9780062348005
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Face the Music audiobook

  • By: Paul Stanley
  • Narrator: Paul Stanley
  • Category: Genres & Styles, Music, Rock
  • Length: 12 hours 16 minutes
  • Publisher: HarperAudio
  • Publish date: April 08, 2014
  • Language: English
  • (3201 ratings)
(3201 ratings)
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Face the Music Audiobook Summary

NEW YORK TIMES and INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

In Face the Music, Paul Stanley–the co-founder and famous “Starchild” frontman of KISS–reveals for the first time the incredible highs and equally incredible lows in his life both inside and outside the band. Face the Music is the shocking, funny, smart, inspirational story of one of rock’s most enduring icons and the group he helped create, define, and immortalize.

Stanley mixes compelling personal revelations and gripping, gritty war stories that will surprise even the most steadfast member of the KISS Army. He takes us back to his childhood in the 1950s and ’60s, a traumatic time made more painful thanks to a physical deformity. Born with a condition called microtia, he grew up partially deaf, with only one ear. But this instilled in him an inner drive to succeed in the most unlikely of pursuits: music.

With never-before-seen photos and images throughout, Stanley’s memoir is a fully realized and unflinching portrait of a rock star, a chronicle of the stories behind the famous anthems, the many brawls and betrayals, and all the drama and pyrotechnics on and off the stage. Raw and confessional, Stanley offers candid insights into his personal relationships, and the turbulent dynamics with his bandmates over the past four decades. And no one comes out unscathed–including Stanley himself.

People say I was brave to write such a revealing book, but I wrote it because I needed to personally reflect on my own life. I know everyone will see themselves somewhere in this book, and where my story might take them is why I’m sharing it.” –Paul Stanley

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Face the Music Audiobook Narrator

Paul Stanley is the narrator of Face the Music audiobook that was written by Paul Stanley

Paul Stanley is the frontman and rhythm guitarist for KISS, which he cofounded in New York City in 1973. He is the designer of numerous KISS album covers, costumes, and concert stages, in addition to writing many of KISS's most successful songs. With sales of more than one hundred million records worldwide, KISS sits atop the list of American bands, with the most gold-certified albums earned in history. Along with his bandmates, Stanley was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014. A painter, with art sales reaching two million dollars; a solo musician; a musical stage performer; founding partner in Rock & Brews restaurants; and co-owner of the Arena Football League's L.A. KISS, Stanley is a committed and active supporter of various Wounded Warrior Project organizations. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Erin, and four children.

About the Author(s) of Face the Music

Paul Stanley is the author of Face the Music

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Subjects

The publisher of the Face the Music is HarperAudio. includes the following subjects: The BISAC Subject Code is Genres & Styles, Music, Rock

Additional info

The publisher of the Face the Music is HarperAudio. The imprint is HarperAudio. It is supplied by HarperAudio. The ISBN-13 is 9780062348005.

Global Availability

This book is only available in the United States.

Goodreads Reviews

Sebastian

May 25, 2014

This is by far the greatest KISS Book. And there are a lot of KISS Books. I have read every single one there is. The reason that this is the best KISS book is because of the mystery of Paul Stanley. Rock 'n roll has lost its mystery. Everything every rock star does is known on the Internet and TMZ etc. KISS was the most mysterious band the land, as well as being quite hot. I thought I knew all there was to know about KISS. as it turns out, after reading this revelatory book, I didn't know the half of it. Paul Stanley understands the magic of mystery in rock n' roll. Every page of this book was something that I, a longtime diehard KISS freak, did not know. Like about Paul's childhood. Paul's relationship w his family. How he felt behind the makeup & majesty of KISS. And oh yeah, guess what? Paul parties. After all this time, Paul Stanley is cool. This book even had more than a few tear jerking moments. For me, it was quite touching to read about Bill Aucoin passing away. When Paul says " Goodbye" it is a sign of class and respect that even though he hadn't worked with Aucoin in years, Paul felt it appropriate to remember Bill in such a way befitting his contribution to the empire that is KISS. This extends to the original KISS members too. Whereas some rock bios on the predictable booze & drugs & sour grapes story arc, Paul's book retains a sense of FUN which is sadly lacking in some rock bios. As much bad love is between the original band members, Paul makes sure to highlight the good times as well as the bad. He goes out of his way to detail the camaraderie evident in the original lineup, and explains how important that was to the success of KISS. This is one of the best books I've ever read. KISS fan or not, this is a well written book with a great story. It is a pleasure to read.

