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Post by anaix3l on Jul 26, 2016 16:44:24 GMT -5
Love him or hate him, the man is a legend and has put out an impressive number of albums, which gives us plenty to discuss here.
So, what do you have to say? Do you like his music? Why (not)? How did you hear about him? Have you seen him live?
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Post by AeroCooper on Jul 26, 2016 18:57:12 GMT -5
Obviously, I am a huge fan, but like most artists, his earlier material shines way brighter than his later efforts. That being said, he still manages to pack a gem here and there on most albums. But, even though I have listened to them numerous times, I couldn't tell you anything off his first two albums. I think he really came into his best with Love It To Death and it was all uphill from there through From The Inside. *Fuck, I just lost 2 full paragraphs due to a browser glitch!! I'll attempt to recreate...dammit Why do I love Alice? Aside from having countless amazing rock songs and bonafide anthems, he was the first and the best at mixing those great songs with a truly dark, sick and twisted sense of humor. Songs about raping dead girls, killing your wife, burning down churches, etc had never been done in such an explicit, consistent, and unapologetic way. The closest thing I can think of back then was The End by The Doors, and that was more of a one off song. Then there is his amazing live show! Even back in the beginning when he was drunk off his ass he managed to incorporate that into the show and it somehow added to the illusion that he was truly insane. And hey, who else can you go to see that kills himself live onstage for you?? Nobody, that's who.
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Post by anaix3l on Jul 26, 2016 19:50:47 GMT -5
Personal history...
Winter of 2002-2003. I was 18 and had moved out a few months earlier. I was in the music section of a bookstore and I was looking through the CDs. For stuff I already knew I wanted, stuff that might look interesting. I think that may be also when I found Pump and PV. I came across The Definitive Alice Cooper compilation. Well, couple that cover with being told in school that rock music is the root of all evil. That was a nope reaction. A big nope, because I still remember it. I'm never going to listen to something like that. Ha, ha, ha!
Easter 2005. I was going to visit my parents and I met a guy on the train. We kept in touch, things moved and I moved in with him a few weeks later. He had a much bigger music collection (some of it he never got back after we broke up, but that's another story). One day, I was in the kitchen, doing the dishes. And I heard something that I really liked, so I stormed into the room, hands dripping, wanting to know what it was. House of Fire. Well, I can't complain about funny shit not happening to me...
That was a year when I discovered a lot of new music and really digged a lot to satisfy my curiosity about my newfound obsessions. I think the first thing I got was a Brutal Planet/ DragonTown bundle (a cardboard box with the two CDs). He's put out so many albums that I have quite a few such 2-3 CD bundles. I still love those two albums.
I love a lot of his stuff. He's experimented with so many different styles over the years, but he somehow managed to keep something distinctive. It's like when you try on new clothes and they don't fit, you adjust the clothes instead of trying to make yourself fit into them. My faves are still Killer, Billion Dollar Babies, Welcome to My Nightmare and From the Inside. A lot of other great stuff throughout the years, but these are the big albums for me.
I've seen him live and I was really impressed. The show I was expecting (cough, cough, live DVDs), but he first came here when technology wasn't yet that great and what you could find on YouTube was kind of bad. To put it mildly. So I was really impressed with how he sounded when I actually got to see him live.
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Post by VoodooMedicineMan on Jul 26, 2016 21:45:15 GMT -5
I'm a big fan of Alice Cooper. I didn't really get into him until my late 20's. I was familiar with his hits, but always viewed him his more of a respectable showman with cool gimmick and novelty songs. My friend made me a copy of his Live in Montreax CD saying I should listen to that, and I couldn't believe the amount of great material he had. I saw there was a Blu Ray of that concert available and I rented that the next day. Watching him flail around in a straight jacket during the Ballard of Dwight Fry was coolest performances I have ever seen.
Since then I've listened to all his albums. Love it to Death is favorite. The musicianship obviously got better, but that's just such a great album. Billion Dollar Babies would be a close second. I still listen to his most recent CD Welcome 2 My Nightmare (2011) quite a bit. Can't believe it's been 5 years since that came out.
Even a lot of his weird stuff his really good, like Pain, The Awakening, Disgraceland, and I Gotta Get Outta Here.
I saw him 3 times between 2010 and 2013. I wanted to see him in May but I already had really good tickets for another show the same night. I definitely prefer him doing his own songs though. I'm not too crazy about the Hollywood Vampires project. I like the Brutal Planet album, but feel giving classic songs that treatment doesn't always work.
