Wicked Lester | |
|---|---|
 Wicked Lester (c. 1972), left to right: Ron Leejack,Gene Simmons,Paul Stanley, Brooke Ostrander, and Tony Zarrella | |
| Background information | |
| Also known as | Rainbow (1970–1971) |
| Origin | New York City, U.S. |
| Genres | Rock and roll,folk rock,pop |
| Years active | 1970–1973 |
| Labels | Epic |
| Spinoffs | KISS |
| Past members | Paul Stanley Gene Simmons Brooke Ostrander Stephen Coronel Joe Davidson Tony Zarrella Ron Leejack |
Wicked Lester was a rock band based in New York City. Two notable members were bassist Chaim Witz (as "Gene Klein") and rhythm guitarist Stanley Eisen. Originally formed in 1970 asRainbow, the band changed its name to Wicked Lester in 1971 to avoid confusion with another local band named "Rainbow". Although it secured a record deal withEpic Records and recorded an album, the deal fell through and the band fell apart during 1972. Witz and Eisen, feeling that the band's failure was a result of its lack of vision and direction, decided to found a new band from its remnants. They changed their stage names toGene Simmons andPaul Stanley, respectively, auditioned a new drummer and lead guitarist, and formed the bandKiss by the end of January 1973.
Although Kiss achieved massive success, Wicked Lester's album recorded for Epic has never been officially released in its entirety. The sessions have been released inbootleg form asThe Original Wicked Lester Sessions. Kiss officially released three tracks from these sessions on their 2001Box Set release. Wicked Lester's music featured elements ofrock and roll,folk rock andpop.[1][2]
The origins of the band trace to 1969, whenkeyboardist Brooke Ostrander joined bassist Klein and leadguitaristStephen Coronel who had played together since 1964 in bands like The Long Island Sounds, Bullfrog Bheer and The Love Bag in the trio Coffee.[3] In August 1970, Coronel recommended rhythm guitarist Stanley Eisen[4] from his 1970 band The Tree,[5] who had actually been rejected by the group after a previous audition. Shortly after Eisen joined, the band started using the name Rainbow and when Ostrander recruiteddrummer Joe Davidson, the first Rainbow lineup was completed. Davidson's stay did not last long and he was replaced by drummer Tony Zarrella,[6] another friend of Ostrander's.[4]
In early 1971, Rainbow played its first show, which consisted of two sets performed atRichmond Community College inStaten Island(which Klein had attended[7] and graduated with aBA inEducation degree[8] in 1970[9]). After the show, the group discovered that there was already another band called Rainbow. They decided to drop the name, and came up with the name Wicked Lester, which Klein liked because it was unusual. While the decision to change the group's name came partly out of a desire to avoid any potential legal issues, it also reflected Klein and Eisen's desire to start playing more original compositions.[6]
During their brief existence, Wicked Lester performed in public twice. The first show took place at theRivoli Theatre inSouth Fallsburg,New York on April 23, 1971. The second, in late summer 1971, was at anAtlantic City, New Jersey hotel hosting aB'nai B'rith Youth Organization event. Not long after that show, the band suffered a major setback when they had all of their musical gear stolen.[6] On August 7, 1971 Wicked Lester recorded an acoustic demo tape of 20 songs with the line-up of Klein, Eisen and Coronel. The tape included songs going back to earlier bands Bullfrog Bheer and Rainbow, many that would end up on Wicked Lester's unreleased album in full band versions, and a few that with some re-working made it to future Kiss albums.[10]
After a chance meeting withElectric Lady Studios engineer Ron Johnsen who was introduced to the band via Eisen's friend and former bandmate Neal Teeman who worked at the same studio,[4] Wicked Lester was given the opportunity to record somedemos in November 1971. Johnsen, who produced the demo tape, shopped it to a few labels, with no success. Eventually the tape was screened byEpic Records, who purchased themasters and agreed to fund the recording of a full album. One of the conditions, however, was that Stephen Coronel be fired and replaced with a better guitarist.[11][12]
Coronel was replaced bysession musician Ron Leejack (Ronald Jackowski, ex-Cactus) on December 15th, 1971,[4] and the group continued their efforts to finish the album. Some songs were completely re-recorded to accommodate Leejack's different playing style. The entire recording process, which followed a haphazard schedule, took nearly a year to complete.[12] When the completed album was presented to Don Ellis, Epic'sA&R director, in August 1972,[4] he stated that he hated the album and was not going to release it. The next day, Wicked Lester manager Lew Linet requested and received the group's release from Epic Records.[11]
At this time, Witz and Eisen, now using the stage names Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley as evidenced by the line-up on a studio tape from October 5th, 1972,[4] decided that one of the reasons for Wicked Lester's lack of success was their lack of a singular image and musical vision. They made the decision to move forward and start a new band and according to Leejack asked him to fire Zarrella and Ostrander.[4] After completion, Brooke Ostrander, feeling that the band was going nowhere, quit the band in November 1972. He went on to teach music atMissisquoi Valley Union High School inSwanton, Vermont.[1] Ostrander died on September 3, 2011, from cancer. Tony Zarrella claims he stayed with the band until "Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley left the band"[13] & afterwards recorded & toured with NYC based groups "Dreams In Color" & "MYTH".
