Ryan Spencer Cook sat down with Nashville On The Rocks to discuss his music career. During the conversation, the topic switched to playing with the former KISS rocker Ace Frehley. Cook also explained whether or not Frehley ‘stole’ Gene Simmons’ solo band:
“That band has had their amount of drama. So like I said earlier, it’s a band, that happens. A lot of stuff went public at the time. Gene and Ace were getting along really well and then so much so that Ace called Gene and said, ‘Listen, in Australia, rather than taking my band, do you think I could just use your band? We have the same band and all those shows’ and Gene goes, ‘It’s okay with me if it’s okay with them.’”
However, things didn’t turn out as expected:
“So then he said, ‘Talk to Ryan. were like, ‘You kidding? We know this stuff. This is our wheelhouse. This is what we do.’ Yeah, We’re double dipping. So we would go out and perform on Ace shows over and go back, dry your hair, change shirts, go out with Gene. So we’re playing two shows a night. And then we were just getting ready. Same venue. It was Ace opening for Gene. it was a concert. Like Ace was the opening act. He was the headliner. Two different sets. But it was all KISS songs.”
He then touched on how Simmons decided that it would be okay for Frehley to keep him in the band:
“KISS fans being the way they are. They loved it. So we were getting near the end of the Gene run because Gene was going back to KISS for the farewell, and then Gene and then Ace decided to just keep us. And Gene said, ‘You know, you should just use these guys. I’m going to be out of pocket for two years.’ So from that point over, Gene handed us to Ace and we’ve been an Ace band. Ever since. We still are today, I’m leaving again with him next week.”
Cook’s Thoughts On Working With Ace Frehley
Cook grabbed Gene Simmons’ attention during the first KISS Kruise while performing with his band, Big Rock Show. The band then went on to perform on the first eight KISS Kruises. This caught Simmons’ eye and made him reach out to Cook to play with him. As a result, Cook’s band ended up playing before Frehley’s band.
In another interview, the guitarist was asked about his favorite song to play with the former KISS rocker and how he feels playing with him. He said:
“I’d have to say that my favorite song to play live is ‘Detroit Rock City.’ While it’s not an ‘Ace’ song per se, it is my favorite KISS song. Paul was always my favorite vocalist growing up, so getting to sing it each night is a thrill. And I absolutely love Ace’s solo in the song, and I know that it’s a real kick for Jeremy [Asbrock] to harmonize on that solo with Ace, just as it is for me to sing it.”
He added:
“I’d say the best part of working with Ace is just the pure joy of getting to play alongside a person that was so instrumental in shaping me musically. But we all have the same musical DNA, and that DNA is KISS. Seriously, Philip [Shouse], Jeremy, and I initially became friends because of KISS. No kidding!”
You can watch the interview below.