10 Musicians Who Cheated Death
6. Ace Frehley's Electric Performance
Most people expect the guys from KISS to get into a bit of hijinx every now and again. I mean, since these are guys who dress up like aliens and superheroes on stage anyway, it's only natural that they do a little something out of the ordinary for a thrill. Although, maybe that kind of rush didn't necessarily have to be at 10,000 Volts.
When KISS were kicking off their tour in support of Rock and Roll Over, the setup was to have Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, and Ace Frehley emerge from the rafters before climbing down a lit staircase. Seems good so far. Until one time when a roadie forgot to ground the banister properly. In an attempt to catch his balance, Frehley grabbed ahold of the hand rail before getting zapped with an electric shock, knocking him back and out cold for a few seconds.
Though the band took a break to assess the situation, Frehley eventually returned to the stage that night despite not having any feeling in his left hand. Much like any rock and roll troubadour, Frehley took the whole thing in stride, even using the incident as the inspiration for the song Shock Me, which became his debut vocal performance on a KISS record. There's a lot of professionalism in rock and roll, but this takes the phrase "the show must go on" to unheard-of levels.