Ace Frehley, the lead guitarist and founding member of Kiss, was a maverick figure and an inspiration to countless rock musicians.
Following the announcement of Frehley’s death on 16 October at the age of 74, tributes were posted by a host of famous names including Tool singer Maynard James Keenan and guitarists Steve Vai, Mike McCready, Nuno Bettencourt and Tom Morello.
A joint statement was issued by Frehley’s former bandmates in Kiss, Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley: “We are devastated by the passing of Ace Frehley. He was an essential and irreplaceable rock soldier during some of the most formative foundational chapters of the band and its history. He is and will always be a part of Kiss’s legacy.”
Simmons and Stanley also offered their condolences to Frehley’s ex-wife and daughter: “Our thoughts are with Jeanette, Monique and all those who loved him, including our fans around the world.”
Peter Criss, the fourth member if the original and definitive Kiss line-up, commented: “With a broken heart and deep, deep sadness, my brother Ace Frehley has passed away. He died peacefully with his family around him. My wife and I were with him to the end as well.”
Criss added: “As a founding member of the rock group KISS and in Ace's solo career, Ace influenced and touch the hearts of millions of people. His legacy will live on in the music industry and in the hearts of the KISS Army.”
Among the many tributes from musicians, Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready posted: “I heard about Ace Frehley‘s passing from Rick Friel who I played with in a band called Shadow. Rick was also the first guy on the bus in 1977 with a Kiss lunchbox to tell me about Ace… just changed my life. I got a guitar in 1978 to join Rick‘s band Warrior which turned into Shadow. We covered C’mon And Love Me.
“All my friends have spent untold hours talking about Kiss and buying Kiss stuff. Ace was a hero of mine and also I would consider a friend. I studied his solos endlessly over the years… Just listen to Alive! I used his solo from [Kiss song] She as a template.
McCready added: "Ace jammed on Black Diamond with Pearl Jam at Madison Square Garden… a dream come true for me.
“I would not have picked up a guitar without Ace and Kiss’s influence.
“RIP it out Ace, you changed my life. Thank you.”
Rage Against The Machine’s Tom Morello also hailed Frehley’s huge influence.
“My first guitar hero, Ace Frehley, has passed away,” Morello stated. “The legendary Space Ace Frehley inspired generations to love rock ’n’ roll and love rock ’n’ roll guitar playing. His timeless riffs and solos, the billowing smoke coming from his Les Paul, the rockets shooting from his headstock, his cool spacey onstage wobble and his unforgettable crazy laugh will be missed but will never be forgotten. Thank you, Ace, for a lifetime of great music and memories.”
Born Paul Daniel Frehley on 27 April 1951 in The Bronx, New York City, the guitarist had two spells in Kiss – from the band’s inception in 1973 to 1982, and from 1996 to 2002.
He wrote key songs for Kiss including Cold Gin, Parasite and Shock Me – the latter his first recording as lead vocalist.
In early 2025 Frehley spoke to MusicRadar about Cold Gin and Shock Me.
Cold Gin was featured on the self-titled debut album by Kiss, and as Frehley recalled: “It just all came together really quickly. I was going down to rehearsals, and I remember writing Cold Gin on the subway. I wrote it without a guitar. The riff just came into my head.
“When I got to rehearsal on 23rd Street in New York City, I started fooling around with my guitar and figuring out the rest of the riff. Then I played it for Paul and Gene, and they really liked it.”
He added with tongue in cheek: “There wasn’t much to my sound then, and there still isn’t! It just is what it is. [Cold Gin] is all about the tone. And aside from that, Kiss just had an attitude back then. The four of us were so different, but when we got together, it was magic.”
Shock Me was on the band's sixth studio album, Love Gun.
“It was my first lead vocal, and I was nervous about it,” he said. “I sang it lying on my back and had [producer] Eddie Kramer lower the lights in the studio…
“I never thought I was a lead singer. I just kind of felt it out as best I could, even though I just wanted to play guitar. I did it because I had to.”
Asked to sum up his unique approach to playing and performing, Frehley told MusicRadar: “I hope the fans realise that I’m for real. All the stuff I’ve done was not contrived or remotely premeditated. It was always spontaneous. That’s just how I am.”
