Gene Simmons Blown Away By 13-Year-Old Guitarist (VIDEO EXCLUSIVE)

Posted on Oct 22nd 2012 11:00AM by Chris Epting Comments

Charles Epting

In our next installment from last week's exclusive visit to the Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy Camp now based in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand Hotel along with a brand new off-site rehearsal studio complex, we bring you one of the most magical moments we've witnessed over the years at the camp.

Forget that little more than 24 hours earlier he was performing with KISS back in New York, helping to promote the fantastic new KISS album, Monster. That wasn't on "God of Counselors" Gene Simmons' mind as he worked with musicians from all over the world, teaching them how to come up with a new song. The iconic bassist/vocalist was focused on the job at he worked tirelessly to give campers an experience they would surely never forget.

But we're not sure bargained for 13-year-old axeman Clayton Mann, a KISS/Simmons freak for about 10 years. He plays in a band in Chicago with his twin brothers, REBELMANN, but Clayton's mom Julie brought the kids to the camp primarily so Clayton could meet and play with his musical hero.

REBELMANN, ironically coached earlier in the week by former KISS guitarist and camp counselor Bruce Kulick turned in a nice performance of the 1982 KISS tune "War Machine," which Simmons sang on.

But the fun didn't stop there. The young and confident Clayton Mann took over, vamping and jamming with Simmons to a point where Simmons seemed blown away by the kid's chops and personality. Afterwards, Mann told Noisecreep that the Simmons jam was a dream come true and he'd love nothing more than to someday record with the Demon. Regardless of what happens, as you'll see in the video, Simmons was beaming, genuinely impressed with the teens.

Watch Gene Simmons and Bruce Kulick Jam with REBELMANN
In a nutshell, this is why we love the Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy Camp. If you are a musician we cannot recommend this enough - for a full week session or even an hourly one-on-one jam session with a rock idol, it gets no better - as we think the video illustrates.

Get more information about Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy Camp at their official site. KISS' 20th studio album, Monster is out now and available on iTunes and Amazon.

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