VIDEO: Gene Simmons hits Lynn Auditorium

Friday evening at Lynn Auditorium, Gene Simmons and his band rocked and rolled all night. Well, technically, it was only 90 minutes. But it was an insanely entertaining, freewheeling 90 minutes that contained many surprises, special guests and thrilled fans of all ages.

Simmons, bassist/vocalist for Rock and Roll Hall of Famers KISS, had postponed this show from Nov. 1. The wait was worth it. His 18-song set was comprised almost entirely of KISS songs, many of them true obscurities, including a couple that he claimed had never been performed live.

This wasn’t KISS — Simmons, in jeans and black shirt, wasn’t wearing his Demon makeup and there was no spitting of fire and fake blood — but it was still a heck of a lot of fun. A few fans arrived with their faces made up, including a young boy, dubbed Little Gene Simmons, who made it onto the stage with about 30 other kids during the set-closing “Rock and Roll All Nite.”

The evening started with two KISS klassics, “Deuce” and “Shout it Out Loud,” with the super-tight band blazing away. Simmons was backed by the nucleus of Nashville’s Thee Rock and Roll Residency, and the four longhaired guys had the ‘70s rock sound down pat. They even knew 1966’s “Are You Ready?” and 1971’s “She’s So European,” two tunes Simmons said he’d never performed.

Hundreds of devil horns appeared at the first notes of the riotous “Parasite,” fueled by a triple-guitar attack and Simmons’ strong vocals; he’s a better singer than you’d expect. A cover of Little Richard’s “Long Tall Sally” and KISS’ “I (Believe In Me)” showed the band at its best.

Surprise guest Gary Cherone, the Malden-born Extreme/Van Halen frontman, added fire to “Strutter” and again showed he’s one of rock’s badass singers. A 22-year-old blind man, “Brian,” handled the vocals on “Calling Dr. Love” and wowed the crowd, Simmons and band, who were smiling throughout the tune.

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