 Alice Cooper My continuing lack of understanding with respect to Marilyn Manson's popularity drives me further into the arms of early-70s hard rock icon Alice Cooper, to whom Manson is often (usually unfavorably) compared. To me, it's a clear surface comparison, but the fact that anyone gives Marilyn Manson as much credit as to have half the creativity of Alice Cooper baffles me. Now, I don't dislike Marilyn Manson, and his book was pretty funny, but he seems more like Twiggy than Alice Cooper … in other words, someone who's simply famous, the music being secondary. Not so Alice. Alice Cooper's Greatest Hits offers a great simulation of freewheeling rebellion and pot-addled angst circa 1974, but moreover, the songs are excellent. This album even makes it a bit tough to imagine that the band made their name with increasingly more outlandish and shocking theatrics in concert, as the songs are more or less just straight-ahead rock. 2 guitars, bass, drums, occasional piano or horns, and the singular flair of Vincent Furnier atop it all, alternating a showy croon with a spidery creep. This album and Kiss's Double Platinum form the twin signposts of 70s hard rock, with Alice Cooper representing pre-1975 and Kiss representing post. What keeps me listening, aside from a possible dependence on marijuana to escape from my problems, is the songs, man, the songs. They rock my shriveled balls. Everyone knows "I'm Eighteen" and "School's Out" from various summer camp comedies, and they are indeed great punchlines but also very good songs in and of themselves. The best tunes are "Be My Lover" and the awesome "Teenage Lament '74" which features Liza Minnelli on backing vocals! Not since Gene Simmons delved his demon tongue deep into Diana Ross's black bush has there been an odder couple, although this one, fortunately for my imagination, remained in the recording studio, I'm certain. These songs get my head bangin' every time. Pass the pot! "No More Mr. Nice Guy" (features the line "I'd help the blind to see"), "Billion Dollar Babies," "Is It My Body," "Under My Wheels" … classics. "Billion Dollar Babies" even features Donovan rocking out like he's Robert Plant … truly a one-time-only experience. Some of the forgotten songs are the most enjoyable, actually: remember "Desperado" and "Hello Hooray"? Me neither, until I hear 'em, and then I'm rockin' out with Alice and keeping an eye out for the guillotines and boa constrictors. "Hello Hooray" is easily the most neglected song on this CD. The only bummer tracks are "Elected" and "Muscle of Love," both of which were big hits, but both of which are just stupid. "Muscle of Love" features the line "Who's the queen of the locker room/Who's the cream of the crop?" which always freaked me out for some reason when I was a kid listening to this courtesy my older brother's 8-track. Anyone with even a tiny urge to rock needs this CD, ASAP. Alice Cooper was glam before glam, punk before punk, and golf before golf? Mainly, the guy is a great unheralded performer and songwriter who needs reassessment to establish his greatnes. Even though he continues to attract the real-life analogues of the kids from "Wayne's World," that's no reason not to indulge your darker side with his innocuous but exciting rock. As for Marilyn Manson, I'll care as soon as I hear him put out something with a melody.
Review by Denver Fritz |