Reality is a Dish Best Served Cold

On Power: My Journey Through the Corridors of Power and How You Can Get More Power – Gene Simmons (Dey Street)

Gene Simmons is not your ordinary rock star. He was and is not content to be caught up in the trappings that come with being a mega-millions earning rock star; instead he takes the attitude of a laborer into his approach to life and business, always willing to put in the hard work.

It may be hard to comprehend in this day and age of no real talent, do nothing celebrity millionaire that a guy who has piled up as much cash as Simmons from his multitude of business ventures would work as hard as he does every single day. The difference is Simmons knows that nothing he has was handed to him, he did it the old fashioned way, he earned it.

Because of his unique, entrepreneurial approach to rock stardom, Simmons has also become a bit of a business guru who is sought out for his comment and thought on a wide range of business and political topics. In that vein Simmons has cranked out some business philosophy books, the latest being, On Power: My Journey Through the Corridors of Power and How You Can Get More Power.

The old cliché that goes something to the effect of “revenge is a dish best served cold” should be retooled to “reality, is a dish best served cold” because Simmons serves up a cold, hard dish of reality in the pages of On Power. Along the way he provides not only his take on the reality of business, politics and power, but offers a depth of knowledge of philosophy and strategy that one would never expect from a guy made famous for his tongue waging onstage persona.

A copy of this book should be sent to every one of the 535 members of Congress from both parties, notably every one of the pantywaist liberals who ever uttered the stupid talking point about “tax cuts for the rich.” Simmons does a wonderful job of pointing out the fallacies of the cultural mindset that so many have gravitated towards that power and wealth somehow equate to evil. His line, “being afraid of power, shunning power, stunts your growth” belongs on a T-shirt. Moms and Dads need to pick up a copy of On Power, because this may be the best guide to proper parenting that I have ever read.

Business Motivation on Steroids

ME, Inc. – Build and Army of One, Unleash Your Inner Rock God, Win in Life and Business – Gene Simmons – (Dey Street Books)

Like most kids who came of age in the 1970s, I was became a fan of the band Kiss…granted not a Kiss Army level fan, but did wear out a vinyl copy of Kiss Alive. Later a became a fan of the band’s bassist, Gene Simmons; he of the un-naturally long tongue and fire breathing fame. It wasn’t Simmons musical ability that drew me to him, but line from and interview where he spoke about all the musicians that came along when he did wanting to be “like the Beatles” while he wanted to be like McDonalds…billions served.

As far as business side of things here was a guy who clearly got it. So I was surprised to see Simmons finally after decades of success land in the business section of the book store. In ME, Inc. – Build and Army of One, Unleash Your Inner Rock God, Win in Life and Business, Simmons espouse his thoughts on business and entrepreneurialism in a wide range of ventures.

I had to remind myself that the book is broken down into two distinct sections; the ME Section in which Simmons piles on the tales of his life, his successes and his multitude of business ventures. Clearly no one could accuse this guy of not having a high opinion of himself; some might say he’s cocky, but as he points out later in the book, self-confidence can go along way when you’re starting a business venture.

It is in the second half of the book, the YOU section that this book really hits its stride. While Simmons certainly doesn’t offer up any earth shattering, new secrets to business success; what he does do is offer a clear headed approach to both life and business with a palpable sense of urgency.

It’s easy to see why Simmons has become a favorite with the cable business and conservative news networks. Don’t expect a Harvard Business Review white paper; this is common sense based, pretty straight forward and at times hard hitting advice on business and success.

Simmons isn’t shy about stirring the pot when offers up his take on success and the impact of marriage and children. He dovetails a chapter on honing the ability to tell your own story and the impact that can have on your business success with a chapter on the importance of speaking English. I doubt Simmons would sit still very long a phone menu that includes; “Press one for English.” The case he makes is absolutely on target; English is the language of success.

While the ME section can wear a little thin as it runs on; I found the YOU section to be a real shot in the arm, its business and life motivation on steroids.   

A Retro-perspective of Kiss

Nothing to Lose: The Making of Kiss 1972 – 1975 – Ken Sharp with Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley (IT Books)

I make a full admission upfront; call it a guilty pleasure or an attempt to hold onto my youth, but I have Kiss music on my Ipod…a lot of it. That may not be the coolest thing to admit, but then again I never claimed to be the coolest guy. That being said, I am not now, nor was I ever, a card carrying member of the Kiss Army, the band’s enthusiastic, over the top (would you expect anything less) fan club.

So that is the perspective that I take going into Nothing to Lose: The Making of Kiss 1972 – 1975 from author Ken Sharp and the band’s Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, the latest entry on the shelf full of books that try to tackle the Kiss story. Given the time parameters of the title, it’s a safe bet that there is more of the story to be told. Having muddled through some of the prior books, I wasn’t surprised that much of the tale was familiar.

 

Nothing to Lose is delivered in a similar fashion to Steve Miller’s book Detroit Rock City with numerous participants delivering their take on the same subject. You may find yourself flipping back and forth in an attempt to follow who the person is that is offering up their take given the fact that many of those quoted are unknown, early fans, roadies, promoters, bar owners and fellow musicians. After awhile this approach takes on a beating a dead horse quality; you’d have to really be a die-hard to care about the perspective of the bar owner, the bar owner’s son, the bar owners daughter, the regular bar patrons, and the regular bar patrons best friend. You get the picture, it becomes what I call a Tom Petty Moment; to borrow his album title Let Me Up I’ve Had Enough!

While it clearly details the early struggles, the book also captures the band’s meteoric rise from dinky, dingy clubs to huge arenas; from early striped down efforts to full blown pyrotechnics, lights and elevating stages. It is clearly the original lineup of Kiss that remains the one that matters most to their diehard fans and Nothing to Lose does an amazing job of telling that story and telling it again and again and again. Not sure that this one is for the casual fan or guilty pleasure seeker.