The Making of the KISS Album Artwork with Dennis Woloch - Chapter 7: The Solo Albums

[@iCandy-Vintage]

Brilliant! What an artistic genius and absolutely the right guy at the right time. I am floored. So important to the KISS legacy. Thank you Claudio! Such an amazing job doing this. I can't thank you enough for this series.

[@baruyero]

Amazing video Claudio thank you so much. Dennis is fabulous I didn’t know he was the mastermind behind all this iconic artwork. Thank you both.

[@danielbytheway2216]

Dennis is the real deal. I am amused, intrigued and attentive with every word he utters.

[@andrewmele1303]

This series is so excellent. Best Kiss related project in years. Please bring on the next one! And the next!

[@TroyCorreia]

This is my favorite episode so far. So much great information and interesting stories...

[@Totalfreedomliving]

This was fantastic. Gene’s solo album was my first full introduction to KISS at the age of 4 in ‘78. It really shaped my life MASSIVELY. Wonderful to hear what was behind it. Expertly crafted video and interview. Just brilliant. Sub’d.

[@kend4718]

Fantastic! Thanks to Dennis and Claudio for this excellent series.

[@jukeboxcowboy]

Excellent series. Enjoying this so much! Thank you to all involved.

[@DR_DOOM_3298]

Thanks for doing these. As a pre press person that came up in the 80's & 90's, a music photographer & part time designer I love when you & Dennis get into the details of the fonts, layouts, photographers & printing techniques that went into all of this art.

[@ClaudioBergaminArt]

That's the idea. This is meant mainly for designer KISS fans.

[@mattskustomkreations]

Me too. I did hand-done architectural renderings and graphics for master plans and historic structures surveys etc, plus advertising for a family business. This is fantastic stuff!

[@lawrencecharlton9995]

Thanks for these interviews and I have to also thank Dennis because those album covers are a huge part of why KISS enchanted me as a child 👍

[@user-ye9ph5iq5z]

Absolutely fascinating series of interviews, keep them coming.

[@formas3dx]

This was the time period being a 8 year old kid when I knew KISS, which I found amazing. :) great interview !! being myself an artist, and a Kiss fan specially when I was a kid, this interview is so rich in memorabilia anectdotes. fantástico ! I think Carugati's pencil drawing posters look WAY better than the actual illustrations, great to see them ! Claudio te la rifaste fabuloso ! And Dennis you are such a great guy !

[@PaulWildstar]

What an excellent series you have created here! I'm excited for more and I'm thankful for what you have done so far. I have watched every one of your interviews with Dennis... Bravo!

[@rosradley7366]

Great interview, Claudio. Thank you to Dennis Woloch for generously sharing your time and memories for the KISS Army. By the way, Eraldo Carugati passed away in 1997, not 1977.

[@ClaudioBergamin]

if you look closely at the bottom of the screen, I trolled myself about it. lol

[@rosradley7366]

@@ClaudioBergamin I missed that. :) Great job and well done by you both.

[@rawdeal536]

Another completely awesome vast amount of exquisite information, God Love both of you . Thanks for a job well done 👍

[@arceneaux777]

I love this series so very much - thank you both

[@whitecloud_94]

Of the 4 covers I always thought Paul's looked off. The hair tips didn't look real. But man did Dennis knock it out of the park for these beauties. Simple and timeless.

[@jcollins1305]

The creative process is so very interesting. Thanks for sharing!

[@freewill35]

Love these interviews! So interesting!

[@ByronWinton]

Great insight on this album. Thanks Claudio and Dennis! Btw, it's a polarizing filter that reduces glare. You should use lens and lighting polarizing filters at 90 degrees of each other for maximum glare reduction.

[@leswadley6792]

Looking forward to the new episodes!

[@JohnEvans-dr6yq]

claudio you do such an amazing with the questions & the interviewer

[@ClaudioBergaminArt]

thank you. I feel I have improved since the early episodes

[@JohnBGood-ry9wj]

Kiss was so huge at the time that the 4 portraits without each of their names and the Kiss Logo would have worked just as good if not better. Remember Led Zeppelin IV cover.......that cover didn’t even hint at it being a Zeppelin cover but it was and is there best selling album.

[@Steambull1]

19:33 I'm not sure if these were reissued in 1978, but every source about them has that year attached to them. However, the 4 colors definitely did exist before the solo albums, as there's a picture from the RnR Over tour, their first visit to Japan, where they all have small paper parasols, and the parasols are exactly these 4 colors. Though, Paul is holding the blue one, and Ace is holding the purple one - the two must've switched out of personal preference. Someone tried to tell me that it's just a coincidence, but anyone with the slightest idea of probability math would not say that.

[@MrAdamJoel]

Thanks for making another episode guys!

[@websitemad]

Yes, I know I’m a couple of years late watching these episodes which are sooo good and Dennis is one of the inspirations for my graphics career from the mid 80’s to present day (I love all of the technical talk), but I seem to have noticed a bit of an inconsistency, or I misunderstood, the Daniel Maffia story and the artwork that he created which was rejected. His original artwork (found in a dumpster!) is displayed near the end of the Unmasked episode if you want to look it up. Daniel’s artwork already includes coloured lighting behind the hair of each band member (although Paul’s is red, Gene’s is green and Peter’s yellow), and I’m guessing Dennis saw Daniel’s version before the final versions were created, so his adding the four colours for the band members last minute story doesn’t quite add up? I understand that all of this was a long time ago, and memory is not infallible, but is there any more info to add to the timeline? 🤔

[@FreeAmericanUSA]

I remember going to the mall. There were two record stores. Record Bar and Camelot Music. The album's were like $7.50 I think. That was a lot of money in back in the day. Ace's album was and is my favorite.