*TANYA*

August 06, 2017

I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed this book. I laughed out loud a few times. Paul Stanley's view on family, life, his career was admirable.

Chaplain

December 17, 2021

This is a great book all about the life inside KISS. Paul does not pull any punches and tells it like it was. He seemed to be the hardest working man in the band and probably in Rock itself. Paul does a great job at explaining the relationships betwene the band members as well as there proclivities twards alchohol and drugs. Paul remained drug free throughout, however.He looked at it more like a business than a party.I highly recommend this book to all.

*TUDOR^QUEEN*

December 31, 2017

I was thrilled when I learned that my fave KISS member Mr. Paul Stanley had written his autobiography. I mean...just look at him. At 60 something, he's still hot!I learned a lot of things while reading this book. The most important thing I learned is that Paul Stanley was the "Paul McCartney of KISS." What does that mean? I'll explain it for you. He loves his band, KISS, more than anything. He will do anything to protect it and keep it alive. When others in the band fail his expectations and don't produce, he will carry the load. He is the standard bearer of KISS. KISS might not still be around, alive and kicking if Paul Stanley wasn't nurturing and building upon it through the decades. I never realized that even his staunchest partner and ally Gene Simmons let his attentions stray from the band and let Paul bear the extra responsibilities. I always loved Paul Stanley, for his good looks, musical talent, and intelligence; but I respect him even more now after reading this book. He says in all his interviews that he wrote this for his children and also to inspire people. He was successful in this achievement.Paul reveals that he was born deaf on one side, without an ear. This deformity haunted him throughout his childhood and adolescence. How unlikely that a paunchy teenager with one ear would wind up as one of the most recognizable and successful rock stars in the world, loved by women galore. How did he do this? He believed that all he had to do was want it and work for it. Such was his drive and endurance that not achieving this wasn't even an option.Paul clearly lays out the facts of why Peter Criss and Ace Frehley were self-destructive and harmful to the business of KISS. As Paul says, KISS isn't only a band...it's a brand. In fact, when he feels he's too old and unable to perform the duties of KISS's Starchild, he would have no qualms having another capable person wear his makeup and take over the role. I was frankly disgusted as I read of the antics of Peter and Ace and the many chances they squandered to remain a part of KISS.Paul covers the many facets of his life: KISS, romances, marriage and divorce, cooking, painting, performing in "Phantom of the Opera," to the fierce love of his four children. Throughout it all, he was just searching for happiness and fulfillment. He ultimately found that with his beloved wife Erin and his kids.About the Paul McCartney comparison; as a diehard Beatle fan who has read countless books about them, I see the same qualities in Paul Stanley as Paul McCartney. McCartney was the biggest cheerleader of The Beatles. He would have done anything to keep them going, he loved his band so much. I see the same leadership qualities and positive force in Paul Stanley.

