The Unexpected Hit That Changed the Dynamic Inside KISS

A long-simmering debate within the Kiss camp has resurfaced, with Peter Criss responding sharply to Gene Simmons’ recent claim that Criss had no real role in writing the band’s classic ballad “Beth.”

Earlier this month, Simmons publicly argued that Criss did not deserve a songwriting credit on the Destroyer track, asserting instead that the song was written by Stan Penridge, Criss’ former bandmate prior to Kiss. Simmons alleged that Criss’ name was added later through behind-the-scenes maneuvering.

“Through politics and hint, hint, nudge, nudge — and I wasn’t there when the conversation went down — Stan Penridge apparently agreed that Peter’s name would go in the songwriting credit,” Simmons said. “It appears first. Peter Criss, (Destroyer producer) Bob Ezrin, Stan Penridge, or the other way around. But Peter’s first. Peter had nothing to do with that song. He sang it.”

Criss, however, firmly rejects that version of events.

Criss: “Gene Wasn’t There”

In a new interview with Billboard, Criss dismissed Simmons’ comments as uninformed and unnecessary, pointing out that Simmons was not involved during the song’s early development.

“Gene wouldn’t know how the song was originally written because Gene wasn’t there from the conception of the song in the late ’60s and he wasn’t there for the completion of the song with Bob Ezrin,” Criss said. “Gene’s statements are ridiculous and very uncalled for; he talks about things that he doesn’t know about.”

Criss explained that “Beth” began life as a more straightforward rock song before gradually evolving into the orchestral ballad that became one of Kiss’s biggest hits. According to Criss, his role went far beyond simply singing the track.

“As the singing songwriter, I wrote the melody and creating the phrasing for the song that’s on the original demo ‘Beck’ with Stan Penridge,” he said. “Out of Stan’s little black book what remained on the reworked version of ‘Beth’ is Stan’s original verse and chorus, and my core melody remains on the reworked composition.”

Bob Ezrin’s Recollection and the Legacy of “Beth”

Producer Bob Ezrin also weighed in, offering a perspective that supports Criss’ account more than Simmons’. Ezrin recalled that the song initially had a tougher, more traditional rock feel before he helped reshape it in the studio.

“(‘Beth’) was a bit rockier and more macho (at first),” Ezrin said. “I felt it had potential, so I asked to take it home and play with it a bit. I did slow it down, as Gene says, and I created that piano part but also (made it) more vulnerable and sensitive.”

Criss described those sessions as collaborative, recalling how he and Ezrin worked side by side at the piano at Record Plant Studios. “Bob Ezrin changed the tempo and made it slower, and I worked on changing some of the second verse and the phrasing with the slower tempo,” Criss explained.

Ezrin added that, based on what he was told at the time, the song originated with both Criss and Penridge. “From what I was told, the original song was written by Criss and Penridge,” he said.

Decades later, “Beth” remains one of Kiss’s most unexpected and enduring successes—a tender ballad that contrasted sharply with the band’s larger-than-life image and helped broaden their audience. The ongoing dispute over its authorship underscores not only lingering tensions within the band but also the complexities of collaborative songwriting, where memory, credit, and legacy can blur over time. Regardless of the debate, “Beth” stands as a defining moment in Kiss history, shaped by multiple hands and perspectives—much like the band itself.