Former Kiss members have been approached about band's final show

Kiss
Ace Frehley, Paul Stanley, Peter Criss and Gene Simmons in 1974 (Image credit: Tom Hill/WireImage - Getty)

Kiss manager Doc McGhee says there have been talks with the band’s former members about potentially appearing at the their last-ever show.

Kiss will bring the curtain down on their legendary career in New York on July 17, 2021, with McGhee saying they want to celebrate the group’s legacy as the end draws near.

Speaking onboard the recent Kiss Kruise, McGhee said: “We want to include everybody that played with Kiss and celebrate 45 years of Kiss. And everybody, Vinnie Vincent and everybody else, that has played with Kiss is part of this whole celebration of 45 years. So, we're still looking at what we're going to do on the final show.

“They’ve all been talked to about it, so I can see us doing something. It’s very difficult though. People say, 'Oh, you should bring Ace Frehley and Peter Criss up.' How do you do that when you have two Catmen and two Spacemen? So you say, ‘OK, you don't wear make-up and you wear make-up.' And then they go, 'Well, that was my make-up.’ 

“It's really hard to do, but we'll figure it out because they're very much a part of the heritage of Kiss and they're acknowledged by Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley as being the founding members.

“It's just a matter of the balance and we can bring it to where it works for everybody and everybody is having a great time."

The New York venue has still to be announced, with Kiss recently revealing the date along with a further run of 2020 tour dates.

Scott Munro
Louder e-commerce editor

Scott has spent 35 years in newspapers, magazines and online as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. Scott joined our news desk in the summer of 2014 before moving into e-commerce in 2020. Scott keeps Louder’s buyer’s guides up to date, writes about the best deals for music fans, keeps on top of the latest tech releases and reviews headphones, speakers, earplugs and more for Louder. Over the last 10 years, Scott has written more than 11,000 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog. He's previously written for publications including IGN, Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald, covering everything from daily news and weekly features, to tech reviews, video games, travel and whisky. Scott's favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Cocteau Twins, Drab Majesty, The Tragically Hip, Marillion and Rush.