In the 70s Kiss was it. It was cool to be into Kiss. In the 80s, it was the exact opposite. By the late 80s and early 90s the makeup was off and Kiss were a (no pun intended) washed up "bunch of posers."

This DVD dispels the myth that Kiss were ever posers. They indeed were always great musicians and they were the inspiration for many metal bands rocking your world today (rumor has it that while backstage at a 70s Kiss show Eddie Van Halen's signature guitar tapping was inspired while seeing Ace Frehley do it). And Kiss so happen to have put on one of the most theatrical shows in rock and roll history.

And that history is captured on this 2-disk DVD, albeit mostly with terrible video quality.

Man, did I ever enjoy being able to see the original line-up of Kiss perform on these disks. The thing is that the awesome performances on these disks are mostly footage from 1974 - 1977 live shows, so the quality is early 70s video...and that ain't good. Often times in the live performances there are major reminders that the video is dated: horizontal lines across the picture, complete picture blackouts and just plain old low quality video.

On the other hand, the audio on the first two disks is a completely different story. The audio wizards cleaned up the sound on Disks 1 & 2 and they've offered it with a terrific 5.1 Dolby mix.

After enjoying what was more of a front row seat experience with the quality HD video and surround sound on the awesome, 5-star Rock the Nation 2004 DVD by Kiss, the live performances in the Kissology set were reduced to mere DVD viewings. However, it was great to reminisce and watch as Gene, Paul, Ace & Peter went through their classics of the era. And the Kissology set that I got included a 3rd bonus disk that to my surprise was a show from Madison Square Garden in February 1977 THAT I WAS AT! (Bonus disks were limited with various versions when this was released in 2006, so check the set at point of purchase if possible.)

They give you:

DISK 1

Long Beach, CA (absolutely atrocious audio & video, but interesting to watch)

2/17/74

"Acrobat"

(previously unreleased track)

ABC "In Concert" (terrible video for a television production)

3/29/74

"Nothing to Lose"

"Firehouse"

"Black Diamond"

The Mike Douglas Show

4/29/74

Interview (comical exchange between Gene and Totie Fields)

"Firehouse" (Not lip-synced!)

Winterland - San Francisco, CA (in Black & White)

1/31/75

"Deuce"

"Strutter"

"Got to Choose"

"Hotter than Hell"

"Firehouse"

"Watchin' You"

"Nothin' to Lose"

"Parasite"

"100,000 Years"

"Black Diamond"

"Cold Gin"

"Let Me Go, Rock 'n' Roll"

"The Midnight Special"

4/1/75

"She"

"Black Diamond"

Kiss Alive Promo Clips 1975

"Come On and Love Me"

"Rock and Roll All Night"

Documentary: Cadillace, Michigan October 1975

Cobo Hall Detroit, MI

1/26/76

"Deuce"

"Strutter"

"C'mon and Love Me"

"Hotter than Hell"

"Firehouse"

"She"

"Parasite"

"Nothin' To Lose"

"100,000 Years"

"Black Diamond"

"Cold Gin"

"Rock & Roll All Nite"

"Let Me Go, Rock 'n' Roll"

DISK 2

"So It Goes"

Interview

"Black Diamond"

The Paul Lynde Halloween Special

10/29/76

Interview

"King of the Night Time World"

Budokan Hall - Tokyo, Japan

4/2/77

"Detroit Rock City"

"Take Me"

"Let Me Go, Rock 'n' Roll"

"Ladies Room"

"Firehouse"

"Makin' Love"

"I Want You"

"Cold Gin"

"Do You Love Me?"

"Nothin' to Lose"

"God of Thunder"

"Rock & Roll All Nite"

"Shout it Out Loud"

"Beth"

"Black Diamond"

Don Kirshner's "Rock Concert"

5/28/77

"I Want You"

"Love `em & Leave `em"

"Hard Luck Woman"

The Summit - Houston, TX (The best video quality of all the live performances in the set)

9/2/77

"I Stole Your Love"

"Take Me"

"Ladies Room"

"Firehouse"

"Love Gun"

"Hooligan"

"Makin' Love"

"Christine Sixteen"

"Shock Me"

"I Want You"

"Calling Dr. Love"

"Shout It Out Loud"

"God of Thunder"

"Rock & Roll All Nite"

"Detroit Rock City"

"Beth"

"Black Diamond"

BONUS DISK 3 (Limited offer that came with purchase at Amazon in Oct 2006)

Madison Square Garden - New York, NY (Atrocious A/V, NOT remixed in Dolby)

2/18/77

"Detroit Rock City"

"Take Me"

"Let Me Go Rock and Roll"

"Firehouse"

"Nothin' to Lose"

"Shout It Out Loud"

"Black Diamond"

Regardless of the horrible video, all of the performances reflect the great show that Kiss put on: clear, effortlessly powerful vocals, some of the coolest guitar work of the time, Gene's signature bass and Peter's 101 Hard Rock drumming sound.

