The rock world is in a state of deep mourning for Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley, who died Oct. 16 following a fall at his home.
“We are devastated by the passing of Ace Frehley,” Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley said in a joint statement. “He was an essential and irreplaceable rock soldier during some of the most formative foundational chapters of the band and its history. He is and will always be a part of KISS’s legacy.
Frehley was a part of Kiss from their earliest shows in 1973 all the way until 1982, when he left due to substance abuse issues, musical differences, and persistent personality clashes with Simmons and Stanley. He rejoined in 1996 for the group’s triumphant reunion run, but left again 2002 following the conclusion of the band’s first farewell tour.
The original four members last stood onstage together when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2015, but they didn’t perform that night. In 2018, however, Frehley played four songs with the new lineup of the band at a Kiss Kruise on Halloween. It was Frehley’s final appearance with the band. Earlier that year, Simmons and Frehley went on a co-headlining tour of Australia, and wrapped up every night by playing a couple of Kiss songs together.
Over the past two decades, Freely toured all across America with his solo band, hitting a mixture of theaters, casinos, clubs, and fairs. His set focused heavily on tunes from the Kiss catalog, but he did break out a few solo gems like “Cherry Medicine,” “Rock Soldiers,” “Rip It Out,” and his famous cover of Russ Ballard’s “New York Groove.”
His last gig took place Sept. 5, 2025, at the Uptown Theater in Providence, Rhode Island. Check out fan-shot footage of show opener “Deuce,” along with “New York Groove.” Like countless Kiss concerts before it, the night wrapped up with “Rock and Roll All Nite.” “This next song if you haven’t heard, it, you’re probably an alien,” Freely told the crowd, “because everyone has heard this song even if you’re not a Kiss fan or an Ace fan. Check it out.”
Later that month, Frehley canceled a show at the Antelope Valley Fair in Lancaster, California, after suffering a fall at his home that required a trip to the hospital. About a month later, he pulled all of his remaining dates due to “ongoing medical issues.”
Kiss are scheduled to make their first live appearance since the conclusion of their 2023 farewell tour at the Kiss Kruise: Landlocked in Vegas event on the weekend of Nov. 14 at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas. The band hasn’t said exactly what they’ll do at the show, but they won’t be in makeup and they’re promising acoustic and electric tunes.
Fans held out hope that Frehley and Peter Criss would pop up at the event and give the world the proper goodbye they were denied on the second farewell tour. Sadly, that’s now impossible. But odd are high they’ll at least hold a special tribute to Frehley.
