DRESSED TO KILL: 50TH ANNIVERSARY SUPER DELUXE EDITION Kiss (Universal Music) *****
Kiss’s third album, the one before Alive! Came and changed everything, was released in the spring of 1975. Dressed To Kill was short, clocking in at 30:07. It did okay, peaking at #32 on the Billboard charts. The 50th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition is an entirely different beast. The version I got on the I Tunes includes 4 different ‘discs’; the original album, a set of demos and alternate mixes plus a previously unreleased song. Discs 3 & 4 include stuff recorded at Cobo Hall in Detroit and RKO Theater in Des Moines, 2 of the 3 shows recorded for Alive; but here, though remixed by Eddie Kramer, they contain no overdubs- the difference is startling.
I’ll take a mulligan on examining the original album presented here as it sounds just like the discs you and I already have. Best songs are Getaway and C’Mon and Love Me. The most fun is the set of demos and alternate versions, 24 cuts in all… but did we really need 6 different takes of Rock & Roll All Nite? There’s a version with party noises and handclapping, kinda neat, but it’s one of those songs I’ve already heard a squijillion times too many. Hearing the cuts we already know in various stages of completion is mildly fascinating, but that appeal wears thin quickly. Two tracks here stand out, though; the previously unheard country-ish Mistake a Paul Stanley number, and a ferocious version of Burning Up With Fever that I prefer to the one that finally appeared on Gene Simmons’ 1978 solo album.
Discs 3 & 4, the live stuff from Detroit and Des Moines, is the main attraction in this box set because it lets us hear what Alive would’ve sounded like without being recreated in the studio by Kiss and Eddie Kramer. These shows are good, the performances are solid, but had these songs been put out like this on Alive instead of the heavily overdubbed version, that album wouldn’t have been a big deal. Best cut from Cobo: Nothing To Lose. From Des Moines Black Diamond.
Dressed To Kill: 50th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition is essential listening for Kiss fans. Look- we all know that, with the possible exception of Peter Criss’s drums, Alive was really recorded in the studio, but it accurately portrayed the excitement of a live Kiss gig at the time, bridging the gap between 3 uneven studio records and what seeing one of their shows felt like. I should know, I’ve seen them 8 times over the years and my first was Feb 1976 in Spokane. Paul Stanley explained it to me once; “we were becoming this huge concert draw but our albums really didn’t sell very well… so maybe what people wanted was a souvenir of the show.” Yup!
Let Alive in all its glory and this box set each stand alone as different chapters of the same exciting story. I will continue to listen to Alive, and appreciate this box set for what it is- the glorious lead-up to some truly exciting rock & roll.
HOT TRACKS: (already listed above)
THE END Mammoth (I Am The Sheriff/ BMG) ****
Wolfgang Van Halen isn’t letting the grass grow under his feet, releasing his 3rd album in 4 years. The End is dense, articulate rock & roll with Wolf handling all instruments and vocals once again, with Michael “Elvis” Baskette producing too at 5150, the studio Eddie built in the early 80’s- a winning combination. Other than his last name and occasional outbursts of tapping you’d never relate this to VH as The End (plus I & II for that matter) have much more in common with grunge and post-grunge rock.
As I spin The End the bands that come to mind are Alter Bridge and Alice In Chains as dark, chewy vibes abound. Wolf’s recording methods here were different from the first two albums which, in part, explains the sonic growth. “In the past I would use Logic Pro to sit there and type out a drum part with midi drums then play guitar to it” he says in an article on Wikipedia. “This time I was able to play guitar in the moment, then run out and play drums. It was way more fun to sit at the kit and perform what came naturally to me. Doing these parts back to back in real time was a game changer.”
Unlike John Fogerty or Paul McCartney who have been known to play drums on their own records, Wolfgang was a drummer before he picked up the guitar so the rhythms as well as relationship between all the instruments is more natural. Unlike his famous dad he’s a good singer, but like EVH he’s wickedly talented on guitar. Though their playing styles are quite different, no doubt he picked up a couple of tricks from his old man.
I picked up the first album out of curiosity to see what the kid had to offer, and I bought II and The End because I was really digging what I heard. If Mammoth sounded like Van Halen I’d be disappointed but Wolfgang is no nepo baby… he’s got the chops and creative drive to chart his own course, and I for one am thrilled to take the ride as a listener. This album is a wrecking ball.
HOT TRACKS: All In Good Time, The Spell, The End
KIMUZIKI: LIVE IN DES MOINES Hudspeth & Taylor (independent) *****
This jewel of an album is also Hudspeth & Taylor’s first live release. Recorded at the Central Iowa Blues Society’s 2025 Winter Blues Festival, Brandon and Jaisson didn’t know they were being recorded, so Kimusziki has a relaxed, unpretentious feel that most live records miss. It’s just two guys; Hudspeth on guitar and Taylor on the mic, resulting in elemental magic.