Julie

March 02, 2016

Face the Music – A Life Exposed by Paul Stanley is a 2014 HarperOne publication.I have always liked KISS because they are larger than life, fun, and highly entertaining. However, I’m not one of those die hard, “KISS Army” types. I’d say I was more of a casual fan, but of the four original members, Paul Stanley was always my favorite. Despite his face being hidden by all that makeup, there was something about him that I found sexy, way back in the day. But, I have to confess, I really don’t much about the personal lives of the KISS members, so when I saw this book in my library, I decided to check it out. Audiobooks are not my first choice, but recently I have begun to use them a little here and there, so when I saw that Paul Stanley wrote the book himself, without a co-author, and also narrated the audio version personally, I decided to try the audio version. The chance one takes, as a fan, hardcore or casual, when reading a rock biography, is that you may come away from it wishing you had stayed ignorant about this person’s life or attitude. I almost had that feeling with this one a time or two, but am able to keep it in perspective enough that it won’t have any bearing on how I feel about KISS as a unit or their music. I’m not usually impressed with all the egos and infighting in rock groups, but, it doesn’t surprise me, or faze me. All the big bands especially those from the 70’s and 80’s, have over- inflated egos and have lived this life so long, they have no real concept of reality as most of us know it. So, it wasn’t just the big ego that left me with a bad taste in my mouth, it was that the author seemed incapable of saying anything nice about anyone, and at times still appears to carry around a big chip on his shoulder, when there doesn’t seem to be a reason to. Mr. Stanley’s first victims are his parents, who did not buy him an expensive electric guitar, and didn’t baby or coddle him. Most families are dysfunctional to some extent, and I would hope no child of mine will ever write a book that throws all my parenting mistakes back in my face. He wasn’t beaten or abused, but was neglected, mainly due to his sister’s very troubled life. He went on to suggest that Gene Simmons was selfish due to his being an only child, and since I’m an only child, I think that is a stereotype. While, he bashed Gene repeatedly, his disdain literally oozed when it came to Peter and Ace. He never passed on an opportunity to give those two grief over their musical abilities or anything else he could think of to berate them with. I expected this to some extent, but it grew old after a while. He bragged about his sexual conquest, while blaming his promiscuity on his insecurities, openly admitting he didn’t care about these women, only wanting to be seen with them in public because of how they looked. Again, that’s no big surprise, and these women were only with him because he was a rock star. But, while many think they would like to live that way, to me it seemed like a hollow and empty lifestyle. Having said all that, he was quite honest about mistakes the band made career wise, such as making a ‘concept album’ and the disastrous made for TV movie, and the poor choices they made moneywise by trusting people who turned around and betrayed them, admitting they were not hands on enough with the business end of things. He was forthcoming about the music business as a whole, the changing tides in music and the band going through some pretty hard times before getting back to the basics and doing what it is they do best. Paul did have more savvy than most when it came to marketing the band and seemed to understand early on that just playing music and waiting for someone to notice them was not good enough. He took smart steps and was a leader for the band, more so than Gene, who often gets credit for those moves. I was happy to see that Paul finally began to mature later in life, did find his soulmate, and settled into a more normal life, as normal as can be expected when you are famous rock star, at least. As far as the writing goes, this one is well organized, hits on the points most people will want read about, was in many ways brutally honest, and he didn’t always paint himself in the most positive light, although I think that was probably unintentional. Paul’s narration was very impressive, and he did a great job of telling his story with well- timed inflections and just the right amount of emotion. He is clear and concise and I think hearing the story told in his own voice made the experience more personal. The one drawback to choosing audio is that you miss out on all the pictures the author includes in the print version. Overall, I found Paul Stanley’s life to be pretty typical of a rock star, with all the trite pettiness, and egotism, women, and life in the fast lane. But, in other ways it was atypical since Paul never fell prey to drug or alcohol addiction, was never arrested or exhibited signs of violence, or general recklessness. Although he had some hard times, he’s pretty much lived large, has the money, the fame, and all the fringe benefits that go along with that. No real surprises or startling revelations here, other than for one who preaches rock as a type of religion and swears by their positive messages, he was more negative than I would have thought and could be incredibly judgmental, and very hard on people, takes offense easily, and can hold a grudge for a long time. Of course, this is one side of the story, but I think the author told the truth without skimming over difficult subjects and honestly believes what he is saying here is the truth as he remembers it. While staunch fans will love this book and will not find fault in Mr. Stanley, those with the ability to step back and see the big picture will perhaps come away with a different perspective on the man and his life. Either way, the book is interesting and very personal, obviously written with great care and is a quality read. Overall 4 stars

