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Would you pay $225 for a CD single? That’s exactly how much Vinnie Vincent, the guitarist who replaced Ace Frehley in Kiss from 1982 to 1984, charges for “Ride the Serpent.” This is Vinnie Vincent Invasion’s first release in decades. Even hardened Kiss Army veterans question the price. So much so that Vincent had to publicly defend him.
In now-deleted exchanges with fans on social media, several publications reported that Vincent said the following: “If you like what I do, support the artist. You’re complaining because it’s just one song? That one song is worth more than most entire albums. Be happy it’s only $200 and it’s still signed.”
Originally it was $300, but with the economy suffering, I lowered it to $200. If you don’t like it…that’s your problem, not mine.”
Limited release
Vincent releases the CD, which even has the classic “Compact Disc Digital Audio” logo printed directly on it, in a limited edition of 1,000 copies. It is considered an “extended play” from Vinnie Vincent Invasion’s upcoming album “Judgment Day Guitarmageddon”. The price of $225 includes a $25 shipping fee. He charges $300 for “international orders.”
The release marks Vincent’s first new music since 1996’s Euphoria EP.
Statements to the fans
“If the support of the fans is there, then that’s the price you can expect for these private recordings from my collection,” Vincent reportedly told fans. “There is a vault full of recordings that I have prepared for release. The time is almost here. I understand the bitching, the moaning, the moaning about the price, but you also have to understand that my situation is such that my music is so sought after that it would immediately be targeted and taken away from me – and I cannot and will not allow that.”
In a recent Facebook comment, Vincent stated that he might not release Guitarmageddon at all. “The magic of VINNIE VINCENT INVASION is escapism,” he wrote. “GUITARMAGEDDON is escapism on steroids. What it boils down to is this: If the fan support isn’t there – and it looks like it will be – this album won’t be released. Am I okay with that? Absolutely. 100 percent. It will be the greatest album of all time, never heard and never released.”
No streaming planned
And even if it does come out, don’t expect it to be released on Spotify. “NO STREAMING,” Vincent wrote to a fan. “ONLY VINYL AND CD AS PHYSICAL SOUND CARRIERS.”
Looking back on his career
Vincent played lead guitar on several tracks from Kiss’ 1982 album Creatures of the Night, but was not credited for them. After Frehley left the band, he appeared on “Lick It Up” in 1983. He co-wrote several songs on the album, including the hit of the same name.
In 1984 he left Kiss and formed Vinnie Vincent Invasion. After the release of “Euphoria,” he largely retreated from the public eye until he performed again at the Atlanta Kiss Expo in 2018. He was not among the Kiss members Donald Trump honored at the Kennedy Center Honors this month.