By Greg Prato
On October 16, 2025, the rock world lost one of its true icons – when Ace Frehley passed away at the age of 74. As the original “Spaceman” and lead guitarist in Kiss, Frehley inspired and influenced countless other guitar players in his wake.
My 50th book overall, Talk To Me: Conversations With Ace Frehley, serves as a tribute to the legendary Frehley, compiling all the times I interviewed him over the years into a single book. And as a result, covers a wide variety of topics (from his Kiss years through his solo career, his personal life, songwriting, his guitar playing and gear, etc.).
Also included are all-new and previously unpublished “tribute interviews” with renowned names from the rock world. Featuring Eddie Trunk, Joe Bonamassa, and Soundgarden’s Kim Thayil (as well as a short but colorful chat with Rush’s Alex Lifeson), among others, who share their memories and thoughts about the guitarist, and discuss how they would like him to be remembered. Plus, a foreword provided by Matt Pinfield, and many vintage photos of Ace from throughout the years.
Below are several excerpts from the book, in which several renowned rock names discuss why Ace was considered by many to be coolest Kiss member of the bunch.
Do you agree that Ace’s persona and makeup design was the coolest of the bunch?
Ty Tabor (King’s X): Oh yeah, absolutely. His whole demeanor on stage was godlike, for a kid. I always — even as a youngster — thought Paul and Gene came off like, really wide open exuberance, grabbing the audience’s attention and everything. And Ace on the other hand, was more a little bit laid back until it came time for him to rip, and then he’d lean into it and lean back, and throw his guitar around. And just did it with all this feel and style. And like I said, that would be the “gem moment” in the song for me, is when Ace stepped up and shined. And so to me, he had by far the coolest stage presence, the coolest look, and he just was the coolest — period — of all of them. He was by far my favorite.
Do you agree that Ace was the heart and soul of Kiss?
Jesse Hughes (Eagles of Death Metal): I do. Well, that’s an interesting question, isn’t it? Yeah, I do agree with that, and my main reason is because I wanted to be him. The very first time I saw him – at my very first concert at the Greenville Memorial Auditorium, when my father took me to see Kiss in 1976 — I immediately wanted to be him. So, starting off as a child, I would say yes, in that respect.
I would also say yes in the respect that once he left the band, nobody gave a shit about it anymore. I’m not trying to insult the other members, because I’m a Paul Stanley fanatic. But once Ace left the band, it changed it. And eventually, they had to come out of the make-up. And all the other guitarists that followed after him, the ones they even have now, they’re all great guitarists in their own right, but the one thing you can’t deny is that they’ll never be Ace, and I feel like that’s what you’re saying.
Although Gene and Paul seem to usually get the lion’s share of credit for Kiss, do you agree that Ace and Peter were the heart and soul of the original line-up? And that without Ace and Peter, they wouldn’t have been what they became in the ’70s?
Don Jamieson (That Metal Show co-host, comedian): They have acknowledged — rightly — that chemistry is undeniable. I end up going down these crazy rabbit holes on YouTube, looking at old shows from the ’75/’76 period. And I mean, that’s a band that’s as young and hungry and on fire as you’ll ever see. Some of those shows back then…it’s a juggernaut. I mean, they are going for it every night, and everybody is on top of their game. And for as much crap as Paul and Gene have given Ace about his drinking and his drug use and that he couldn’t play, let me tell you something — I defy anybody to go online in those early days of Kiss and find any shows where Ace was not playing absolutely precisely and perfectly every night. When, some of the other people in the band were not.
How would you like Ace to be remembered?
David Ellefson (Kings of Thrash, ex-Megadeth): Ace was the quintessential cool cat. And as we’ve read the history, that’s how he got the name – he was the cool guy with the ladies. He was “The Ace.” He had a cool factor, a swagger – in how he looked, how he acted on stage. Especially when he had the make-up on. And in how he played up ’til the very end. You could tell it was Ace as soon as you heard him. And that is a quality of an artist that is so difficult to accomplish. And Ace had that. As soon as you heard him play guitar, you knew it was Ace.
So I think Ace’s workmanship and his quality of what he did it’s just forever immortalized in the minds of the public. As is his image. And regardless of how it all ended with Kiss – of ownership of trademark make-up and all the rest of that stuff, that Spaceman character will forever and always be Ace Frehley. Period. Really, those four faces belong to Gene Paul, Peter, and Ace — regardless of who may have had a trademark ownership on it at the very end — that belongs to the four of them, period. And that’s how they will always be remembered by us.
