Artist · chart history
Kix
Band Hagerstown United States Active 1978–2023 American hard rock band
Kix formed in 1978 in Hagerstown, United States and was active until 2023. Kix has 6 chart appearances on 3 radio countdowns from 3 stations on RockLists, spanning 1990–2016. The most successful song on radio countdowns is “Don't Close Your Eyes”, which appears on 3 lists with a best position of #160. The station that charted Kix most often is Z-Rock (United States (syndicated network)), with 4 appearances.
Kix came out of Hagerstown with a jukebox for a brain, pounding through Aerosmith, April Wine and Led Zeppelin covers until Atlantic Records signed them in 1981. The classic lineup was pure hard-rock muscle: Steve Whiteman up front, Ronnie "10/10" Younkins and Brian "Damage" Forsythe on guitars, Jimmy "Chocolate" Chalfant on drums, and bassist Donnie Purnell, who co-led the band with Whiteman and wrote most of the songs.
Blow My Fuse, in 1988, is where the glam metal flash and the hard rock grit finally lined up. The title track, "Cold Blood", "She Dropped Me the Bomb" and "Don't Close Your Eyes" all come loaded with gang-shouted hooks and guitars with the chrome polished up, the sound of a band that had served its apprenticeship on other people's songs and was ready to cash in. The late '80s were their peak, but Kix kept recording and touring for decades afterward before calling it a day in 2023, and some writers still rank them among the best glam metal bands there ever was.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs by Kix on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Peak year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Don't Close Your Eyes | 3 | #160 | – | – | |
| 2 | Cold Blood | 1 | #271 | – | – | |
| 3 | She Dropped Me the Bomb | 1 | #387 | – | – | |
| 4 | Blow My Fuse | 1 | #685 | – | – |
Albums with charting songs
Where each song was first released, from MusicBrainz.
Every countdown appearance
| Year | # | Song | Countdown |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 432 | Don't Close Your Eyes | BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2016) |
| 2002 | 879 | Don't Close Your Eyes | KISW Top 999 of All Time (2002) |
| 1990 | 160 | Don't Close Your Eyes | Z-Rock Top 1001 Songs of All-Time (1990) |
| 1990 | 271 | Cold Blood | Z-Rock Top 1001 Songs of All-Time (1990) |
| 1990 | 387 | She Dropped Me the Bomb | Z-Rock Top 1001 Songs of All-Time (1990) |
| 1990 | 685 | Blow My Fuse | Z-Rock Top 1001 Songs of All-Time (1990) |
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