Ace Frehley - No Regrets

February 16, 2012

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CHRIS

No Regrets is the long-awaited and easily ingestible memoirs (or what Ace admittedly can remember) of a rock god guitarist that has influenced millions of would-be musicians around the world and escaped death and prison more times than he cares to recount. In 300 pages of text we get a side of Ace that we always knew existed but never really tapped into outside of his character. From his humble beginnings in the Bronx borough of New York, to his tenure in street gangs and various makeshift music groups, into his meteoric rise within the constraints of KISS to his solo career, this book is as easy a read as it gets; the guy speaks from the heart and you can literally hear his voice narrating throughout. He pulls no punches about things he’s done, feelings he’s felt, experiences he’s had, and the ever-present ‘guardian angels’ always ready to pull his carcass from the proverbial fire on more than one occasion. This is a guy that realizes just how lucky he is to still be around these days.

When the book delves into Paul ‘Ace’ Frehley’s early life as the “black sheep” of his family I feel a sense of camaraderie; to be the lost sheep in a flock of straights or commoners is what we have all felt at one point or another. Ace’s upbringing was pretty easy going, but early on his discovery of alcohol and girls got him into some trouble, especially joining the local street gang that might well have set him on a different path with one wrong misstep. His quick realization of the dead-end street he was heading down shifted his gears quickly and he traded bats and chains for the guitar full-time, swallowing every opportunity to practice and perfect his signature sound. His foray into local bands that went nowhere fast up into his joining KISS in 1973 is detailed so carefully and humorously that I was laughing out loud in spots, actually reading some of the passages aloud to my girlfriend. It is such an amazingly fun book to read, even at Ace’s lowest points in life where the empathy is with him but leaves you shaking your head at how he could possibly still be walking upright. What made the man one of the very legends of hard rock almost killed him in the process and currently celebrating six years of sobriety makes for an even stronger and better Ace!

While I pride myself on being a heavy metal historian of sorts (though in some small way we all are) some of these stories of Ace’s exploits are new to me; the high-speed police chase just after leaving KISS that caused his chance meeting with a cop (also a recovering alcoholic) who became one of Ace’s best friends is the topper for me. It’s one of a few dozen anecdotes here that shed multitudinous lights on Ace, some good, some bad, others really bad, but all done with the self-deprecating flair he’s famous for all over. I especially enjoyed the closeness he has with daughter Monique, and the story of how she came to be a victim of one Gene Simmons will leave you certainly perplexed and even a little angry. What I also take away from No Regrets is the true laid-back nature of the man; it’s always been common knowledge Ace Frehley’s the ‘Good-Time Charlie’ of any setting, but his real demeanor and make-up lies within and reveals a sensitive, flawed human being that cares more about the fans and the music than the money, which is solidified by his walking away from an estimated $15-million dollar pay day in 1982 upon his departure from KISS. Where the music took a back seat to the carnival-like atmosphere the band was haphazardly caught up in Ace saw the opportunity to move on for his sense of self worth. Granted, his personal life after KISS was rife with ups and downs, some more tumultuous than others, but he did seem to be freed from the restraints of the KISS army. While Ace never lets on any dismissive airs about his time with the biggest show on earth (despite the band’s best attempts to remove him slowly from its history) he does carry with him a small sense of resentment and bitterness at the lack of respect and early camaraderie the band shared formed in a loft in New York City nearly 40-years ago. Long lost to high finance and whimsical fancy, the KISS machine keeps rolling along with opaque members and outright face-slapping much to the ignorance or plain ambivalence of the fan base, a fact Ace never really espouses issue with, save for his point of view on the Tom Thayer debacle. That was a story I’ve not heard before and if you think I’ll reveal it here…buy yourself a copy! What I also found truly touching was his mother’s death and his fight to get into a snowy locked-down Detroit on Super Bowl weekend to get to her for one last goodbye; it’s moments like these we fans tend to forget when dealing with our idols - they are human and suffer losses and grief like we all do. It’s an easy thing to dismiss because often they are larger than life, but reading a story like this makes the person all the more human to me. When I got to the infamous Tom Snyder Halloween interview on the old Tomorrow Show I laughed out loud throughout, recalling that hilarious ride with an Ace Frehley who literally stole the show from a very angry Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley. 

While there are moments of genuine trash talking within these pages, it is pretty much left at a minimum; Ace takes a bit of a higher road and leaves the some of the waste to history and narrative subterfuge, which works well. His story is the main focus here, and while his mudslinging is one side of this long, arduous tale it is minimal in itself. Trust me, the true treasure of this book lies within Ace’s unbelievable and engaging story; the man is a walking biological miracle and he knows this. Luckily for us he’s still among the upright and cranking out music that not only bests KISS in the modern day but keeps relevant his contributions to, oh, some few million musicians that recall having the old toy KISS guitars and dreaming of a life onstage. The list of influences is endless and understandable; Mr. Frehley never gets enough credit for his prowess as a guitarist as much as he does for wearing make-up and issuing smoke from his Les Paul. I can’t recommend this book enough; you won’t put it down easily, and that’s a fact.                

There is no buffing of the chrome, no spit-shining the events; what you get in No Regrets is the essence of what Ace Frehley is: a flawed and honest human being that has lived a life of excess and self-abuse and lived to tell the tale. Now in his early 60’s, Ace Frehley has carved yet another set of initials into his rock ‘n roll credits as an author, and a damn good one to boot.

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To quote Ace Frehley’s latest record title, I’m the anomaly when it comes to KISS. I grew up in the thick of the hysteria in the late 70’s, and I remember all too well the hype and the marketing that was the KISS machine.

I just honestly was never into it.

I didn’t think the music was all that resonating or interesting, save for “Detroit Rock City” or “Christine Sixteen”, both of which made me buy the first few albums as a youngin’.  I of course was drawn to more dark and sinister music and KISS was simply too much of a show for me. As I sit here at 40 I understand and appreciate the band more, but it’s a base plane love at best. The exception to that rule is Ace Frehley; to be honest, the only reason I even own any KISS CD’s today is because he plays on them. I have always been a Spaceman fan, that’s for sure.

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