INTERVIEW WITH GREG PRATO (AUTHOR OF 'THE ERIC CARR STORY' BOOK)

Italiano

Hi Greg, this is the first Eric Carr biography to appear, and it is a well deserved move to honour one of the most loved KISS member of all time.
What are your first thoughts when you think about the late Eric Carr?
I feel that he's one of the more underrated members of Kiss to have passed through their ranks over the years. I also feel he was a major factor in how great the album 'Creatures of the Night' turned out, which remains one of my favorite all-time Kiss albums to this day. I also believe he was multi-talented (besides drumming, he wrote songs, had a good singing voice, could play other instruments, etc.), and from the interviews I conducted with people that knew him personally, it turns out that he was a great and caring human being, as well. I think 'The Eric Carr Story' captures both the private and public persona of Eric very well.
Did you ever meet Eric at some point in your career?
No, I never met Eric. The only Kiss member I've ever met face-to-face is Ace Frehley (I had the pleasure of conducting a near hour-long interview w/ Ace in the summer of 2009 in NYC, for a mag and site I write for). I have also conducted phone interviews in the past with Paul Stanley, Tommy Thayer, and Peter Criss, and for the Eric book, I conducted an interview with Bruce Kulick.
Can you tell us to whom you got to talk to for 'The Eric Carr Story'?
I interviewed nearly 50 people for 'The Eric Carr Story,' and the book is comprised entirely of interviews that I conducted (no outside sources). I also made it a point to get some cool info on a variety of Kiss topics that have never been disclosed anywhere before. But getting back to the original question, I interviewed Loretta Caravello (Eric's sister), Carrie Stevens (Eric's girlfriend), Bill Aucoin (Kiss' original manager, and sadly, I spoke with him a short while before he passed away), Bruce Kulick (Kiss' guitarist), Bob Ezrin (Destroyer, Elder, and Revenge producer), Michael James Jackson (Creatures of the Night and Lick It Up producer), Ron Nevison (Crazy Nights producer), and Eddie Trunk (current host of 'That Metal Show' + friend of Eric's), etc. Also, I was able to speak to a wide variety of musicians from other bands who were friends with Eric, who all told cool stories of hanging out with him over the years (including Carmine Appice, Anthrax's Charlie Benante, Dream Theater's Mike Portnoy, Ratt's Bobby Blotzer, Winger's Rod Morgenstein, King's X's Ty Tabor, Black N Blue's Jaime St. James, Quiet Riot's Frankie Banali, Slaughter's Mark Slaughter and Blas Elias, Twisted Sister's AJ Pero, and the Ramones' Marky Ramone). You can read the complete list of everyone I interviewed + 2 complete sample chapters by going to http://stores.lulu.com/gregprato and then clicking on 'The Eric Carr Story' (and then clicking "Preview").
Did you get any words by Paul and Gene for this book?
No I did not. I had mutual acquaintances forward along interview requests to both of them, but never heard back. I also sent a request to Ace, and was turned down by his management (perhaps due to the fact that Ace has an autobiography coming out soon). But that said, Gene and Paul have already gone on record in such books as 'Behind the Mask' re: their side of the Eric story. Now, the fans will will have the opportunity to read the other side of the story, from other people that were closely involved with Kiss at the time.
Have you ever thought to write a whole recollection (being you a huge KISS fan) of the KISStory?
No I haven't, because there have been so many books written over the years about Kiss' history, including books that were authorized by the band (Kisstory and Behind the Mask, as well as Gene's books).

Are you working on any other books?
Indeed. Actually, along with the release of 'The Eric Carr Story,' I put out another new book, 'MTV Ruled the World: The Early Years of Music Video,' for which I conducted nearly 100 interviews for, including Judas Priest's Rob Halford, Rush's Geddy Lee, Def Leppard's Joe Elliott and Phil Collen, Heart's Ann Wilson, the Police's Stewart Copeland, the Dead Kennedys' Jello Biafra, Weird Al Yankovic, Hall & Oates, Yes' Jon Anderson, etc. This book will be of interest to Kiss fans, as I also interviewed Bruce Kulick for it, and he has quotes throughout the book (including his recollections of filming the Kiss video "Tears Are Falling"). Also, there is a chapter titled "Kiss Unmasks on MTV," which includes recollections from people talking about when Kiss appeared on TV for the first time w/o make-up, in 1983. And...I am currently working with drummer Carmine Appice on his autobiography, which will also contain some cool Kiss-related content (as he's been friends with the band since the 1970's).Carmine's book will be both rocking and shocking!

Which other books have you released?
Here are all my other books, all of which are self-explanatory from their title. By clicking on each link, you'll be able to read samples of each before purchasing:
'MTV Ruled the World: The Early Years of Music Video' -
'The Eric Carr Story' -

'A Devil on One Shoulder and an Angel on the Other: The Story of Shannon Hoon and Blind Melon' -
'Touched by Magic: The Tommy Bolin Story' -
'No Schlock...Just Rock!'

'Grunge Is Dead: The Oral History of Seattle Rock Music' -
Thanks for the interview, and long live Eric Carr!

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