Happy Birthday Eric Carr

Although he was not an original member of Kiss, drummer Eric Carr was automatically accepted and held in high regard by their legions of fans.

Born Paul Caravello in Brooklyn, NY on July 15, 1950, the youngster discovered rock & roll the way many others did in the early '60s, via the Beatles. Automatically taken by the Fab Four, Caravello began drumming on magazines until his parents bought him his first proper drum set shortly thereafter. His first real band, the Cellarmen, played the latest Top 40 hits at Bar Mitzvahs and weddings throughout the N.Y.C.-area. Come the '70s however, Caravello had become a great admirer of such hard rock acts as Led Zeppelin and the New York Dolls, although his bands throughout the decade, Creation and Mother Nature/Father Time, were disco-based. At the dawn of the '80s, the drummer became frustrated that his previous bands had failed to break through to the big time. Then, one fateful day in June of 1980, a friend from a former band happened to bump into Caravello, and told him that Kiss were holding auditions to replace the just-departed Peter Criss. He managed to get a try-out through Kiss' management, and jammed with the band on June 23. Barely over one week later, on July 1, Caravello was invited to join the band. While Kiss' popularity stateside wasn't what it used to be, it was still one of the top rock groups in just every other area of the world. With a massive tour of Europe and Australia already booked and fast approaching, Caravello and the rest of Kiss crammed to come up with a stage name for the new member, and a persona that tied in with the band's make-up and costumes.