Bill

May 16, 2014

First, let me be upfront about the fact that I was a KISS freak growing up. At age 15, they were the first rock concert I had gone to. It was their 1977 tour and absolutely spectacular.But KISS was much more than pyrotechnics and blood spitting and smoking guitars. They frigging ROCKED.To this day I am still a fan and will frequently use the Alive! album to get me through a workout. Meat & potatoes rock and roll, as Paul and Gene like to put it, but damn it sure gets my blood going.I follow Paul Stanley on twitter because he's a very positive guy. It was via his tweets that I realized he had a brand new autobiography coming out, and this was one I was going to get in hardcover.Well, I must say that this is the best autobiography I've read. Paul pretty much bares his soul here. I know all about the passion of music, but KISS meant something very special to him. KISS was the vehicle he used to break out of a shy and lonely life due to a birth defect and the teasing he had endured as a child.Coming from a dysfunctional family, Paul got absolutely no support. The millions that he is now worth came from his own drive and determination to overcome his psychological and physical hurdles. KISS became his family and finally he found social comfort within his Starchild stage persona. Unfortunately, dysfunctionality followed the band, as well. Understanding why KISS went through the turmoil it did because of Peter Criss and Ace Frehley (one of my guitar idols) is only one of the fascinating aspects of this book.Okay, so I'm biased. There's probably no way this would rate a 5 star read if you aren't a KISS fan, but it's still worth reading this inspiring memoir to realize a rocker can be grounded with such gratitude and emotion. For those who have ever dug the band, you must read this.

Sean

April 17, 2014

Coming from a guy who's well-known for spitting out cliched answers to interview questions, I had really low expectations from this autobiography. The three preceding books by the original members of KISS had been variable forums for self-serving name-dropping (Gene Simmons),whiny accounts of how everyone else is wrong (Peter Criss), or just plain detached recollections of odd behavior (Ace Frehley.)What a surprise to find that Paul Stanley's book is the most revealing account of what it's like to be a member of one of the biggest bands in the world. For Paul Stanley, that meant finding out that fame and fortune is not enough to be truly happy. Stanley's book is a quest of sorts. Having been born with a deformity of his right ear and being partially deaf, he learns from an early age that life is all about how you accept and deal with your limitations. Stanley details the early days of the band up through the recording of "Monster" in 2011. KISS fans will no doubt find his stories about dealing with the quirks of Ace, Peter, and, surprisingly, Gene to be entertaining but, also, eye-opening. None of the other KISS biographies detail the dysfunction as well as Stanley's.But "Face the Music" is less about the actual issues and more about how they are handled. Stanley is extremely candid about his shortcomings as well as acknowledging others' perceptions of his reality. That is what I liked most about the book.

Mike

April 19, 2014

After reading Paul Stanley's autobiography "Face the Music" I have now read books by all four of the members of my favorite childhood band. Growing up, my favorite member of KISS was Gene Simmons. I loved the demon persona and what 12 year old boy isn't drawn to spitting fire and blood? But after reading all of these books, I have to admit Paul Stanley comes across as the sanest and I liked his book more than all the others. Stanley not only tells his story with a refreshing (and at times brutal) honesty but along the way he offers what I considered some great life advice - and since I'm a DJ for a living, some great entertaining advice as well. In fact I'm sure my next article for The Disc Jockey News will be a synopsis of some of the great wisdom Stanley imparts (example when Stanley talks about performing in a large, packed arena he says "I wasn't playing to a mass but to each and every one of those people"). Stanley is unforgiving as he rips Peter Criss and Ace Frehley for "wasting" their talents with drugs, alcohol and overall neglect. I loved when he wrote of them, "being inept,unreliable and marginally capable didn't make you rock and roll. It made you inept, unreliable and marginally capable." Yet even with all the underlying anger I still felt Stanley wished things had worked out differently. As he explains, the band was all he had for many many years (I'll let you read the book to discover why) so seeing these two take it for granted, or even seeing Simmons persue other avenues in entertainment like movies or producing other bands was tough for Stanley to handle. And during the reunion tours, you can tell Stanley hoped that Criss and Frehley had changed, only to be disappointed once again. "Face the Music" was an enjoyable read and I'd highly recommend it for anyone who went through a "KISS phase" as a kid.

