DVD's & collectors items

NOBODY LIKES ME (1989) SUCCESS

  1. Ain`t That Just Like A Woman (not Alice)
  2. Painting A Picture ("No Longer Umpire")
  3. An Instrumental (part of "Lay Down and Die, Goodbye")
  4. I`ve Written Home To Mother (part of "Lay Down and Die, Goodbye")
  5. Freak Out Song ('Don't Blow Your Mind' with different lyrics)
  6. Goin' To The River (not Alice)
  7. Nobody Likes Me (aka "Freak Out")
  8. Science Fiction ("Fields Of Regret")

Line-up:

Alice Cooper - Vocals
Neal Smith - Drums, Vocals
Dennis Dunaway - Bass, Vocals
Glen Buxton - Lead Guitar
Michael Bruce - Rhythm Guitar, Vocals

'Nobody Likes Me' is one of numerous versions of the infamous Toronto '69 live concert "official bootleg" albums. These releases are not authorized Alice Cooper albums. However, they are not bootlegs as the rights to the recording were sold by Alice's management at the time to a third party. That party has licensed out the rights to the recording many times to various companies. There also exists similar releases from other bands which also played at the festival, like Chicago Transit Authority (pre-Peter Cetera Chicago) , Chuck Berry and The Doors. And they didn't even care to do a proper research for the right song titles, or even if it really is Alice singing on all of these tracks. In hindsight it has come forth that 2 of these songs, "Ain't That Just Like A Woman" and "Goin' To The River", were actually recorded at Hallmark Studios in Toronto in late 1964, by Ronnie Hawkins & the Disciples. It is still a mystery how these songs ended up on the master tapes of the Alice Cooper recordings. Because the Alice portion of the album was recorded during the Toronto Rock N Roll Revival, September 13th, 1969. I've added the correct song titles in parentheses, according to Sickthingsuk. The live show features mostly songs from 'Pretties For You', Alice Cooper band's debut album, released just a few months prior to concert where this live album was recorded. "Freak Out Song", however, is actually "Don't Blow Your Mind", a song the band recorded back in 1966, when they were still called The Spiders, here featured with different lyrics. The sound quality on this CD is not the best, and I don't know if the record company even bothered to use the master tapes as a source. I know they released it on vinyl back in 1989, but I reckon this CD version came much later. 'Nobody Likes' me is nothing more than a curious album for any long time Alice Cooper fan.

Rock trivia: The Toronto Rock N Roll Revival gig is said to be the venue for the infamous chicken incident. A chicken somehow made its way on stage during Alice Cooper's performance. Not having any experience around farm animals, Cooper presumed that, since the chicken had wings, it would be able to fly. He picked it up and threw it out over the crowd, expecting it to fly away; the bird instead plummeted into the first few rows of the crowd occupied by disabled people in wheelchairs, who reportedly proceeded to tear the animal to pieces. The next day, the incident made the front page of many national newspapers, and Zappa phoned him to ask if the story, which reported that Cooper had bit the head off the chicken and drunk its blood on stage, was true. Cooper denied the rumor, whereupon Zappa told him, "Well, whatever you do, don't tell anyone you didn't do it", obviously recognizing that such kind of publicity would be priceless for the band.

 WELCOME TO MY NIGHTMARE (1976, 2006) RHINO/EV CLASSICS (DVD)

  1. Opening Credits
  2. The Awakening
  3. Welcome to My Nightmare
  4. Years Ago
  5. No More Mr. Nice Guy
  6. Years Ago [reprise]
  7. I'm Eighteen/Years Ago [reprise]
  8. Some Folks
  9. Cold Ethyl
  10. Only Woman Bleed
  11. Years Ago [reprise]/Billion Dollar Babies
  12. Devil's Food/Guitar solo
  13. The Black Widow
  14. Steven/Welcome to My Nightmare [reprise]
  15. Escape
  16. School's Out
  17. Department of Youth
  18. Introduction Of The Band/Solos
  19. End Credits/Only Woman Bleed [reprise]
  20. Discography

Filmed at Wembley Pool and London Shepperton Studios in London, England, this concert movie delivers a unique look at what Alice Cooper was all about at his first solo tour. It became an extravagant affair, with Alice creating a stage act bigger then ever. Based on the theme of the 'Welcome To My Nightmare' album, and playing all the songs from that album, this live DVD delivers the show as it was released in movie theaters in 1976. Alice seems quite drunk, or intoxicated, thus taking something away from the full effect this show must have had back in the day. But his drunken behavior still somehow manages to blend in with his act. The show includes giant spiders in a web ("The Black Widow"), the Cyclops ("Steven") and assorted demented figures from an oversized toy box, amongst other things. The most annoying thing about this DVD is the editing. The songs do not appear to be shown in the correct order. So the introduction, and the opening track, "School's Out", are shown almost at the end of the show. And some of the songs don't even appear to be live. But hey, who am I to complain when I get such a classic Alice Cooper show finally on DVD? The set list alone should make any fan of the man start salivating.

THE LAST TEMPTATION (2001) DARK HORSE (Paperback)

This is the collective 'The Last Temptation' comic book. Originally released as three separate comic books, the first one available together with the CD, here they are all together. Written in collaboration with Neil Gaiman ('The Sandman,' 'Neverwhere', 'Stardust' and 'Signal To Noise'), this book offers the whole story to the album. The working title for 'The Last Temptation' was "Along Came A Spider". And the story originally told the tale of a spider-like demon trying to entrap an innocent young boy.

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