Forever (KISS song)
Encyclopedia
"Forever" is a Kiss
song from the Hot in the Shade
album. It peaked at number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100
chart, making it the band's first American Top 40 single since "I Was Made for Lovin' You
" reached number 11 in 1979. It was the band's seventh and, to date, last Top 20 US
single. It also reached number 17 on Billboard'
s Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks. The song was co-written by guitarist/vocalist Paul Stanley
and American singer/songwriter Michael Bolton
, who was then at the peak of his commercial popularity, and with whom guitarist Bruce Kulick
had played previous to Kiss.
Musically, "Forever" is a power ballad. It begins with Stanley singing over an acoustic guitar intro, with the full band coming in for the first refrain
.
"Forever" was released as a music video
that received heavy airplay on MTV
, attaining the #1 position on the video channel's "Most Requested Videos" show several times. It is perhaps the most understated video Kiss has released, as it showed the band (then consisting of Stanley, Gene Simmons
, Bruce Kulick
and Eric Carr
) playing the song in an empty room.
Despite the success of "Forever", Hot in the Shade became the first Kiss album to fail to be certified platinum
by the RIAA
since 1982's Creatures of the Night
.
KISS (band)
Kiss is an American rock band formed in New York City in January 1973. Well-known for its members' face paint and flamboyant stage outfits, the group rose to prominence in the mid to late 1970s on the basis of their elaborate live performances, which featured fire breathing, blood spitting,...
song from the Hot in the Shade
Hot in the Shade
-Personnel:*Paul Stanley – rhythm guitar, vocals*Gene Simmons – bass guitar, vocals*Bruce Kulick – lead guitar, backing vocals*Eric Carr – drums, percussion, vocals-Charts:AlbumSingles- Certifications :...
album. It peaked at number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart, making it the band's first American Top 40 single since "I Was Made for Lovin' You
I Was Made For Lovin' You
I Was Made for Lovin' You" is a song by American hard rock band Kiss, originally released on their 1979 album Dynasty. It was released as the A-side of their first single from the album. It was the band's second Gold single, selling over 1 million copies. The single was certified Platinum in the...
" reached number 11 in 1979. It was the band's seventh and, to date, last Top 20 US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
single. It also reached number 17 on Billboard'
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
s Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks. The song was co-written by guitarist/vocalist Paul Stanley
Paul Stanley
Stanley Harvey Eisen , better known by his stage name Paul Stanley, is an American hard rock guitarist, singer, musician, painter and songwriter best known for being the rhythm guitarist and primary lead vocalist of the rock band Kiss. He is the writer or co-writer of many of the band's...
and American singer/songwriter Michael Bolton
Michael Bolton
Michael Bolton is an American singer and songwriter. Bolton originally performed in the hard rock and heavy metal genres from the mid 1970s to the mid 1980s, both on his early solo albums and those recorded as the frontman of the band Blackjack...
, who was then at the peak of his commercial popularity, and with whom guitarist Bruce Kulick
Bruce Kulick
Bruce Howard Kulick is an American guitarist, musician and a member of the band Grand Funk Railroad. Previously, Kulick had been a longtime member of the band Kiss....
had played previous to Kiss.
Musically, "Forever" is a power ballad. It begins with Stanley singing over an acoustic guitar intro, with the full band coming in for the first refrain
Refrain
A refrain is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse; the "chorus" of a song...
.
"Forever" was released as a music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
that received heavy airplay on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
, attaining the #1 position on the video channel's "Most Requested Videos" show several times. It is perhaps the most understated video Kiss has released, as it showed the band (then consisting of Stanley, Gene Simmons
Gene Simmons
Gene Simmons is an Israeli-American entrepreneur, singer-songwriter, actor, and rock bassist. Known as "The Demon", he is the bassist/vocalist of Kiss, a hard rock band he co-founded in the early 1970s.-Early life:...
, Bruce Kulick
Bruce Kulick
Bruce Howard Kulick is an American guitarist, musician and a member of the band Grand Funk Railroad. Previously, Kulick had been a longtime member of the band Kiss....
and Eric Carr
Eric Carr
Paul Charles Caravello , also known as Eric Carr, was an American musician, best known as drummer for the rock band Kiss. Caravello was selected as the new Kiss drummer after Peter Criss left in 1980...
) playing the song in an empty room.
Despite the success of "Forever", Hot in the Shade became the first Kiss album to fail to be certified platinum
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
by the RIAA
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
since 1982's Creatures of the Night
Creatures of the Night
Creatures of the Night is the tenth studio album by Kiss. It is the band's last album for Casablanca Records, the only label the group had ever recorded for up to that point...
.
Other appearances
"Forever" is also on the following Kiss albums:- Alive IIIAlive III"Take It Off" originally was a bonus track on the Japanese, European and South American CD releases and the US vinyl release only, being placed between "Forever" and "I Love It Loud"...
- Live version - The Box Set
- The Very Best of KissThe Very Best of KISS, -Personnel:*Paul Stanley – rhythm guitar , lead vocals , guitar solo , first guitar solo on , bass guitar .*Gene Simmons – bass guitar , lead vocals...
- The Best of Kiss, Volume 2: The Millennium CollectionThe Best of KISS, Volume 2: The Millennium Collection-Personnel:*Paul Stanley - Rhythm Guitar, Lead Vocals*Gene Simmons - Bass, Lead Vocals*Vinnie Vincent - Lead Guitar, Backing Vocals*Eric Carr - Drums, Backing Vocals*Mark St. John - Lead Guitar*Bruce Kulick - Lead Guitar, Backing Vocals...
- Kiss Symphony: Alive IVKISS Symphony: Alive IVKiss Symphony: Alive IV is a 2003 live album from Kiss performing with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra . The arrangements were made by David Campbell, who also conducted the MSO. It is the group's fourth album in the Alive series and first release under Kiss Records and Sanctuary Records...
- Live version - Kiss Best - Kissology - 2008 re-recorded studio version (Japan only)
Peak positions
| Chart (1990) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
38 |
| Canadian Singles Chart Canadian Singles Chart The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays.... |
18 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
65 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
8 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks | 17 |
End of year charts
| End of year chart (1990) | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 92 |