As 2023 drew to a close, so too did the era of KISS being a touring band. They played their final shows at New York’s Madison Square Garden. However, former guitarist Bruce Kulick stated that the band didn’t properly represent their history in their final shows, in part, because he wasn’t there to represent his era of the band’s saga.
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Kulick played guitar in KISS between 1984 and 1996. Since his departure from the band, he has kept in touch and stayed on good terms with his former bandmates. In a recent interview, he talked about his relationships with other current and former members of the band and how he felt about not being invited to play during the final shows.
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Bruce Kulick on His Relationship with KISS Members
While speaking to Ultimate Classic Rock, Kulick revealed that he has stayed friendly with members of his former band over the years. “I’ve done some KISS Expo-type events with Peter Criss. He was always so warm and fun with me,” he said. “That ties into Creatures Fest, where actually he did say, ‘I’d love to sit in with your band.’ We played a song together and that was a lot of fun.”
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Unlike some members of the band, Kulick has also stayed on good terms with Ace Frehley. “Ace and I go back, you know? He texts me and we keep in touch. Ace has always been very kind. I love that he’ll always make a comment that I’m his favorite KISS guitar player, after him. It means a lot to me.”
Kulick went on to say that keeping those connections alive isn’t about being a neutral party. Instead, it’s about maintaining friendships despite band drama. “Everyone knows I’m friends with Tommy Thayer and, of course, Eric Singer, Paul, and Gene. It’s important,” he said.
Kulick on Not Being Invited to the Final Shows
“I was very aware when they were first announcing the End of the Road Tour when they would say everyone’s going to get an invitation, that that would be thrown around as a goodwill gesture from Gene and Paul, but it doesn’t always mean that it’s going to happen in a big way,” Kulick told the publication.
“I’ll go one step further and just say, no, I wasn’t asked to be there and I wasn’t invited,” he said. However, he wasn’t surprised by that at all. KISS manager Doc McGhee all but said he wouldn’t be invited during a podcast appearance after the band announced their final shows.
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“Doc went on one of the good podcasts that I know and someone asked, ‘What about Bruce Kulick?’ ‘Well, KISS isn’t a jam band,’ is kind of where he went with it,” Kulick recalled. “In other words, pooh-poohing me getting up there and playing with them.”
Then, he talked about how the band didn’t represent their history well in the final shows. “I really think a lot of [fans] were disappointed leaving the show. I know that some of them knew that probably Ace, Peter, or maybe even me wouldn’t be there. But they never said anyone’s names. They didn’t even mention all the other important people in their career like Bill Aucoin or even Doc McGhee or other important figures that are part of Kisstory—the people that helped the band be so successful.”
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