Alice Cooper The Godfather of Shock & Roll

by Graff, Gary

• ISBN13: 9780760394946
• ISBN10: 0760394946
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2025-01-14
• Publisher: Motorbooks

Summary

This value-priced reissue of Alice Cooper at 75 (2023) celebrates the godfather of shock rock with expert commentary, hundreds of images, and an illustrated timeline.

Pythons, guillotines, stage blood…with his concoction of vaudeville, horror film tropes, and three-chord rock ’n’ roll, Alice Cooper invented a genre. Let veteran rock journalist Gary Graff and Detroit rock writer Gary Graff be your guide to Cooper’s extraordinary career through the lens of 75 career accomplishments, events, and collaborations. This exquisite volume features:

• Stunning concert and candid offstage photography
• Images of memorabilia, including gig posters, vinyl record sleeves, ticket stubs, and period ads
• An illustrated Alice Cooper timeline

Through seven-and-a-half decades, Graff covers it all:
 

• Cooper’s childhood in Detroit and Arizona and early garage bands the Earwigs and the Spiders
• All 28 studio albums, including those as frontman of Alice Cooper the band
• A selection of his greatest singles, like the classic-rock standards “I’m Eighteen,” “School’s Out,” and “Welcome to My Nightmare”
• Collaborations with artists including Slash, Johnny Depp, Wayne Kramer, and more
• Associations with notable guitarists, including Glen Buxton, Nita Strauss, and Orianthi
• Nonmusical passions like classic cars and, of course, golf
• His relationship with wife and entertainment accomplice, Sheryl
• Tireless charity work

Beginning with his 1969 debut LP Pretties for You and continuing through his latest release, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Alice Cooper is regarded as one of the most influential performers and musicians in hard rock and heavy metal, influencing countless acts both visually and musically. This book is your unprecedented retrospective of Cooper’s career from teenage garage rocker to international star and celebrity.

The result is a unique and lavishly produced celebration of the iconic and beloved rock star.

Author Biography

Gary Graff is an award-winning music journalist based in Detroit. He is a regular contributor to the New York Times Feature Syndicate, Billboard, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Media News Group, Ultimate Classic Rock, Consequence, and other publications, as well as to radio stations in Detroit and Milwaukee. He is the co-author of Alice Cooper: The Godfather of Shock and Roll, Neil Young: Long May You Run, Rock 'n' roll Myths: The True Stories Behind the Most Famous Legends, and Travelin' Man: On the Road and Behind the Scenes with Bob Seger, editor of The Ties That Bind: Bruce Springsteen A to E to Z, and the series editor of the MusicHound Essential Album Guides. He is also co-founder and co-producer of the Emmy Award-winning Detroit Music Awards. Graff lives in Beverly Hills, Michigan.

Table of Contents

Introduction
Part 1: Hello, Hooray . . . Let the Show Begin, 1948–1971
Part 2: Generation Landslide, 1972 –1974
Part 3: The Nightmare, 1975–1985
Part 4: The Awakening, 1986–2000
Part 5: Mr. Nice Guy, 2001–Present
About the Author
Image Credits
Index