[@Totalfreedomliving]

I was four years old when I got Gene’s solo album in 78. I wish I would’ve grown up with Ace’s.

[@thefonzkiss]

There’s two versions of Paul’s album art internationally, one has his neck in a prominent V shape. And it’s a shame the posters inside weren’t classy and timeless like the covers, they SCREAM tacky 1978. Also for some reason there are four of each guy on every poster except Ace’s which only has three.

[@dannobman07]

The Ace Frehley 78 solo album was the first album I owned .. I was 11

[@arconoom5334]

Me too, december 1978. Also aged 11 and soon to be aged 12! Exciting seventies ....

[@lucio8730]

I love these series, keep em comin

[@federicomazzoncini3542]

Great, enlightening interview as ever, misters. We can’t ever thank you enough for these! (Mr. Carugati died in 1997, not 1977) 😉

[@lunartat77]

I was wondering what was going on there! 😂

[@shadcovert1160]

I got to knock on the elder door in Vegas at KISS monster mini golf. Great place for real KISS diehards.

[@thefonzkiss]

That’s not the actual Elder door it’s a reproduction. The real one wasn’t a full sized door. And doesn’t exist anymore.

[@PatricioFunes]

Gracias por estas entrevistas, Claudio. Hace algún tiempo me puse a investigar y recolectar fuentes sobre las tipografías que se han usado en los discos de KISS como también en algunos otros diseños relacionados con la banda. De hecho me puse en contacto con Dennis via email para hacerle unas consultas, quien amablemente supo responderme. Siempre tuve en dudas, como veo que también te pasa, si la tipo usada es MIcrogramma o Eurostyle. Investigando surge que la Eurostyle fue diseñada por el mismo tipógrafo de la Microgramma como variante de esta, y para ampliar grosores y agregar minúsculas. Y aquí entra la duda ya que o bien usaron la microgramma para los nombres y el resto Eurostyle, o bien todo Eurostyle. Personalmente me inclino porque es todo Eurostyle. En Dynasty ocurre algo similar en la contratapa, entre los títulos y el resto de texto, aunque también noté que es posible que el los mismos títulos de canciones estén mezcladas dos tipografías. Todo es posible. Detalle Nerd: En las reediciones de vinilos de 2014 reemplazaron tipos en varios discos, como por ejemplo la de los títulos de canciones Destroyer, como en Dynasty. No recuerdo cual más...

[@PatricioFunes]

Perdón, agrego que hay que tener en cuenta que cada typo foundry hacía su versión...

[@joacimlandin3347]

Thanks

[@jimwrightpepperkittypawcas991]

Absolutely awesome! With Destroyer and Love Gun being paintings, I wonder if Ken Kelly was ever considered for the solo lp’s images?

[@thefonzkiss]

He wasn’t. That was mentioned.

[@thefonzkiss]

Pertinent question would have been what was Carugati paid for the four portraits.

[@denniswoloch5757]

I don't quite remember..It was decent but not exorbitant. We agreed on a price immediately so Eraldo was happy.

[@JeffMitchell-lv4zx]

Gouache? Man, i would never of guessed he painted those beautiful illustrations in Gouache!

[@ClaudioBergaminArt]

Gouache was the standard for commercial ART.

[@JeffMitchell-lv4zx]

@ClaudioBergaminArt I haven't worked very much with gouache. We used it in color theory class & I remember it to be unforgiving! :) was rock & roll over rendered in gouache?

[@ClaudioBergaminArt]

@@JeffMitchell-lv4zx No it wasn't. It was done with black ink over transparent sheets. We discussed it on episode 3!

[@thefonzkiss]

They owe so much success to this guy, Bill Aucoin, Neil Bogart and Sean Delaney. KISS suck now because Gene and Paul have deluded themselves into thinking THEY were the guys that came up with all these cool concepts. They didn’t.

[@MichaelABruce-ew8zs]

Very interesting loved this. You know I always thought that whomever's idea it was to make tossing and turning on Peter Chris's solo album The single? Was a bad decision. I think the song should have been kiss the girl goodbye.

[@MrMichaelbsmith6420]

Who did the artwork on Eric Carr with an orange background and Vinnie Vincent ?

[@TroyCorreia]

When will the next one in this series be out?

[@ClaudioBergaminArt]

Tomorrow!

[@TroyCorreia]

@@ClaudioBergaminArt Can't wait to see it...

[@zachary_attackery]

They later had Carugati do a painting of Eric Carr with an orange color

[@jimilove7773]

The 4 colors for each band member Genius! Surprised the Beatles never did it! Kiss are the best! The inserts were horrible should have been posters of the covers! No locking in just square!

[@jetcitysinatra7300]

To bad KISS dropped the ball on Peter's solo record. It could have given KISS a top 5 record if they had promoted it better.

[@thomasmiller8364]

Eurostile is think is correct

[@allanpeck8523]

The cover artwork for the solo albums was fantastic. The insert artwork was a shock and huge disappointment when I first saw it. To this day, I still say it sucks.

[@jondunmore4268]

43:00 - Wait, Carugati died in 1977?!!!! Those KISS portraits must have been some of the last works of his career and life! Also, so sad that he probably never got to see the records released, with his magnificent immortal artwork.

[@DavidM-mb1vx]

Who’s got the 24” originals?

[@matt1524]

I’m pretty sure they were at the 2000 Kiss Auction