Dynasty is the seventh studio album by American rock band Kiss, produced by Vini Poncia and released on May 23, 1979 by Casablanca Records. A departure from the band's hard rock style, the album incorporates pop and disco. Drummer and founding member Peter Criss only performs on "Dirty Livin'", his last recording with the band until Psycho Circus (1998). While a commercial success, going platinum in five countries, the album's critical reception was mixed, and the supporting "Return of Kiss" tour saw a marked decline in attendance.
Background
The album and the following tour were billed as the "Return of Kiss", as the band had not released a studio album since Love Gun in 1977. Instead, the band released their second live album, Alive II, that same year, and each member had recorded eponymous solo albums, which were simultaneously released on September 18, 1978.
Before recording the album, the Kiss members were working separately on various demos:
- Peter Criss recorded and submitted a four-track demo with the songs "Out of Control", "Rumble", "Dirty Livin' " and "There's Nothing Better". "Dirty Livin' " made it to Dynasty, while "Rumble" remains unreleased officially by the band but has surfaced on the internet as a bootleg. The other two songs ended up on his 1980 solo album Out of Control.
- Ace Frehley recorded and submitted a five-track demo with "Hard Times", "Save Your Love", a cover of "2000 Man", "Backstage Pass" and "Insufficient Data". Three of the songs are on Dynasty, while the last two remain unreleased.
- Gene Simmons wrote and recorded a large number of demos, including five songs with members of the band Virgin, drummer Chuck Billings and guitarist Tommy Moody. Billings has identified the songs "I Have Just Begun to Fight", "Reputation" and "Bad Bad Lovin" as from the demo he played on, in addition to the two songs credited to Simmons on "Dynasty".
- Paul Stanley wrote songs with Desmond Child: one called "The Fight" was released on a Desmond Child & Rouge album; and one called "Tonight" formed the verses of "I Was Made for Lovin' You", combined with a chorus written by Stanley and Vini Poncia. "Sure Know Something" was written after Poncia had joined the project and a recording shows how the song was developed from a basic homemade demo in the studio with the band (except Frehley) and Poncia contributing.
Criss's disco influenced demo of his song "Dirty Livin'" (written in 1971) set the direction for the album project and Simmons and Stanley were briefly in contact with disco producer Giorgio Moroder, a friend of the band's manager Bill Aucoin, before deciding on Vini Poncia. Except for his song "Dirty Livin'" (a rewrite of a song of the same title demoed during his pre-Kiss days in Lips), Criss does not play drums on the album, and he did not perform on another Kiss album until he played one song on Psycho Circus in 1998. Fig was again hired to replace Criss during recording sessions for the following album, Unmasked. Eric Carr was hired as Criss's permanent replacement before the Unmasked Tour began.
Frehley, who himself left the band three years later, played a bigger role than Simmons on Dynasty, singing three songs, "Hard Times", "Save Your Love" and a cover version of the Rolling Stones' song "2000 Man". Frehley is the only Kiss member to appear on those three songs, except for occasional backing vocals by Stanley. Although Frehley had frequently sung backing vocals and had written the Kiss classics "Cold Gin" and "Parasite", he had only previously been lead singer on his songs "Shock Me" on Love Gun, and "Rocket Ride" on the studio side of Alive II, as he lacked confidence in his ability as a lead singer.
Stanley's "I Was Made for Lovin' You" was one of the band's most successful singles, peaking at No. 11 on the American Billboard Hot 100 chart. In eleven countries around the world, it reached the No. 1 or No. 2 spot. It was the first Kiss single to have a disco remix, as a 7-minute and 54-second version was released on a 12-inch single. He also sang on "Sure Know Something" and "Magic Touch", where he also plays all guitars and bass. In contrast, Simmons sings lead vocals on only two songs: "Charisma" (which became a major hit in Mexico) and "X-Ray Eyes".
Release
Dynasty went on sale May 23, 1979 through Casablanca Records, becoming the band's sixth best selling album, and the last certified platinum by the RIAA until the release of Lick It Up four years later. Also earning platinum status in Australia, the Netherlands and New Zealand, the album was even more popular in Canada, selling over 200,000 copies. It reached the top ten on the US Billboard 200, and in Australia, France and New Zealand, also topping the charts in the Netherlands.
Five singles were released from the album, tied with Unmasked as the most in the band's discography. The aforementioned "I Was Made for Lovin' You" was the lead single, and became a smash hit on the pop singles chart. The second single, "Sure Know Something" wasn't as successful, but still reached No. 47 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and was a top ten hit in Australia and the Netherlands. The third and fifth singles, "Dirty Livin'" and "2,000 Man" respectively, weren't released in the United States and failed to chart, but the fourth single "Magic Touch" was another hit in the Netherlands, peaking at No. 20.
Including a colorful jacket cover which is a collage of photos taken from the photo session and not a group shot as it appears, the label of Dynasty shows a portrait of all four members instead of the usual Casablanca label. Inserts included a merchandise order form and a full-color poster. The album artwork was reused on the German release of the single "Sure Know Something", but with a green border instead of gray.