Peter Criss

Background

George Peter John Criscuola was born on December 20, 1945, in Brooklyn, New York. The oldest of five children, he was raised by his parents, Joseph and Loretta Criscuola, who practiced Roman Catholicism. He loved swing music and was an enthusiastic art student. He ended up learning music under his hero, Gene Krupa, at the Metropole Club in New York while performing with bandleader Joey Greco. This developed into a fruitful musical career, and throughout the 1960s in New York and New Jersey, he played jazz and rock with various bands. Criss joined the band Chelsea in the late 1960s; the trio issued a self-titled album in 1970 but never made a follow-up album and changed their name to Lips in August 1971. They later disbanded and he went on to start the band Kiss with Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, and Ace Frehley. Over the years, they put out many albums before Criss decided to go solo.

He released his self-titled debut studio album in March 1978 and in 1980, started work on his second solo album, “Out of Control.” Despite being a fan favorite when it was released, the album was a commercial flop. The following album, “Let Me Rock You,” was released in 1982 and included one song written by Gene Simmons, but was also a commercial disaster. Criss was a part of several bands throughout the remainder of the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s, most of which disbanded after less than a year. He put together the band, Criss, in the early 1990s that included future Queensryche guitarist Mike Stone. The “Criss” E.P. and “Cat #1” album were released in December 1993 and August 1994, respectively. He appeared at the official Los Angeles Kiss Konvention in 1995, where he performed live and was captured for “MTV Unplugged.” Kiss held a press conference in April 1996 to announce a reunion tour with the band’s original four members. The reunited band released a studio album, 1998’s “Psycho Circus,” on which Criss performed the drums. The 1996 — 1997 Alive/Worldwide Tour was a huge success. He left the band due to a contract dispute, and Eric Singer took his place in 2001. He returned to the group in late 2002 and made an appearance on the live album “Kiss Symphony: Alive IV” before leaving the band once more in 2003.

Criss has been married three times; his third and current wife is Gigi Criss (since May 1998). Jenilee, his daughter, was born in 1981. In late 2012, he co-wrote the memoir “Makeup to Breakup: My Life In and Out of Kiss” with novelist Larry Sloman. At the age of 71, Criss decided to stop touring in 2017.