier to sing and to avoid confusion with Jeff Beck.[8] However, Lydia Criss later claimed credit for proposing the change for the same reason, and because the original Becky had a twin sister named Beth.[9] Guitarist Ace Frehley attributed the modification to Ezrin, allegedly to make the name less androgynous.[10]

In his autobiography, Simmons recounted that "I have never seen [Criss] compose a single song. Peter might have contributed a line or two of the lyrics, but after listening to Penridge's original demo, it's clear who made the original song".[11] In a 2014 interview for Rolling Stone, Paul Stanley agreed with Simmons's assessment that Penridge was the main writer, and he commented that Criss had nothing to do with the composition of "Beth", adding that "if you write one hit, you should be able to write two".[12] Criss, in his defense, mentioned that Stanley was jealous because "he is the main vocalist of a group in which he did not write the greatest success. That's his problem. They hate the fact that I was the songwriter of a hit and won the People's Choice".[13]

For the song's recording, Ezrin brought the New York Philharmonic orchestra and musician Dick Wagner into the A&R studio as a substitute for Frehley.[14] According to Criss and Simmons, Frehley did not participate in the recording because he was engaged in playing cards with friends.[3][8] Once the orchestra arrived at the studio, Ezrin suggested that all 25 members wear fake tuxedos and that Criss appear in the studio in his trademark makeup so he could take some pictures. For his part, Ezrin put on a top hat and played the grand piano.[15] Finally, Criss recorded the vocals at the Record Plant studio.[14]

Structurally, "Beth" lacks a solo; instead, the mid-octave section repeats the intro along with the chorus in an orchestral interlude. The sound of the violin and viola, led by the cello, change the key from C major to A minor and then the trumpets, tubas, trombones and French horns enter, accentuating the hook.[14]

The song was a last-minute addition to the Destroyer album. According to Bill Aucoin, the manager of Kiss at that time, Simmons and Stanley did not want "Beth" on the album because it was not a typical Kiss song. Aucoin insisted on keeping the song on the record. During recording, Criss was the only band member in the studio, making "Beth" the only Kiss song to have no instrumentals from any member of the band. Criss was backed by a recording of a piano and harp, a dramatic departure from the band's usual hard rock sound.[16]

Release

Casablanca Records released "Beth" in August 1976 as Destroyer's fourth single. The album, released on March 4, peaked at #11 on the Billboard 200, but quickly began to decline. Its first two singles, "Shout It Out Loud" and "Flaming Youth", failed to match "Rock and Roll All Nite" - at that time the group's most successful song in the United States - and Casablanca Records executives had to choose another song from the album to release as a single.[17] Casablanca president Neil Bogart asked promoter and disc jockey Scott Shannon for his honest opinion on which of Destroyer's tracks was a potential hit. To his surprise, Shannon chose "Beth", although Bogart asked him to forget it because he felt the song had only been included as a favor to Peter Criss. In the face of Bogart's refusal, Shannon contacted vice president Larry Harris, who revealed that Bogart disliked "Beth" because it was his ex-wife's name and he felt the lyrics reflected the process of their divorce.[18]

Before the release of the third single, Bogart took a vacation in Acapulco, but not before giving the order to release "Beth" as the B-side of the next single, in order to reduce its chances of commercial success. During Bogart's absence, "Detroit Rock City" was released as a single, accompanied by "Beth", and was sent out to radio stations. To the bewilderment of the Casablanca executives, the jockeys chose to broadcast "Beth".[18] The song soon became one of the most requested by listeners, and Harris made the decision to reissue the single with "Beth" as side A. One significant contributor to "Beth"'s popularity was Rosalie Trombley, at the time the music director at "The Big 8" CKLW in Windsor, Ontario, immediately across the Detroit River from Detroit, Michigan. Trombley's daughter had a copy of "Detroit Rock City", but was hooked on "Beth" and convinced Trombley to add it to CKLW's playlist. After "Beth" became a hit, Kiss presented Trombley's daughter with a gold record.[19] Upon Bogart's return, he was forced to accept the situation due to the song's positive commercial reception. "Beth" reached #7 on the US chart, the best in Kiss' career, and achieved a gold record certification from the RIAA on January 5, 1977.[20] The impact of the song boosted Destroyer's sales and enabled the album to go platinum. "Beth" received the award for Favorite Song at the 1977 People's Choice Awards.