“I had been thinking about doing a live album” Taylor says, “but I’ve really been focused on writing for another studio record. At the same time I also felt like we needed to get something out there now because it can take a while to finish an album.” Kimuziki (it means ‘musical’ in Swahili) was recorded by Phil Maase for Iowa Public Radio and used here by permission. Just two guys on stage, with Hudspeth on guitar and Taylor singing and handling percussion, makes for a deepl experience. Live In Des Moines is 9 cuts in all; 3 from Hudspeth & Taylor’s previous albums and 6 blues classics from masters of the form. Those include Muddy Waters’ Honey Bee, Jimmy Reed’s Going To New York which opens the album, and Willie Dixon’s Spoonful among them. The album focuses more on the music as opposed to crowd participation and these tracks are spellbinding. I might be going out on a limb here, but I imagine this to be the kind of record Page & Plant wish they could had made.
Working together for nearly two decades, Hudspeth & Taylor have evolved over time. “We started out with an electric guitar and a regular drum set” Taylor says, “but there were times when people thought we were too loud for a room so we went acoustic.” I for one am sure glad they did. In a world full of white noise and anger, an intimate experience like this record becomes precious and more rare. Kimuziki is the kind album that allows you to pull back and recharge; it’s fine company.
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HOT TRACKS: Going To New York, Honey Bee, I Know It’s Going To Rain Again
JACK TOWN USA Various Artists (Mija Records/ Orchard/ Sony) *** ½
This is a companion soundtrack to a book project of the same name. Jack Town USA highlights a handful of prominent Mississippi blues and southern soul artists. At least as much funk and soul as it is blues, this disc represents 8 of the artists covered in the book and it’s a lively mix.
“Mississippi is the birthplace of America’s music” says co-author Kamel King, “and Jackson is the capital city of American music.” Artists who hail from California and Tennessee might not agree with that sentiment 100%, but Jack Town USA works hard to make the case. King heads up Emerald Tiger Artist Management which represents the artists included in the book and cd, so maybe his opinion is just a wee bit skewed, but the performances are tight and the production is robust yet clean. Jack Town USA includes songs from Rashad The Blues Kid, Chad Wesley, Zac Harmon, Stevie J Blues, Four Washington, Eddie Cotton, Dexter Allen and Jacktown Sons, with each having a music video and lyric video to support their contributions.
With its combination of funk, soul, blues and jazz from these Mississippi artists, perhaps Jacktown USA represents the junction where blues of the past and future converge to move things along, certainly an exciting idea to ponder. While I’ve heard of 2 or 3 of the artists included here I’m encountering the others for the first time, and I’m always up for a journey of musical discovery. Full of fine playing and righteous grooves, this disc is worth checking out and can be found on all digital and streaming platforms. Now I need to get ahold of the book to put the whole thing together.
HOT TRACKS: Hooked (Dexter Allen), Juke Joint Lover (Stevie J. Blues), Dancing In Our Love (Four Washington)
ARRIVAL The Lucky Losers (MoMojo Records) ****+
Arrival is the 6th release for this San Francisco-based duo. With soulful singer Cathy Lemons at the mic, Phil Berkowitz sharing vocals and blowing some righteous harp and Kid Andersen producing once again, it’s a winning combination that gets better every time out.
Arrival is 11 tracks in all, 5 coming from Lemons and 5 from Berkowitz, with Ain’t The Marrying Kind being a joint effort. Lots of different vibes on this set, from the playful funk of the opening number S-C-A-M to the deep gospel soul of Pull The Rope and all the blues you can use in between, this is an album with many different sides; uptown blues, funk, 60’s soul, R&B and even 70’s rock. The lyrics get pretty deep, and the grooves are luscious.
“Arrival is our breakthrough album, and the most personal music I’ve ever written” Cathy says. “(The songs I wrote) pushed me to take real risks. For example, Believe Her confronts childhood sexual abuse, and Pig Iron Tough reflects on the ‘made-of-steel’ resilience it takes to survive touring. (It’s also) rooted in my childhood when I moved 15 times before the age of 17; got no friends, always new in town, until you move again.” The album overall, whether Cathy’s or Phil’s songs, are telling some pretty deep stories and the musicianship is relaxed and excellent. As for working with Andersen again as producer at his Greaseland studios, Lemons says “working with (him) is always transformative- he has a genius for shaping harmonies and bringing out the best in our voices. Phil soars on harmonica with his big, fat tone. We are not confined to someone else’s idea of what Blues and Soul is. Phil and I are pretty fearless on this album.”
Arrival is beautifully executed blues with plenty of soul and a taste for funk in many of the arrangements. It’s also feeling like it should be on my year end best of 2025 list.
HOT TRACKS: Pull on The Rope, Play It From The Heart, My Father’s Song
