Detroit Rock City

{{about|the song|the film|Detroit Rock City (film)|the book|Detroit Rock City (book)}}

{{Infobox song

| name = Detroit Rock City

| cover = Detroit Rock City.jpg

| alt =

| type = single

| artist = Kiss

| album = Destroyer

| A-side = Beth

| released = {{Start date|1976|07|28}}{{cite web |title=KISS - Detroit Rock City |url=https://dutchcharts.nl/showitem.asp?interpret=KISS&titel=Detroit+Rock+City&cat=s |website=Dutch Charts |access-date=28 July 2022}}

| recorded = 1976

| studio = Record Plant, New York City

| genre = *Hard rock{{cite book|first= Bruce |last= Pollock |year= 2005 |title= The 7500 Most Important Songs for the Rock and Roll Era |edition= 2nd |publisher= Routledge |page= 75 |isbn= 0-415-97073-3 |quote= Anthemic hard rocker, B-side of "Beth," and later as the subject of a movie which Marshall Mathers undoubtedly snuck into for free.}}

heavy metal{{cite web |url=https://www.cs.ubc.ca/~davet/music/list/Best16.html |title=VH1 - 40 Greatest Metal Songs |website=Music Database |access-date=May 17, 2020}}

| length = *5:17 (album version)

{{Duration|2:58}} (single version)
{{Duration|3:35}} (Double Platinum version)
{{Duration|3:45}} (Smashes, Thrashes & Hits version)

| label = Casablanca

| writer = {{hlist|Paul Stanley|Bob Ezrin}}

| producer = Bob Ezrin

| prev_title = Flaming Youth

| prev_title2 = God of Thunder

| prev_year = 1976

| title =

| title2 = Beth

| next_title = Beth

| next_title2 = Detroit Rock City

| next_year = 1976

}}

"Detroit Rock City" is a song by the American hard rock group Kiss, released on their 1976 album Destroyer. The song was written by Paul Stanley and producer Bob Ezrin.

Background

"Detroit Rock City" began with a guitar part by Paul Stanley, who explained: "I had the basic riff of the song, the 'get up, get down' part, but I didn't know what the song was about except it was about Detroit."Leaf, David and Ken Sharp, KISS: Behind the Mask - The Official Authorized Biography{{full citation needed|date=November 2024}}

Stanley explained the song's origin further in 2023:

{{blockquote|text="Detroit Rock City" is an interesting one, because Detroit really embraced us before any other city. We were an opening act everywhere else, but in Detroit we were a headliner. It started as a tribute to Detroit, and then it kind of took a left turn, because we played Charlotte once, and somebody coming to the arena was killed in an accident. And I thought how bizarre that somebody on their way to something so life affirming loses their life. So there's a juxtaposition in that song about singing about how great Detroit is, and actually about someone going to the show who doesn't make it.{{cite AV media |people=Stanley, Paul |date=2023-03-02 |title=KISS "Detroit Rock City" Live on the Stern Show |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9M0JSb1RoVk |access-date=2024-11-30 |format= |time=0:10 |publisher=The Howard Stern Show}}}}

Bassist Gene Simmons played an R&B-influenced bassline, which he considered a departure from his usual style.{{cite web|url=https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/kiss-biggest-hit-was-about-a-real-life-car-accident.html/|title=Kiss' Biggest Hit Was About a Real-Life Car Accident|last1=Trczinski|first1=Matthew|publisher=Showbiz Cheat Sheet|quote=Simmons wrote a bassline for the song that was influenced by R&B music — a bassline which he said was very different from most of his work. Simmons compared the bassline to Issac Hayes’ “Theme from Shaft” and Curtis Mayfield’s “Freddie’s Dead (Theme From ‘Superfly’).”|date=September 14, 2020|accessdate=July 29, 2022}}

In 2014, Paste ranked the song number three on their list of the 20 greatest Kiss songs,{{cite web|url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/the-20-best-kiss-songs/#3-detroit-rock-city-|title=The 20 Best KISS Songs|first=Mark|last=Lore|work=Paste|date=June 26, 2014|accessdate=April 5, 2022}} and in 2019, Louder Sound ranked the song number one on their list of the 40 greatest Kiss songs.{{cite web|url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/the-40-greatest-kiss-songs-as-voted-for-by-you/4|title=The 40 best Kiss songs of all time|work=Louder Sound|date=July 15, 2019|accessdate=April 5, 2022}}