Tuesday Top Ten: Ranking KISS's "Love" Songs

A couple weeks ago, KISS embarked on the One Last KISS: End of the Road World Tour -- which they are claiming is going to be their last tour ever.  It started in Vancouver on January 31, and is scheduled to end in Auckland, New Zealand on December 3.

We all know how much Gene Simmons loves adulation, money, and marketing the band, so whether this will truly be KISS's last tour remains to be seen.  But that doesn't mean we can't celebrate one of the true iconic bands of rock and roll history.

Of course, I'm going to see them when they come to Chicago in early March, and I'm taking all three of my kids because, well, this may be their first and only chance to see KISS live in concert, which is something everyone should do at least once in his or her life.

Over the next three Tuesdays, each Tuesday Top Ten will be devoted to KISS.  Since Valentine's Day is this Thursday, I decided to go with "love" songs by KISS for this week's Tuesday Top Ten.  There are 20 songs by KISS that have the word "love" or some variation of "love" in the title.  Here is how I rank them, along with the album on which they appeared, the year they were released, and a one- or two-sentence blurb about each song.  (For purposes of this list, I'm not including songs on the four "solo" KISS albums released in 1978.)

20.  "You Love Me to Hate You" (Hot in the Shade, 1989)
You can tell this is a "Paul" song, mostly because he is singing.  But also because it's a little more pop-oriented than a Gene song.  It's not bad.


19.  "Radar For Love" (Asylum, 1985)
As KISS trended toward the hair band sound in the mid to late '80s, some of the results were good, and some not so much.  This isn't a terrible song, but it's not one of their best efforts.


18.  "Prisoner of Love" (Hot in the Shade, 1989)
This is actually a pretty decent late '80s rock song.


17.  "All For the Love of Rock & Roll" (Monster, 2012)
This song has the sound of '70s KISS, and it features drummer Eric Singer on lead vocals.  The chorus leaves a little to be desired, but overall, the song is pretty good.

16.  "Love's a Slap in the Face" (Hot in the Shade, 1989)

I could see this on a number of hair bands' albums, and I don't mean that negatively.  It sounds very 1989 rock.


15.  "Tough Love" (Revenge, 1992)
As the rock world moved into the grunge era, KISS's sound between 1989's Hot in the Shade and 1992's Revenge got a little heavier.  This is a good example, as well as a nice, gritty rock song.

14.  "Love Theme from KISS" (KISS, 1974)
An instrumental written by all four members of the band that appeared on their debut album.

13.  "Love 'Em and Leave 'Em" (Rock and Roll Over, 1976)
A Gene contribution that is good, but not great, but certainly sums up his attitude toward women for much of the '70s.

12.  "I Still Love You" (Creatures of the Night, 1982)
A dark, brooding 6-minute song sung by Paul with passion.


11.  "Got Love For Sale" (Love Gun, 1977)
A good song that gets lost on an album of better songs.

10.  "C'mon and Love Me" (Dressed to Kill, 1975)

A solid rock song with a few good lines, but it's not their best work. It's not their worst, either.

9.  "I Was Made For Lovin' You" (Dynasty, 1979)
Yes, this is KISS bowing to the pressure of the era and putting out a disco-fied song, but it's still a good song.


8.  "Save Your Love" (Dynasty, 1979)
A solid rock song by Ace Frehley on an album that otherwise pandered to the disco era.

7.  "Makin' Love" (Rock and Roll Over, 1976)

A great uptempo rock song that became a live staple for the band.

6.  "Love Her All I Can" (Dressed to Kill, 1975)

An underrated gem on Dressed to Kill.

5.  "Do You Love Me" (Destroyer, 1976)

I've always liked this song, which is about groupies.  Only KISS can seriously sing a line like "You like my seven-inch leather heels / And going to all of the shows, but / Do you love me?"  The bridge is solid as well.

4.  "I Stole Your Love" (Love Gun, 1977)
The first track on Love Gun, this is a fast-paced song about stealing something intangible.

3.  "I Love It Loud" (Creatures of the Night, 1982)
This is a rock anthem that showed KISS hadn't lost its power in the early '80s.

2.  "Love Gun" (Love Gun, 1977)

The title track to one of the band's best albums.

1.  "Calling Dr. Love" (Rock and Roll Over, 1976)

A classic KISS staple.  It pains me that I wasn't familiar with this song when I was in high school because there was, in fact, an administrator at my school named Dr. Love.