Alive II

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

The origins of Alive II trace back to early 1977 when manager Bill Aucoin suggested producer Eddie Kramer record a live album during the evening show at Budokan Hall in Tokyo on April 2, 1977. The initial plan was to release this recording to grant the band time off before autumn sessions for what became Love Gun. However, Casablanca Records and KISS deemed the resulting Japanese recordings unusable as a full album, forcing the group to proceed with Love Gun studio sessions. Consequently, most live tracks were recorded during August 26–28 shows at The Forum in Los Angeles while on the Love Gun Tour. Soundchecks at 3 p.m. on August 26 and 27 provided material like "Tomorrow and Tonight," where crowd noise was dubbed in later. Selected tracks "Beth" and "I Want You" were lifted from the unused Japanese tapes. To avoid duplicating Alive!, songs were chosen strictly from the band's three preceding studio albums.

In Their Own Story

Side four of the album presents a unique experiment: new studio recordings made without an audience at Capitol Theatre in Passaic, New Jersey. Recorded and overdubbed between September 13–16, 1977, these tracks were mixed at Electric Lady Studios in New York City. While Ace Frehley was originally credited for lead guitar on these studio songs, later sources confirmed Bob Kulick actually played lead on "All American Man," "Rockin' in the U.S.A.," and "Larger Than Life." Paul Stanley played all guitars on the cover of "Any Way You Want It." Frehley's sole involvement was "Rocket Ride," originally written for his solo album, where he sang lead and played both guitar and bass. The track "Rockin' in the U.S.A." notably referenced the previous year's Spirit of 76 European Tour and that spring's debut in Japan. Early copies of the cover featured a rare misprint listing three additional songs—"Take Me," "Hooligan," and "Do You Love Me?"—with an altered order, though none appeared on the actual LP.

Reader's Guide

The original vinyl issue was a 2-LP set featuring a gatefold cover and picture inner sleeves depicting crazed fans in a confetti storm. Continuing KISS tradition, it included a full-color booklet titled "The Evolution of Kiss" and temporary transfer tattoos. These tattoos featured the band logo, KISS Army logo, member heads, signatures, and symbols representing their personas: a skull and crossbones for Gene Simmons; a rose and star with an eye for Paul Stanley (copies of his actual tattoo); a Saturn-like planet and block print "ACE" for Frehley (copying his actual tattoo); and a drum and cat's head for Peter Criss. A merchandise order form allowed fans to "enlist" in the KISS Army. In 1997, the album was remastered and reissued on a slimline 2CD case with restored artwork and reproduced tattoos. It was re-released again in 2006 as part of KISS Alive! 1975-2000 as a single disc containing "Rock and Roll All Nite" as a bonus track.

Did You Know?

• The album was certified double platinum in February 1996, the same month the KISS reunion tour was announced.
• Bob Kulick played lead guitar on three studio tracks ("All American Man", "Rockin' in the U.S.A.", and "Larger Than Life") instead of Ace Frehley.
• "Beth" and "I Want You" were repurposed from unused live recordings made at Budokan Hall, Tokyo, on April 2, 1977.
• Early copies of the album cover featured a misprint listing three songs that never appeared on the actual record: "Take Me", "Hooligan", and "Do You Love Me?".