I am really looking forward to him supposedly recording another album with the surviving members of his original band. The three songs they did together on the last album were great.
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Post by livebootleg on Jul 26, 2016 22:20:05 GMT -5
One of my first albums was Schools Out. Love the song Public Animal #9. Always liked Alice, especially live. YouTube videos do not do justice. Side note.. the Schools Out album cover is my favorite design of all albums. The way it opened up like an old school desk with the carvings in it. ( Maybe another thread needed? Two other favorite album designs were Queen News of the World and of course..LIVE BOOTLEG). The art on many old school albums was unbelievable. Definitely made buying and listening to full albums more enjoyable while checking out art work and reading notes about the album while listening. But back to Alice Cooper.. I am big fan. Other songs I like are Is It My Body and Only Women Bleed.
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Post by RiffsOnRuts on Jul 27, 2016 3:34:43 GMT -5
I am embarrassed and sad that I didn't start listening to Alice sooner in my life. I was a teen in the early 90's. I never took Alice or Kiss seriously at that time unfortunately. I was too wrapped up in Nirvana,Pearl Jam,Soundgarden,AIC, and STP. I still love all those bands. In fact they were too good. I liked them so much that I didn't take the time to go back and get into 60's/70's music.
In the 2000's I spent many years where I didn't listen to music at all. I was busy and really lost interest in the current music scene. Then around 2012 I got the desire to listen to music again, but I didn't know what to listen to. Somehow I started checking out blues music. Listening to the blues changed my entire perspective on music. I appreciated music more and wanted to start exploring every era and genre.
This led me to Alice Cooper. I picked up Love it to Death and that was it. I was in Love. I got a bunch more albums and listened to his interviews.
I really like how he popularized the idea of creating a character to create music. I think this set a lot of musicians free like David Bowie, the whole glam scene, and then eventually the metal scene.
I don't think Alice gets the credit he deserves. I hold him up there with the rock legends of legends like the Stones, The Beatles, The Who, Hendrix, and Bowie.
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Post by anaix3l on Jul 27, 2016 7:04:47 GMT -5
But, even though I have listened to them numerous times, I couldn't tell you anything off his first two albums. That reminded me of this bit from Hard & Heavy Aside from having countless amazing rock songs and bonafide anthems, he was the first and the best at mixing those great songs with a truly dark, sick and twisted sense of humor. Songs about raping dead girls, killing your wife, burning down churches, etc had never been done in such an explicit, consistent, and unapologetic way. It's like he created a new normal in a way. I remember a promo on Discovery showing people in various situations. There was a couple in a car and the woman is thinking something like "I said second to the left! Oh, I could kill him!". There was a little guy on a bus and a big guy spilling all over him and the little guy is thinking "sometimes I wish I had a shotgun". And there was a guy in front of a window thinking "if she disappeared, would anyone really miss her?". The promo continued with something like "We all have criminal instincts. However, most of us don't act upon them. Meet some of the few who have. Thursday night is crime night on Discovery." - I think they're right, you do get those thoughts, I know it happens to me... And then you're being told it's not alright to talk about it even if you don't really mean it and no, no, no, don't you dare joke about it. And Alice completely destroyed that. And hey, who else can you go to see that kills himself live onstage for you?? Nobody, that's who. That was a good one... Even a lot of his weird stuff his really good, like Pain, The Awakening, Disgraceland, and I Gotta Get Outta Here. Yup. I'd say that, aside from his first albums, his early 80s albums are the most ignored, but you can find some really good stuff even on those. Pain is the best song off Flush the Fashion for me. The Awakening is again one of my faves off Welcome to My Nightmare and that's one album that's full of great songs. Always liked Alice, especially live. YouTube videos do not do justice. Oh, YES! This really hit me when I first saw him live. I really like how he popularized the idea of creating a character to create music. I think this set a lot of musicians free like David Bowie, the whole glam scene, and then eventually the metal scene. Reading this, the first thing I thought of was Escape. Paint on my cruel or happy face and hide me behind it It takes me inside another place where no one can find it
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Post by AeroCooper on Jul 27, 2016 8:06:21 GMT -5
"A pillow? There's no stains on it, I don't have any idea what it's doing in there" Love it.