Live and media performances

Following the commercial success of Destroyer, Kiss included "Beth" in their concert repertoire due to popular demand. According to Criss, his bandmates did not want to perform it live, but Aucoin insisted that some new fans would be coming to their concerts because of the song. The rehearsals to play "Beth" live were described by Criss as a "nightmare" as none of the other band members played on the original track and Frehley could not play acoustic guitar. However, Aucoin and his partner Sean Delaney proposed using a pre-recorded instrumental track and having Criss sit on a drum case to sing it.[21]

The song's television debut was on The Paul Lynde Halloween Special on October 29, 1976, where Criss lip-synced a shortened version of the song while miming on piano. The song appears in Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park (1978) in a scene in which Stanley plays acoustic guitar while Criss sings.[22]

The acoustic version featured on Kiss Unplugged is the only recording with members of Kiss solely backing up Criss. The version of "Beth" featured on the group's 2003 Kiss Symphony: Alive IV DVD and subsequent album would be the only time the song was performed live with an ensemble. In 2010, the song was performed live for the first time with Eric Singer on acoustic guitar during their Sonic Boom Over Europe Tour and again on their The Hottest Show on Earth Tour in 2011. Later, it was again removed from setlists, but the band occasionally performed the song at meet and greet sessions. On the 2019 End of the Road World Tour, the song was performed by Singer, miming it on the piano.

Kiss' final show at Madison Square Garden in 2023 was broadcast live via pay-per-view. Although Singer's performance of "Beth" was shown on the live broadcast, a message was shown on replays notifying viewers that the performance could not be made available due to "copyright requirements". Some fans speculated that Criss himself denied the band permission to rebroadcast the song due to old animosity towards Stanley and Simmons.[23]

Other versions

Eric Carr, who replaced Criss as the band's drummer in 1980, never performed the song live during his stay, although he provided vocals to a studio version for the Smashes, Thrashes & Hits (1988) compilation album. Criss recorded an acoustic version of "Beth" for his limited edition EP Criss (1993). Criss described the recording as "a way to say to the fans, 'I'm back and I love you and only you the KISS fans can get this'". The same version appeared on his studio album Cat 1 (1994).[24]

In 2012, a version of "Beth" was included in Destroyer: Resurrected, a remixed version of Destroyer. Criss derided the release in an interview with Eddie Trunk, remarking, "Why touch a masterpiece?".[25]

Chart performance

Sales certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[33] Gold 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Personnel

References

  1. ↑ Lecaro, Lina (November 19, 2016). "This Monthly Club Is a Non-Ironic Celebration of Rock's Softer Side". LA Weekly.
  2. ↑ "VH1 list of 25 greatest power ballads". Rateyourmusic.com. Archived from the original on July 13, 2012. Retrieved March 6, 2011.
  3. 1 2 3 Criss 2012, p. 129.
  4. ↑ Prato, Greg. "Beth – Kiss". AllMusic. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  5. 1 2 Stanley 2014, p. 28.
  6. ↑ Prato, Greg. "Kiss – Kiss". AllMusic. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  7. ↑ Criss 2012, p. 99.
  8. 1 2 Simmons 2010, p. 8.
  9. ↑ Prato, Greg (February 15, 2016). "Lydia Criss Tells the 'Beth' Story". Songfacts. Retrieved November 2, 2016.
  10. ↑ Frehley, Ace (2011). No Regrets. Gallery Books. p. 151. ISBN 978-1-45-161394-0.
  11. ↑ Simmons 2010.
  12. ↑ Hiatt, Brian (March 26, 2014). "Kiss Forever: The Rolling Stone Cover Story". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 11, 2016.
  13. ↑ Childers, Chad (April 4, 2014). "KISS' Paul Stanley + Peter Criss Debate History of 'Beth'". Loudwire. Retrieved August 16, 2020.
  14. 1 2 3 Campion 2015, p. 11.
  15. ↑ Criss 2012, p. 130.
  16. ↑ David Leaf, Ken Sharp. KISS: Behind the Mask – Official Authorized Biography, Warner Books, 2005 ISBN 978-0-446-69524-4 p. 268
  17. ↑ Campion 2015, p. 20.
  18. 1 2 Campion 2015, p. 21.
  19. ↑ Radio Revolution: Rise and Fall of the Big 8 Dir. Michael McNamara. Markham Street Films, 2004. Film
  20. ↑ "RIAA Gold & Platinum database". Riaa.com. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved February 7, 2009.
  21. ↑ Criss 2012, p. 132.
  22. ↑ Criss 2012, p. 167.
  23. ↑ "Beth not in the replay PPV - KissFAQ.COM". www.kissfaq.com. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  24. ↑ Criss 2012, p. 252.
  25. ↑ Weiss 2016, p. 51.
  26. ↑ "Item Display – RPM – Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on November 22, 2015. Retrieved October 11, 2016.
  27. ↑ "Item Display – RPM – Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on November 10, 2015. Retrieved October 11, 2016.
  28. ↑ "Adult Contemporary Music Chart". Billboard. November 6, 1976. Retrieved October 11, 2016.
  29. ↑ "Top 100". Cashbox Magazine. November 20, 1976. Retrieved October 11, 2016.
  30. ↑ "Item Display – RPM – Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on November 21, 2015. Retrieved October 11, 2016.
  31. ↑ "Top 100 Year End Charts: 1976". Cashbox Magazine. Archived from the original on August 25, 2012. Retrieved June 5, 2016.
  32. ↑ "The Top 100 Hits of 1977" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 29, 2016. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  33. ↑ "American single certifications – Kiss – Beth". Recording Industry Association of America.

Bibliography

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