Jim

April 13, 2014

Easily the best of the KISS biographies.

Beth

April 26, 2015

One of the best autobiographies I've ever read.Not only does Paul Stanley regale us with stories from KISS-tory, he also provides a truly inspirational account about dealing with his birth defect and deafness. He's honest and doesn't hold back with regard to his former and current KISS band mates, but there's no underlying malice toward anyone as he tells his story. He owns his own mistakes, too, and I always appreciate that when reading autobiographies.Oh, and I tried his brussel sprout recipe - highly recommend.You don't have to be a KISS fan to enjoy this one.Bethwww.myelegantmusings.blogspot.com

Beth

April 14, 2014

I'm generally not into reading memoirs/autobiographies. As a longtime KISS fan, I was actually resistant to reading this one, having read Ace's (love ya man, but how much do you really remember?) and Gene's (seriously, dude, get over yourself) I was a bit leery, as well as being tired of the original members taking constant potshots at each other. But this was an enjoyable, revealing, self-effacing, sometimes heart breaking, and most importantly, human, read. Well done, Starchild, well done.

Jessica

March 07, 2019

Was pleasantly surprised by this one. Not only was it well written and entertaining throughout but Paul Stanley did a great job with the narration. If you're a fan of Kiss or even just mildly interested I'd suggest giving this book a chance, it's an interesting look at Kiss and the music industry in general.

Michael

February 08, 2015

There are a multitude of ways to look at each autobiography written by the original memebers of Kiss. If these were the solo albums from '78 Ace would be the better of all four releases and Gene would be the worst simply because he's a boring asshole. I have yet to read Peter's and if Paul is to be believed I should skip it because Peter can barely read or write. Paul's book is entertaining and revealing. He overcame a disability and became a rock God. At times he does come off as bitter and a bit of a dick but this is Paul Stanley the frontman of Kiss so you should expect a great deal of ego to shine through. The problem is that If you're a Kiss fan you know the Kisstory, you know that while Gene was off making movies Paul was the unhappy housewife making Kiss records. While the book doesn't offer much new insight into Kisstory it does give you a Paul Stanley that no one knew existed. While onstage he's able to entertain an arena full of people but the Paul off stage is insecure and appears to have low self esteem due in part to a birth defect and parents that won't win any parent of the year awards. Of course you get a ton of dirt and smack talking. This is Kiss and at times it feels less like a band and more like a bunch of kids with massive egos and too much money. Ace and Peter are made to appear as if they're talentless hacks that allowed drugs and alcohol to ruin their creativity and Gene is a self absorbed man who for wasn't truly invested in Kiss for a few years. For awhile it was just Paul Stanley being 100% involved in the band. Paul's biography is readable and you get a lot of honesty even if it's mean spirited. Kiss fans will read it and complain that Paul was quite mean to Ace and Peter but we weren't there so we can't verify any of it. Non Kiss fans will probably not like it as much because this is a book about Kiss but it's well written and gives some insight into the man behind the face paint.

Ben

June 26, 2014

There have been a few great rock star books over the years: Nikki Sixx's The Heroin Diaries, Motley Crue The Dirt, and I also liked Gene Simmons' Kiss and Makeup quite a bit. But where Gene's book lacked some of the "behind the scenes" events within Kiss, especially during the '80s, this is one of the places where Paul's book shines. And once you read that part, the reason why Gene's glosses over this period becomes very clear.I've been a Kiss fan since I was 14 and I've always found Paul as the mysterious frontman, and his story explains why. Which is exactly one of the reasons I was so drawn to this story in the first place. It's a story about Paul's life journey.Paul Stanley is - maybe unsurprisingly - much deeper than fans may realize. There are many lessons and experiences in his story for readers to glean wisdom from, and hopefully when you read it, you'll be in an emotional and mental place to take advantage of them.I love this book and I highly recommend it, even for non-Kiss fans.

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