KISS is a band that inspires remarkable devotion. The KISS ARMY may just contain some of the biggest collectors in the whole of music fandom. And it’s not all down to the band’s toys and merchandise, I am sure.

In its heyday, KISS produced strong, well-balanced albums. Some of the songs became big hits and classic rock staples. Some of the deep cuts remained beloved by the band’s most ardent fans.

KISS is one of the greatest rock bands of all time. These are the band’s 10 most underrated tunes.

The Greatest 10 Deep Cuts by KISS

10. “She” (“Dressed to Kill” – 1975)

It’s an iconic photo now that’s used as the artwork of “Dressed to Kill.” Face painted and dressed in suits, you could tell that this quartet of musicians felt confident about their chances for success.

But it’d take another few months for the live album, “Alive!” to turn them into stars. The best chunk of the group’s repertoire, however, is on “Dressed to Kill.”

“She” might’ve got lost in the shuffle originally. But Ace Frehley’s Southern boogie guitar lines over the Rolling Stones-like groove still work just fine.

9. “Got to Choose” (“Hotter Than Hell” -1974)

KISS never really worked without the facepaint and stage show. But it couldn’t have worked for long without the hits.

“Got to Choose” wasn’t a chart-topper. But you can undoubtedly hear Paul Stanley asking himself, “What would McCartney do?” on this poppy, well-designed opening song.

8. “And On The 8th Day” (“Lick It Up” – 1983)

If you’ve never heard this song, I can bet you’ll figure out what line follows “And On the 8th Day.” Of course, it’s “God created rock n’ roll.”

You might think that’s silly. But weren’t most Chuck Berry and AC/DC songs odes to rock n’ roll?

KISS had a string of rather silly, light songs in the 1980s. But there’s a charm to this one that makes it one of the best, in my, certainly, unpopular opinion.

7. “I’m Alive” (“Asylum” – 1985)

It wasn’t the same KISS without Ace Frehley, Peter Criss, or the makeup. But, oftentimes, it was still a very good, professional rock band on stage.

The “Asylum” album was a minor comeback for the band. And, if you ask the diehards, “I’m Alive” is one of the best songs produced around that time.

6. “The Oath” (“Music from “The Elder” – 1981)

Was KISS trying to be a prog-rock group out of genuine love for the concept albums and complex songwriting? Or was Gene Simmons just late to a party that was about to end?

A bit of both, probably. Still, “The Elder” is one of the strangest and, frankly, most interesting records made by a pop-rock band in that era. It doesn’t all work, sure. But you can hear what Simmons and the band were going for with “The Oath.” This is one of the most bizarre deep cuts I’ve chosen for this list. But I like the ambitiousness of it all.

5. “Ladies Room” (“Rock And Roll Over” -1976)

Prog-rock, grunge, and hair metal were all styles that KISS embraced in its decades-long career. But, frankly, the band was in its element when producing Led Zeppelin and Stones-inspired songs about being horny rock stars.

“Ladies Room” features a stripped-down rock sound. That favours Frehley’s hooky guitar lines. Those serve as a good background to Simmons’ familiar praises of himself as a sex magnet.

4. “Christine Sixteen” (“Love Gun” – 1977)

Ok. Ok. KISS fans sure do love “Christine Sixteen.” It’s not like I found this in a pile of old demo cassettes.

But “Love Gun” certainly had bigger hits, like the title track of Frehley’s “Shock Me.”

While “Christine Sixteen’s “piano-lead boogie rock” features Simmons at arguably his sleaziest, it also captures a band at the top of the heap and well aware of their status.

3. “King of the Night Time World” (“Destroyer” – 1976)

“Destroyer” is likely the finest and most popular record made by KISS. That sound was achieved by hiring producer Bob Ezrin (who also worked with Alice Cooper and Pink Floyd in the 1970s). And, for a while, Ezrin was in high demand to offer the same to other hopefuls.

It was “Destroyer”, which established KISS as a successful studio rock band. “Detroit Rock City” and “Shout It Out Loud” were the trademark hits.

But it was on songs like the sleaze fantasy of “King of the Night Time World” that album-listening audiences realized this group could be on the charts for a while to come.

2. “Plaster Caster” (“Love Gun” – 1977)

“Plaster Caster” is one of the hidden gems, great deep cuts of the KISS discography. It’s just as well because Cynthia Plaster Caster is one of the great characters of the 1970s rock music scene.

Not quite a groupie but rather an artist, Cynthia used to make moulds of rock musicians’ private parts. KISS certainly needed to document this topic in song, and it’s one of the band’s best deep cuts.

1. “Take Me” (“Rock And Roll Over” -1976)

KISS was lucky to have very dedicated fans throughout its career. Cynics will call on the band’s promotion strategies as the main reason for that. But it’s deep cuts like “Take Me” which prove that the group knew exactly what its fandom wanted of them. I look on KISS as a band who understood what material fans wanted and, generally, delivered it.

Featuring one of Ace Frehley’s dirtiest, stomping riffs and Paul Stanley sounds like a glam-rock Little Richard, you’ll rarely find KISS sounding as confident as on “Take Me.” This is the band’s most underrated, underappreciated song and a mighty great deep cut.