Tommy Thayer Talks with Classic Rock History
By Andrew Daly / www.classicrockhistory.com
Photo by Keith Leroux
Though KISS is officially off the road, that doesn’t mean its longest-tenured guitarist, Tommy Thayer, is giving up the ghost. Quite the contrary, as Thayer has been active for various charity gigs and digging in on a myriad of side projects he’s got more time for now with KISS meeting its end as a live act.
To that end, while fans often give Thayer a hell of a hard time, make no mistake—he was integral to KISS’s latter career success. Sure, Ace Frehley will always be the original Spaceman, but there’s no denying that Thayer handled the gig with grace, bravado, skill, and showmanship. Moreover, the two records he was a part of, 2009’s Sonic Boom and 2012’s Monster, have aged wonderfully and are slowly but surely becoming KISS classics.
Elsewhere, as per KISS tradition, Thayer’s rig was ever-evolving. Much like those before him (and who he shared space in the band with), Thayer was known for brandishing a myriad of gorgeous guitars, all of which were plugged into a tidy stack of big-ass amps. But, of course, that’s KISS tradition, meaning Thayer was merely holding up his end of the bargain with an endgame goal of world domination. Mission accomplished, yeah?
When we look back on Tommy Thayer, sure, he’ll be remembered for his over 20-year tenure as the lead guitarist of KISS. But beyond the hyper lightest stage of the KISS machine, his exploits as founder and lead guitarist of Black N’ Blue—an underrated ‘80s institution—and his session work with Doro, and KISS, and with his post-Black N’ Blue band, Harlow, are all worthy entries into a career filled with more highs than you can shake a stick at.
Tommy Thayer of Kiss: The ClassicRockHistory.com Interview - ClassicRockHistory.com
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