​Alive! Tour - 1975 - '76
Start Date: September 10, 1975
End Date:March 28, 1976
Shows: 91
Countries: Canada, United States
Headlining Acts: Black Sabbath
Opening Acts: .38 Special, Albatross, Artful Dodger, Atlanta Rhythm Section, Back Street Crawler, Black Sheep, Blue Oyster Cult, Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band, Booga Booga, Boz Scaggs, Brownsville Station, Diamond Reo, The Dixie Dregs, Double Yellow Line, Electromagnets, Fallen Angels, Gary Wright, Hammerhead, Harvest, Hot Lucy, Hydra, James Montgomery Band, Lakeland String Quartet, The Leslie West Band, Little Feat, Montrose, Mott, Mountain Smoke, Point Blank, REO Speedwagon, Rockets, Rory Gallagher, Rush, Savoy Brown, Slade, Styx, Target, Thee Image
Average Attendance: 7,292
Line Up: Paul Stanley, Ace Frehley, Gene Simmons, Peter Criss
In one year KISS had become a headlining act, only just a year ago they opened up for bands they were now headlining! Casablanca took a huge risk with releasing a double live album, as their previous double live album, holding audio highlights from The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson was a huge flop. but it was a last grab at keeping the label from going bankrupt. But it was the right gamble and the album would sell in the millions and eventually sold over Platinum level, even though the RIAA never officially recognized it.
KISS made a legendary visit to Cadillac, Michigan to perform at Cadillac High in their gym, after the band got news that the local football team used KISS music to get pumped up before the game and they had not lost a game that season! KISS received the key to the city from the members of Cadillac's political establishment with them all in full KISS makeup! KISS received a parade and one street was even named KISS Boulevard for a day! Even the police and people at the local McDonald's were donning the KISS makeup!
Stage Props:
Fire Engine Lights
Fire Engine Siren
Fire Helmet
Flashing Mirror Balls
Flashing Light String
Hydraulic Drum Riser
Blood Spitting
Flash Pots
Confetti
2 Mirror Balls
Balloons
Bombs
Dry Ice Smoke
Fire Breathing
7 Candles Candelabra
164 Light Bulbs KISS Logo
Smoking Guitar
Paul Smashing Guitars
Ground Flamethrowers
KISS with their Platinum records for Alive! they received during one of the three Cobo Arena shows.
Typical Setlist:
01.'Deuce'
02. 'Strutter'
03. 'Got To Choose'
04. 'Hotter Than Hell'
05. 'Firehouse'
06. 'She'
07. 'Nothin' To Lose'
08. 'C'Mon And Love Me'
09. '100,000 Years'
10. 'Black Diamond'
Encore:
11. 'Cold Gin'
12. 'Rock And Roll All Nite'
13. 'Let Me Go Rock 'N Roll'
Tour Book:
1976 saw the first KISS tour book! 'KISS On Tour - 1976' debuted at the Cobo Arena, January 25th show.
Two versions exist where a later version states: 'Destroyer.... Coming Soon.'
- Terre Haute, IN, November 21, 1975 -
The official date when the KISS Army was born! The band got a escort from the U.S Army with a jeep from the airport to the WVTS radio station for a appearance! This radio station refused to play KISS songs, two teenage boys, Jay Evans and Bill Starkey, started a campaign and repeatedly called the station for requests to play KISS songs and called them self the "KISS Army". The two would eventually even send the station request letters signed "Bill Starkey, President of the KISS Army" and "Jay Evans, Field Marshall". Eventually in July 1975 the radio station cracked and started playing KISS songs with the DJ adding a humorous reference to the KISS Army. This led up to people calling in how they could sign up for the KISS Army! Both boys managed to get KISS so popular in Terre Haute that the KISS show held there, sold out completely! KISS's management noticed this and started to have talks with the boys to make the KISS Army the official KISS fan club! Both boys were honored on stage before the encores at the show with a plaque!
- Onondaga Country war Memorial, Syracuse, NY, December 12, 1975 -
Opening up for Black Sabbath, this would be the last time the band opened up for a band until August 20, 1988.
- Palace Theatre, Waterbury, CT, December 18, 1975 -
Gene caught his hair on fire again and JR Smalling, KISS's road manager, had to tell the crowd to calm down over the P.A. or the show would be stopped. Eventually the fire marshal stopped the show as the crowd became too rowdy. To keep the crowd from turning into a riot, an excuse to stop the show was that of a broken water line.
- Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, NY, December 31, 1975 -
This was the first time ever that KISS sold out a arena in their home town. Casablanca gave the band extra money to improve the production of the show. They touched up the speaker cabinets on the stage back line, gone were the fake Marshall amps. One hundred of balloons for the show's finale was added and Peter finally got a hydraulic drum riser!
- Cobo Arena, Detroit, MI, January 26, 1976 -
KISS's triumphant return to Cobo Hall, They sold out the arena for both shows and kept selling out shows after Alive! became Gold and the venues were packed! Cobo Arena was the first show where the first KISS tour book debuted. Photographer Fin Costello held a photograph session with the band with their future Destroyer uniforms on motorbikes, the new costumes would not be seen on stage until July 3, 1976.
- Neal S. Blaisdell Memorial Center Arena, Honolulu, Hawaii, February 29, 1976 -
KISS's only show in Hawaii, but the adventure Paul had with some of his tour crew mates was more interesting. While renting a catamaran, Paul managed to fall overboard and his security chief Rick Stuart jumped in to safe him, they had no real injuries beside stepping on sea urchins that ended with them being advised in the hospital, to pee in a sink and soak their feet in it!
- Von Braun Civic Center, Huntsville, AL, March 11, 1976 -
'Shout It Out Loud' was performed making it the first show where material from Destroyer appeared in the set-list. The song was released as a single on March 1.
The KISS parade in Cadillac, Michigan!