9/19/06: RightWingTrashMan: Alice Cooper

“If you’re a right-wing rock journalist,” says Alice Cooper, “I’m in your corner all the way.”

As we noted at the time, that’s one—and all that’s needed if we’re looking for support from rock icons making great music into their fourth decade. This coming Saturday launches the traditional Alice Cooper tour for Halloween. In addition to still filling the big venues, Alice is sitting in on a few stops with the Rolling Stones. That’ll provide some political balance to the bill, too.

Alice enjoyed a brief flurry of blogosphere glory last year, after standing up to one of Australia’s smarmiest television personalities. Glib puppet Andrew Denton was easily flustered when Alice could back up his support for the war in Iraq. Denton made some typically wrong assumptions about the rock star—not that Alice was offended.

“I revel in that kind of thing,” says Alice. “It angers me so much when I realize that people are jumping on some anti-Bush bandwagon. I’ve been misquoted lately on that. Some people are claiming that I said certain rockers were traitors to America. I think they’re traitors to rock ’n roll.  When I was a kid, I’d put The Yardbirds on when my parents talked about politics. Rock ’n roll was my escape from politics. It still is. Why do you think we’re rock ’n rollers? We’re morons.”

Cooper’s also defying expectations with his Christian beliefs. The Sunday school teacher preaches what he practices on 2005’s Dirty Diamonds. Other rockers dream of running with the devil. Alice dreams of vengeful mayhem in songs like “Run Down The Devil.” Stryper or Bono could never come up with lyrics like, “I want to take him to the Mercury grill/I hope he’s ready for the big blast/ He’ll be my ultimate road kill/I’ll kick his future up his past.”

Alice isn’t afraid to take those same beliefs on the road, lecturing baffled death-metal acts that end up sharing the bill on world tours. And did you catch that part where Alice says that rock ’n rollers are morons? That’s pretty humble—especially since Alice looks even better as another aging rocker becomes a joke. It turns out that Syd really wasn’t the acid casualty.

Make him your own: If you want opinion, start by checking out Alice’s radio show. Music fans already know they can’t go wrong with any Alice Cooper album—with the exception of that hair-metal stint from ’86 to ’91. Nobody needs to sell you on the ’70s catalogue, but it’s overdue for a reissue campaign. For now, skip the box set in favor of the concise single-disc Mascara & Monsters comp.

Then start collecting the recent greatness that began with 2000’s Brutal Planet through last year’s Dirty Diamonds. You’ll get sharp tunes and steely-eyed morality. And don’t forget Alice’s underheard works from 1980 to 1983. Flush The Fashion, Special Forces, Zipper Catches Skin, and (especially) DaDa all offer timeless and skewed garage-rock. They’re also a tribute to Alice’s work ethic, as far as being a functioning alcoholic.

 

What did you think of this article?

Liked
Disliked
No Opinion