"Beth" is Kiss's biggest commercial hit in the United States, reaching #7 on the Billboard Hot 100, receiving a Gold Record certification from the RIAA, and winning the 1977 People's Choice Award for "Favorite Song".
During drummer Peter Criss's time in the band Chelsea, he and the group's guitarist Stan Penridge decided to write a song that mocked a woman named Becky, the wife of their bandmate, Mike Brand.
During a limousine ride, Criss sang an uptempo version of the demo, "Beck", for Simmons and Stanley, assuming they would not be interested in including a sentimental ballad on the album.
[7] However, Lydia Criss later claimed credit for proposing the change for the same reason, and because the original Becky had a twin sister named Beth.
[12] For the song's recording, Ezrin brought the New York Philharmonic orchestra and musician Dick Wagner into the A&R studio as a substitute for Frehley, making Beth a dramatic departure from the band's typical hard rock sound.
The sound of the violin and viola, led by the cello, change the key from C major to A minor and then the trumpets, tubas, trombones and French horns enter, accentuating the hook.
[15] Casablanca president Neil Bogart asked promoter and disc jockey Scott Shannon for his honest opinion on which of Destroyer's tracks was a potential hit.
To his surprise, Shannon chose "Beth", although Bogart asked him to forget it because he felt the song had only been included as a favor to Peter Criss.
[19] Critic Allan Orski wrote in the book Musichound Rock: The Essential Album Guide that the song "set the mark for myriad (lesser) power ballads spewed by various hair bands during the 80s".
[21] Regarding the lyrics, Shawn S. Lealos of AXS noted that it is a "perfect example" of how "the life of a rock and roll musician is not one for people who want to settle into a serious relationship".
[22] Eduardo Rivadavia of Ultimate Classic Rock highlighted Aucoin's importance to the track's inclusion on Destroyer, describing it as "uncharacteristic and exceedingly schmaltzy" and arguing that "perhaps its greatest utility, though, was helping many among the band’s predominantly male fanbase convince their old ladies to tag along to the show".
[23] Classic Rock called it a "twinkling piano ballad" that provided "a useful breather amid the blood and thunder of Kiss’s live shows".
[24] Regarding its unusual impact, Ed Masley of The Arizona Republic remarked that "It's kind of weird that Kiss' highest-charting hit was sung by drummer Criss.
The song appears in Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park (1978) in a scene in which Stanley plays acoustic guitar while Criss sings.
The version of "Beth" featured on the group's 2003 Kiss Symphony: Alive IV DVD and subsequent album would be the only time the song was performed live with an ensemble.
[28] Eric Carr, who replaced Criss as the band's drummer in 1980, never performed the song live during his stay, although he provided vocals to a studio version for the Smashes, Thrashes & Hits (1988) compilation album.