Peter Criss
| Peter Criss | |
|---|---|
Peter Criss during the 1995 convention tour
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | George Peter John Criscuola |
| Also known as | "The Catman" |
| Born |
December 20, 1945 Brooklyn, New York, U.S. |
| Genres | Hard rock, heavy metal, jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter, producer, actor, author |
| Instruments | Drums, percussion, vocals |
| Years active | 1964–present |
| Labels | Casablanca, Mercury |
| Associated acts | Kiss, Chelsea |
| Website | petercriss |
George Peter John Criscuola (born December 20, 1945), better known by his stage name Peter Criss, is an American musician and actor, best known as a co-founder, original drummer, and occasional vocalist of the hard rock band Kiss. Criss established the "Catman" character for his Kiss persona.
George Peter John Criscuola was born in Brooklyn, New York, the oldest of five children of Loretta and Joseph Criscuola. His father's family came from Scafati, Salerno, Italy. He grew up in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn. He was a childhood friend of Jerry Nolan, who would later find success as the drummer for the New York Dolls.
He was an avid art student and a swing aficionado. While playing with bandleader Joey Greco, Criss ended up studying under his idol, Gene Krupa, at the Metropole Club in New York. This turned into an active musical career as he went on to play jazz and rock with a number of bands in New York and New Jersey throughout the 1960s.
Criss was involved with a number of bands throughout the mid-to-late 1960s. It was during this time that Criss joined Chelsea, who had a two-album deal with Decca Records; the group released a self-titled album in 1970. They never recorded a second album, and in August 1971 became Lips (a trio consisting of Criss and his Chelsea bandmates Michael Benvenga and Stan Penridge). By the spring of 1972, Lips was just the duo of Criss and Penridge.
In 1973, Pete Shepley & Mike Brand recorded an unreleased album which included post-Chelsea Michael Benvenga, and pre-Kiss Peter Criss and Gene Simmons as session musicians. It was titled Captain Sanity.
After the demise of his band Lips, Criss placed an advertisement in the East Coast edition of Rolling Stone Magazine, which read:
EXPD. ROCK & roll drummer looking for orig. grp. doing soft & hard music. Peter, Brooklyn.
Contrary to the story that has been recited by fans and the band for years, there was never an ad placed that said "Drummer willing to do anything to make it." The advertisement was answered by Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons, who were looking for new members for their band. Ace Frehley was added to the lineup in December 1972, and the band was named Kiss later that month. However, Simmons describes first meeting Criss in his book Kiss And Make-Up thus:
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Wikipedia