| Guitar World, February 1997, Special Collector's Edition. The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time! Lords of Hard Rock Ace Frehley "I don't know shit from Shineola. I think that's one of the reasons I'm original." -- Ace Frehley. Ace Frehley may not have changed the way people play the guitar, but he certainly made them want to play. In their mid-to-late Seventies heyday, Kiss were the most widely recognizable, if not the biggest, band in the world. Millions of starry-eyed, prepubescent boys adopted the spaced-out Frehley as their role model. In fact, it's safe to say that many of today's most prominent rock guitarists -- from hard rockers like Pantera's Dimebag Darrell and Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello to alterna-poppers like Weezer's Rivers Cuomo -- would never have picked up a guitar had it not been for the flashy, cosmic and cosmetic Ace. Frehley prowled Kiss' fire breathing stage, smoking Les Paul in hand, spinning Keith Richards-inspired rhythm patterns and frenetic blues-box speed licks. And while his warbling vibrato and the primitive cool of his thoughtfully structured, almost geometrically-minded solos may not have endeared him to technicians and purists, mothers all across America (and) the world will gladly confirm that they had to threaten their sons nightly with dismemberment if they didn't stop copping licks from Alive! and do their algebra homework. Equipment: Gibson Les Pauls & Marshall amps Signature Song: "Lover Her All I Can" from Kiss, Dressed to Kill (Casablanca, 1975). Classic Album: Kiss, Alive! (Casablanca, 1975) |