It took more than a year of pleading — much of third and fourth grade — before my parents allowed me to buy my first KISS record. And it was Peter Criss’s solo album. The drummer. Thirty-four years later, that album is certifiably the worst of this iconic band’s 23 studio releases. Nonetheless, I’m a flag-bearing member of the KISS Army, a fact my daughters — now 13 and 10 — can attest with delight (I think). Among childhood passages I noted for the rest of my family were the moments when each of my girls could distinguish between a tune sung by Paul Stanley and one by Gene Simmons. These things matter.
And they’ll matter even more to the next generation of starchildren, for Rockabye Baby! has released a CD with lullaby renditions of KISS’s greatest hits. As the liner notes detail, “guitars and drums are traded for xylophones and bells, and the volume is turned down from an eleven to a two.” We all know (again, I think) that “Beth” is as sweet a bedtime tune as has ever been recorded. But now we have versions of “Detroit Rock City” (a Paul tune) and “Calling Dr. Love” (Gene) to help your little one’s cradle rock ever so gently.
Seriously, is there a better title for a lullaby than “I Was Made for Lovin’ You”? • For more information, check out rockabyebabymusic.com.