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TL;DR:

  • Paul Stanley heard one of Kiss’ songs on a station that played songs by Led Zeppelin and The Who.
  • The song was Kiss’ first single, “Nothin’ to Lose,” from 1974.
  • Stanley revealed what it was like to hear the song on the radio.
Led Zeppelin in black-and-white
Led Zeppelin | Chris Walter / Contributor

Paul Stanley used to listen to Led Zeppelin and The Who on a particular station. Subsequently, the station played Kiss’ first track, “Nothin’ to Lose.” Stanley wrote about this moment in his autobiography.

Paul Stanley incorrectly thought he received free food while recording Kiss’ songs for their 1st album

In his 2014 book Face the Music: A Life Exposed, Stanley discussed recording his band’s self-titled debut album, Kiss. He said the studio provided sandwiches for members of the band. They thought the sandwiches were free.

“We had no idea at the time that all those sorts of perks were tacked on to the recording bill, which went onto the tab we owed the record company,” he said. “All I could think was, ‘We’re in a studio, recording songs we wrote, living the dream, and being fed — how much better can it get?'”

Paul Stanley was elated to see Kiss get played on a station that played Led Zeppelin songs

Subsequently, record executive Neil Bogart told the band something about a song from Kiss. “Back in New York after about a week in Canada, Neil tipped us off that ‘Nothin’ to Lose,’ which he had released as a single, was going to be played at 2 P.M. one day on WNEW, the big local FM rock station,” Stanley wrote.

“My parents and I crowded around their Harman Kardon console and waited,” he added. “Then [radio host] Alison Steele said, ‘There’s a new band called Kiss, and here’s their first song.’ Then ‘Nothin’ to Lose’ played in our living room. That moment — hearing my band on the same station that played Led Zeppelin and The Who — was monumental. I’d spent hours listening to my heroes on that station.”

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How ‘Nothin’ to Lose’ performed on the pop charts in the United States

“Nothin’ to Lose” was Kiss’ first single. The song never charted on the Billboard Hot 100. The track appeared on the album Kiss, which peaked at No. 87 on the Billboard 200. The album remained on the chart for a total of 23 weeks.

“Nothin’ to Lose” and its parent album would be commercially overshadowed by many of the band’s subsequent songs and albums. “Nothing to Lose” later appeared as the opening track on the compilation album Kiss 40 Years: Decades of Decibels, a celebration of the band’s 40th anniversary. The compilation reached No. 30 on the Billboard 200 and lasted on the chart for two weeks.

“Nothin’ to Lose” was not a hit but hearing it on the radio was a major moment for Stanley.

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