If you were/are a fan of Kiss...especially the early days...don't pass on this. Just be sure that your expectations are set for a view into the past with the past's picture quality. The performances are 5 stars; the audio is 4 stars; the picture quality is 2 stars. The opportunity to have this set on DVD and the nostalgia the set offers are 5 stars.

OK:

Here goes:

I personally called Fontana distribution and spoke with an account manager to finally clear this mess up.

YES, it is true. WALMART will have the bonus disc of 1977 LARGO and BEST BUY will have the 1st night of the COBO HALL 76 and all other retailers including AMAZON will have the bonus disc of MADISON SQUARE GARDEN 1977. The bonus discs DO NOT have the complete shows on them. They will contain 7 to 12 songs each. I have been in contact with some folks that have advance copies of this long awaited release and they assure me that it will be worth the wait. I was also able to get some unconfirmed "GOSSIP" regarding the next 2 volumes. There is a possibility that volume 2 will contain a FULL show from the CREATURES OF THE NIGHT tour with Vinnie Vincent. It is from New Orleans in 1983. I repeat::: I am NOT able to confirm this. Only time will tell. I hope this clears up all the confusion.

ROCK FORWARD;-)

A great DVD set containing a lot of stuff fans might already have, but likely an equal amount of stuff they don't have.

And the 5.1 sound and remastered video is awesome to see and hear.

I would suggest checking a -different- place to get the 1977 Largo Bonus DVD.

Most KISS-o-holics, like me, probably know most of the content featured on this DVD set. But here is the reason why you should consider to buy this:

1. The quality (Video & Audio) is far better than on any of the bootlegs of these concerts that have been circulating for quite some years.

2. It is way cheaper! Look at it this way: You get 4 complete concerts and 4 rare TV appearences (of the early years). You can not get the same amount of material for that price if you buy bootlegs.

One must consider though, that the recording technology that has been used at that time can not be measured by today's standards.But that's okay, because for us KISS fans it's about collecting a document of the early years and to see the development of the KISS show, isn't it?

We really have Led Zeppelin to thank for this package. It was the successful sales of their brilliant 2 disc DVD that woke Gene & Paul to release their version ... thank you Jimmy Page. Like the Zep set it goes right into the shows without going into the menu first.

With that said, I have the set and its true there are three versions.

Luckily I have the 'other version' not available at Best Buy or Walmart that features the '77 MSG footage that runs 27 mins - its a taste and all three versions feature a short disc. Its the best of the three sets because the show is one of the most energetic performances Ive seen of the band, I too have all of the bootlegs and have seen them all.

Theres also a great goof on Ace's part here where he forgets the solo on Shout it out loud. One of the only times he flubbed his lines.

Its a great set and about time this material was released officially.

I do have my reservations about it though. Being a fan since the 70's my opinion counts here 'people'. I wish they included the '76 Annaheim show, one of the best filmed, Im sure many of you have seen it. Im sorry to have to say that some of the video used isnt as good as some of the boots I have. They could have used better source material for the In Concert footage. The famous B&W Winterland footage isnt cleaned up. The Paul Lynde show is incomplete ... no Beth or Detroit. I wish they had picked the first night of Cobo Hall '76 and the first '77 Summit show, they were better performances. But there are the really good moments: Budokan and Houston look fantastic these are from near perfect video sources and are worth the purchase alone. Plus the British short So It Goes is a rare piece. Also the sound makes up for some of the lack of good video. 5.1, 2.0 and Gene & Paul commentary.

Overall a necessity to any KISS collection for the die hards like myself thats why I give it the 5 star treatment. But dont toss out your old video tapes you're going to want them especially since this set is incompete. I look forward to Vol 2. and hope there is a Dynasty era show.