With St. John, Kiss released the album "Animalize" on September 13, 1984. "Animalize" followed the success of "Lick It Up", and due in part to consistent MTV play for the "Heaven's on Fire" video, "Animalize" was the band's best-selling record in America during the decade, with over two million albums sold. With the success of the album and subsequent tour, Kiss had recaptured some of its earlier glory (though not to the level of its 1970s heyday). St. John, however, came down with reactive arthritis during tour rehearsals, and only performed at a handful of shows before being dismissed from the band in December 1984. The band hired Bruce Kulick to replace St. John. Kulick had previously filled in for St. John during the first two months of the "Animalize" tour. Kulick was Kiss' fourth lead guitarist in less than three years, but he stayed with the band for 12 years. Kulick was one of the band's longest-serving members, with the longest continuous tenure of anyone other than Simmons and Stanley, but he never wore the band's iconic makeup.