Whitesnake and Dead Daisies guitarist Doug Aldrich recently described the circumstances behind Gene Simmons telling him to “lose his number.”
Doug Aldrich talks about Gene Simmons
In an interview with Classic Rock History, he addressed misconceptions about their relationship. The guitarist was asked about the incident and how it motivated him. This prompted him to share his perspective on what actually happened.
“Let me say this: I have the ultimate respect for Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley,” Aldrich said. “Gene is, in my mind, a great man, a musician, a father to his kids, and a person of the people. I very much respect him and his outlook on life, and I think he’s pretty much 99% right on everything he does.”
Aldrich then went on to explain the actual circumstances behind the phone call incident.
“So, the story is that down the road, when KISS was coming to Los Angeles, I still had Gene’s number, and I called it, and I thought it was funny because he was having a party at his house,” he continued.
“He basically was like, ‘Please don’t call me again, just lose this number.’ And it was all good, but the press has blown that up into this big thing, but it’s not.”
The guitarist also highlighted his continued respect for Simmons and shared examples of their positive interactions.
“I love Gene. I’ve known Gene and seen Gene in various situations, and he has always been super kind to me, including during my time with Whitesnake when he emailed me and asked me if I was happy,” Aldrich said.
“I said, ‘Yeah, I’m very happy, Gene, thank you.’ Anyway, I think at that time, KISS was auditing a lot of people, and even Richie Sambora, apparently. I was just inspired by the whole situation. It made me want to work harder and get better.”