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Post by bartman2001 on Jul 27, 2016 9:50:28 GMT -5
Pretties For You I remember reading somewhere along the line that that album cover was the only thing he did that ever really shocked his mother. I won’t go into it song by song but I do like this album many weird arrangements very raw. Changin’ Oraangin’ and Fields Of Regret are two of my favorites on that. Easy Action – second release produced by Neil Young’s go to David Briggs. An interesting record Mr. and Misdemeanor being two of my favorites. That being said Love It To Death is when the band really hit their stride. Michael Bruce’s songwriting came into its own. Right as they were paired up with the exact right producer in Bob Ezrin. Which resulted in many fine albums to come by the original band. And I do favor the stuff Alice did with them very good raw rock and roll records (killer being my favorite).
As for songs about burning churches and killing your wife what inspiration one can find locked up in a looney bin for alcoholism when all the other inmates are insane. From The Inside is my favorite post original band album. I had known the song Schools Out since first or second grade as the fourth and fifth graders would sing it on the last day of school. A friend of mine got me into Alice right around seventh grade. I remember him taping me Special Forces and later on Muscle Of Love and thinking it was the greatest thing ever since both were out of print at the time. Which brings me back to From The Inside this dude had every Alice album thru “Raise Your Fist And Yell” (Alice’s newest up to that point) but From The Inside which of course gave the album an aura of mystery looking thru bins of used records trying to find it. And I’m proud to say I beat him to it when I found it in a bin of records at the Woodland flee market in the fall of 1988 (damn I’m old btw) Any way I believe that fucker stole it from me when I reluctantly took it to school to let him tape.
Alright Alice too big of an open ended topic for me to continue at this time and my hands are very tired of typing. I’m sure I’ll post more hear at some point soon.
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Post by AeroCooper on Jul 27, 2016 10:42:23 GMT -5
Somebody mentioned that Alice might not be the best candidate to help sell things. Think again. Wednesday Addams as a bonus... I know there is another funny one somewhere that features his mother, but I can't find it right now.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 27, 2016 17:54:50 GMT -5
Never gave Alice much of a listen. Know all the hits, I'm Eighteen was a favorite for a long time. Got to meet him once when I was working at a Walmart in Scottsdale some years back. Very gracious.
So Ana, Coop, everyone else. If one wanted to start getting into Alice, where would you recommend they begin?
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Post by AeroCooper on Jul 27, 2016 20:08:19 GMT -5
^ I would say either Welcome To My Nightmare or Billion Dollar Babies. His greatest hits album is good, but IMO doesn't really show the dark humor that makes him so great.
If you like those, From The Inside is another safe bet with a ton of great interesting tracks.
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Post by AeroCooper on Jul 27, 2016 20:37:18 GMT -5
This is one of his more haunting pieces. I have always thought that the musical interlude which starts at the two minute mark is one of the most beautiful pieces of music I have heard on a rock album. I don't know if it's intentional, but it always reminds me of The Exorcist.
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Post by VoodooMedicineMan on Jul 27, 2016 22:58:25 GMT -5
Never gave Alice much of a listen. Know all the hits, I'm Eighteen was a favorite for a long time. Got to meet him once when I was working at a Walmart in Scottsdale some years back. Very gracious. So Ana, Coop, everyone else. If one wanted to start getting into Alice, where would you recommend they begin? Here are 4 from various stages of his career. Love it to Death - For all intents and purposes their debut. Eighteen is on this one. Some good rock, some Beatles type harmonies. My personal favorite, a great, great album. Billion Dollar Babies - The original band at their peak. Musically this is probably his/their best album. Welcome to My Nightmare - Great concept album, and first without the original band. Getting Vincent Price to narrate the Black Widow segment was brilliant. Brutal Planet - Alice transitioned to a much heavier sound on this album. To this day, his live band has retained much of this style at live shows.
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Post by anaix3l on Jul 28, 2016 4:18:11 GMT -5
Agree with all of the above recommendations. I'd also add Killer to the essentials list. Another one loaded with good songs and it has two of my all-time faves (which is a really big deal because the man has been so prolific and has put out good stuff over the course of now getting close to 50 years and over 25 studio album) - Desperado and Halo of Flies. Also a song I often have in my head when on a plane and people seem unable to control their little screaming monsters - Dead Babies. Sorry, couldn't help it... it's really horrible to have a little hyperactive monkey kick in the back of your seat for 5 straight hours because the mother is completely useless and you can't go anywhere else because the plane is full.
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