Due to the underachievement of their exceptional 1982 comeback album,
Creatures of the Night
,
Kiss
knew the time was right to drop the makeup, so in September 1983 the band shocked their fans by unmasking on
MTV
. Their first non-makeup album,
Lick It Up
, followed soon after and successfully re-established the band among the
heavy metal
masses worldwide.
also reconnected with their stateside fans --
was the band's first record to achieve gold status since 1980's
Kiss Unmasked
. The album's success was spurred by
's repeated airing of the imaginative video for the album's strong title track, and songs such as
"Exciter,"
"Not for the Innocent,"
"A Million to One,"
and the rap-rocker
"All Hell's Breaking Loose"
confirmed that the band was back on the right track.
Vinnie Vincent
again proved to be a worthy replacement to original guitarist
Ace Frehley
but would unfortunately leave the band after the completion of the
worldwide tour (eventually resurfacing with
the Vinnie Vincent Invasion
in the late '80s).
is undoubtedly
' best non-makeup album. ~ Greg Prato