DEREK SHERINIAN Gets KISSed All Over Again!
March 11, 2003, 21 years ago
DEREK SHERINIAN (PLANET X), who performed offstage during the Revenge tour in 1992, recently spoke to BW&BK; about his involvement in KISS' cover of THE RAMONES' ‘Rock And Roll Radio’ that appears on the new tribute album We're A Happy Family.
"On my first day of BILLY IDOL rehearsals (ed. note: Sherinian toured with Idol in 2002), I got a call on my cell phone from (current KISS drummer) Eric Singer saying, 'Derek, we need a keyboard player down here at A&M; Studios at 5:00.' I go, 'Oh, man - my rehearsals are until 6.' I didn't want to make a bad impression on my first day of work with Billy, but it was cool to get the call so I talked to Steve Stevens and asked if it was cool if I left an hour early. Steve was cool about it, so I shot across town to Hollywood. I went in and laid it out, and we hung out for a couple hours afterwards. Gene (Simmons) and Paul (Stanley) were in a goofy mood, always cracking jokes. It was very cool seeing them again. It had been 10 years since I'd worked with them."Sherinian's forthcoming solo album, Black Utopia, features an all-star roster of guest performers including YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, with whom the keyboardist toured in 2001.
Will Gene and Paul be recruited for future recordings? "I would love to have either or both of those guys sing on something I do," he says.
How about Stevens? "Steve and I have definitely talked about it, but my record was basically done by the time we started talking. But you can definitely count on me and Steve doing something together in the future."
Black Utopia will be released on April 22nd. Look for a full feature in an upcoming issue of BW&BK.;
