One of the oldest active acts, enormously influential through both his songs and his image. Every shock rocker and every band that ever put a "horror" aspect in their show or image was influenced by him, from W.A.S.P. to King Diamond to Marilyn Manson to black metal hordes. The band formed in Arizona in late sixties, fronted by Vincent Furnier (vocals, songs) and adopted the name (before the man, not the other way around). Their third album, "Love It To Death" (1971), contained their first hit, "I'm Eighteen" (it's funny to see Alice still sing it, although soon enough he can change it to "I'm Eighty"), followed by "Under My Wheels" (from 1971 "Killer"), "School's Out" (a title track of the 1972 album), and finally "No More Mr. Nice Guy" (from 1973 "Billion Dollar Babies"). Highly controversial stage shows and catchy anthemic hard rock won them enormous popularity, when the frontman's drinking and outrageous antics caused the rest of the band to depart, and Furnier continued without them, usurping the "Alice Cooper" title. His first solo album, "Welcome To My Nightmare" (1975), was very well received, but then his career started to deteriorate, although he was still making albums with admirable consistency. He then tried his hand in the 80s glam metal genre, releasing "Constrictor" (1986), "Raise Your Fist And Yell" (1987), "Trash" (1988), and "Hey Stoopid" (1991). Since then, Alice cleaned up himself (but not his live shows), released several more albums, proved himself a great golfer as well as rocker, and shows no signs of slowing down, still consistently touring the world.
GREATEST HITS (1974)
RATING: ****
BEST SONGS: “School’s Out,” “No More Mr. Nice Guy,” “Billion Dollar Babies”
This is one of those things you gotta own, regardless if you like them or not. Very rarely I find myself in the mood for Alice Cooper, but these songs actively helped forging the music I love. This compilation represents a fine cross-section of Alice-Cooper-the-band formative years, when some of the classics that made him a household name were created. And, strangely enough, many of them weathered very well. Bluesy anthem “I’m Eighteen” from the album “Love It To Death” (1970) sounds just as good and is just as relevant thirty years later and not just to 18 year-olds. Alice’s voice sounds different than it did later in his career: it somewhat resembles Mick Jagger’s and occasionally – Jim Morisson’s. “Under My Wheels” from “Killer” (1971) also passed the test of time and was even covered by Guns N’ Roses. No need for me to review “School’s Out” and “No More Mr. Nice Guy” for obvious reasons. “Billion Dollar Babies” is an often overlooked gem; it’s quite lovely. That and the anthemic “Elected” are sharp and biting political satire songs that are hardly heard anymore. The rest of them are not as good, but the highlights make it a pleasant listen every now and then. The sound is uneven: sometimes it’s fine (“18,” Mr. Nice Guy”), other times it’s just weak (“Elected”). But as songs they are still great, and it is no wonder many of them are still present in Alice Cooper’s setlist to this day.
TRASH (1986)
RATING: **1/2
BEST SONGS: "Spark In The Dark," "Bed Of Nails"
Basically, 80s glam, Alice Cooper style. Every song is about sex. I don't think his voice is best suited for this kind of music, especially when he is trying to be "lovestruck" (and cheesy). Only when there is some bite and nastiness, his singing stops being a problem and becomes an asset: mostly on the highlights above. And both songs actually rock ("Bed Of Nails" being my favorite). Almost every song was co-written by the icon of pop-writing, Desmond Child, and it shows. "Poison" was destined for MTV fame (which it indeed achieved), and it's merely passable. Everything else is not. Lots of keyboards, lots of sleaze, not enough rock.
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