For a short time, Ron Leejack continued on with the new version of Wicked Lester,[14] which began auditioning for a drummer. Leejack officially resigned on January 15th 1973, only 2 weeks before the first Kiss show with Criss and Frehley but he may not have been active in the band since late 1972 as he also claims to have toured as the last guitarist ofThe Rascals that same year.[4]
Whereas Wicked Lester's original sound was rooted in varied musical styles, includingfolk andpop, when Simmons and Stanley decided to recruit new members, they made the decision to focus on a more aggressive and simple style of rock and roll. The first new member they added was drummerPeter Criss, who had placed an ad inRolling Stone, in late August or early September 1972. The ad stated, "EXPD. ROCK & roll drummer looking for orig. grp. doing soft & hard music. Peter, Brooklyn." The new Wicked Lester, without a recording contract, began a strict and regular regimen of rehearsals.[1]
In November 1972, the reimagined group (now a trio featuring Simmons, Stanley and Criss) arranged a showcase with Don Ellis, the Epic Records executive who earlier had rejected Wicked Lester's album.[4] While one Epic executive,Tom Werman,[15] was impressed by the power and theatrics of this new incarnation of Wicked Lester, Ellis once again turned them down. As Ellis was leaving, Peter Criss's brother, who was drunk, vomited on his foot.[16]
In early December, Paul Stanley placed an ad inThe Village Voice stating, "LEAD GUITARIST WANTED with Flash and Ability. Album Out Shortly. No time wasters please." The ad ran for two issues, December 7 and 14, 1972, leading to several audition sessions including one John Segall who later found fame asJay Jay French inTwisted Sister.[4] One audition was byPaul "Ace" Frehley who showed up wearing different-colored shoes, walked into the room without saying a word, hooked up his guitar and started playing. Frehley was asked back for a second audition and was a member of the band by Christmas 1972 or according to other sources on January 3, 1973.[17] Within a few weeks, the group changed its name to Kiss and played their first concert on January 30, 1973.[18]
The recording of Wicked Lester's album, which began in November 1971 atElectric Lady Studios inGreenwich Village, took place over multiple sessions and was finished in July 1972. The album was a mixture of original material andcovers, showcasing the group's eclectic style.[19][20] Three of the songs recorded for the Wicked Lester album would later resurface as Kiss songs, with varying degrees of similarity. Various versions and mixes have made it to bootleg circles, some with Coronel not credited which indicates that Leejack eventually replaced all his guitar parts.[4]
The chorus of their cover version ofThe Hollies' "I Wanna Shout" would serve as the inspiration for "Shout It Out Loud" from 1976'sDestroyer, although the two songs otherwise bear little similarity.[21] Two of the tracks, "Love Her All I Can", written by Paul Stanley, and "She", written by Simmons and Steve Coronel would resurface on 1975'sDressed to Kill. "Love Her All I Can" featured similar arrangements in both versions[22] while the Kiss version of "She" lacked thecongas andflute of the original.[23]
The only part of Wicked Lester's album to initially be released was the cover art, which was used forThe Laughing Dogs' self-titled debut album in 1979.[24]CBS Records, which owned the rights to the album, remixed it and planned to release it in late 1976 to capitalize on Kiss's popularity at the time. Kiss andNeil Bogart, the president of their label,Casablanca Records, purchased themaster tapes from CBS for $137,500 and never released it. The label and band feared that if CBS released the tracks it would diminish their commercial appeal. The band worried that theirhard rock image would be damaged by these more eclectic recordings. It was also feared that the release would be accompanied by pictures of Simmons and Stanley without their trademark makeup; Kiss had yet to officially unmask themselves at the time.[25] In later years the album surfaced as a bootleg titledThe Original Wicked Lester Sessions.[26] The band bought Bogart's share and eventually released three of the tracks, "Keep Me Waiting," "She," and "Love Her All I Can", in 2001 as part of afive-disc box set.[25]
The band also recorded a Paul Stanley song called "Long, Long Road" that might have made it onto the album.[4]
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