Grace Slick’s strange encounter with Gene Simmons: “Polaroids of every woman he’s ever screwed”
In her time, Grace Slick lived through some outlandish encounters. As she was at the centre of the countercultural boom in the 1960s, it was part and parcel of such a stature that she should partake in and witness a myriad of LSD and drug-influenced madness. However, she also had more sobering experiences with the strange side of fame, including one with Gene Simmons.
The former Jefferson Airplane frontwoman is one of the most unrelenting figures of the 1960s. Not only did she give the decade its defining anthem in ‘White Rabbit’, a sonic trip inspired by Alice in Wonderland and her experiences with LSD, but she was also a key force in affirming that women could also be consequential parts of the cultural conversation in an era dominated by men and misogyny. Adding this rebellion against social mores to her love of adventure makes for a truly extraordinary life story.
Whether it be a romantic dalliance with The Doors frontman Jim Morrison—whom she paints a starkly realistic picture of—or her open trepidation about travelling to London to meet The Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger to organise Altamont, Slick came into close contact with an array of notable names and saw them in lights far removed from the glamour of superstardom.
One man she has known and feels somewhat negatively about, though, is the Kiss bassist Gene Simmons. Despite his explicit stance against drugs and alcohol, the controversial songwriter of ‘Deuce’ is infamous for his voracious appetite for another aspect closely associated with the classic rock era: sex.
A braggadocious character, he has claimed on numerous occasions that he has bedded thousands of women, and the total number he claims to be around 5,000. He even proclaims that he has taken a Polaroid of each instance. After he married Shannon Tweed in 2011, she found the key to the lockboxes containing the photos and confirmed it. Tweed later burned every picture on TV during the final season of Gene Simmons Family Jewels.
It’s not just Tweed who saw the pictures; Slick has, too. When speaking to antiMUSIC, she revealed all. After discussing notable artists who have tried their hands at other expressions, such as painting, she maintained that while they are adept at this area, you wouldn’t want them fixing your TV, as it’s the other side of the brain that accounts for such practical things, which most creatives “suck” at.
An anomaly in this trend is Simmons, who, unlike other creatives who have delved into other outlets outside of music, does not take drugs and is a fine business mind. Then, she offered some of her humourous frankness and discussed the infamous Polaroids.
“His addiction is sex,” she said bluntly. She then explained that her ex-husband, the lighting technician Skip Johnson, was once Kiss’ lighting director. One day, the pair went to Simmons’ house to discuss money or something to do with a tour, but she couldn’t remember exactly what. However, she was certain that he asked them if they wanted to see his notorious collection.
She recalled: “And he shows Polaroids of every woman he’s ever screwed.”
Understandably, Slick thought it was a pretty gross collection to be shown and for a man to possess, but as she’s had an armed standoff with police, she wasn’t one to be reduced by Simmons, of all people.
She continued: “And I’m just going, ‘Ah, Jesus, do I have to look at this?’ I so don’t care, you know. My ex-husband pretty much cared because he was kind of a sex addict, or you know, whatever they call they call that kinda stuff. But you know, a woman (pfff), I could care less. But Gene’s very good at business.” It’s a mystery how many other stars Simmons showed his collection to before his poor wife had to find them and confirm that the rumours were true.
