Believe it or not, this was Alice Cooper’s 6th release, and at the time it was the biggest selling, reaching the top of the charts in the US and UK. 3 singles also came from it, Hello Hooray, Elected, and No More Mr Nice Guy.
To a 13 year old Alice was some kind of horror god that hated adults, and that was fine by me. That whole shock rock thing made such an impression on the youth of the time as we had seen nothing like it before, plus, he was getting banned from playing gigs because of the content, which made us love him even more. Sure you listen to it now and it does sound dated, and the production could have been better, but the lyrics are timeless – especially Elected, how apt is that.
The covers were an occasion back then. This one was no exception. It is a green snakeskin wallet with a “real” billion dollar bill, and some pop out family photos of the band. My favourite tracks are Side 2 opener, No More Mister Nice Guy, and the album closer, I Love The Dead, with the super creepy lyrics “I love the dead before they’re cold, They’re bluing flesh for me to hold”. Those lines have stuck with me for years. I love early Alice Cooper as they painted pictures in your mind and put it in your imagination.
8/10 from The Grooveman.
