FEATURED CD : Alice Cooper : Goes to Hell

[Duncan Glenday]

Credit for this featured CD : Jerjo

Based on a CD received from the collection bequeathed to Progressive Ears by the late Chris Buckley (Winkersnuff)

Jerjo's comments:


I was a little surprised to see this one in the pile from Chris. The man certainly had a broad range. But so do I so let's dig in.

The original Alice Cooper was a nasty garage rock unit, snarling with ambition and no small amount of hooks/riffs. But this is a different animal. The band had been left by the wayside for the previous Welcome to My Nightmare. This is a continuation of Bob Ezrin and Coop's embrace of commercial rock. There's still a little snarl there but it's far too slick. Only "Go to Hell" and "Wish You Were Here" have some fist-pumping energy to them but the lyrics seem trite compared to Alice's earlier and more brazen efforts. "I Never Cry" is a very good ballad as far as such things go - the vocals are smooth but he sounds sincere. Then there's "I'm the Coolest" which does have a funky swagger. But the other tunes are middling and uninteresting compared to the old band's peak. I'd file this as a good try but it's certainly not essential.

[Progatron]

To be honest, I find the first four albums of the solo Alice catalogue pretty uninteresting following the seven band albums. There's the odd half-decent song here and there, but mostly the music just washes over me without leaving any impact. Oddly enough, I really like the 'lost/drug' period that follows, culminating in the excellent DaDa... and then it's all downhill from there again, with fairly forgettable, generic 80s-and-beyond hard rock/heavy metal where image was almost everything.

I'll take Alice Cooper Goes To Hell over those latter-day albums, but it pales in comparison to the band albums and the early 80s period, for my tastes.

[SteveSly]

Here is a review that I wrote a long time ago:

From a sales perspective Alice hit his peak with "Nightmare", the follow-up "Goes To Hell" sold well and had a hit or two, but was not nearly the success that the previous album had been. Alice once again teams up with Bob Ezrin and Dick Wagner as his co- writers. His backup band now has a name, "The Hollywood Vampires" and features among others Steve Hunter and Tony Levin. Although "Goes To Hell" is not as good as "Nightmare" it does have its moments. The album revolves around a very loose concept of the Alice character being sent to hell for his sins. Only one big hit came out of this one, the ballad "I Never Cry". The title track also got some limited airplay. The emphasis on this album is on humor and the disc really contains some of the funniest material that Cooper ever produced. The lyrics to "Go To Hell", "I'm The Coolest", "Give The Kid A Break" (where Alice's is pleading his case to the devil") are all vintage Cooper comedy. Of the more serious pieces "Didn't' We Meet and "Wish You Were Here" are both good. "Guilty" is a terrific rocker. There is even a cover of the old standard "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows" that sort of works. The worst song on the album is the disco "You Gotta Dance", although I guess the joke is that "disco is hell", but the song really does not hold up. The band gets to stretch out a bit on "Wish You Were Here" with some nice guitar work. Overall this is a decent effort and worth owning, but not as good as "Nightmare".

[spacefreak]

I remember getting it upon release and selling it few years later. It's a bad album. Only the title track stood the test of time. The rest is utterly forgettable.

[yesman1955]

Wow! Tony Levin was in the AC band?
I guess sometimes it really is all about the paycheck. As a freelance video producer, I fully understand. 🎸🎶

[Paulrus]

Wow! Tony Levin was in the AC band?

Yeah, hard to believe. But he was a working session musician back then and it was smart for him to take as many projects as he could. Meeting Bob Ezrin was the connection to Peter Gabriel. I gather the Goes To Hell tour never happened because of AC's illness. Would Tony have been part of that tour? Interesting what if because it might have kept him too busy to work with PG.

[Sturgeon's Lawyer]

I actually quite like this album... This was the second with the inimitable Steve Hunter and the inevitable Dick Wagner (RIP) -- and also TLev, who played on Welcome to My Nightmare) as well. Like Nightmare, it isn't a straight-ahead rocker; it's a soundtrack for a show that, alas, never happened, but would doubtless have been spectacular.

So, rather than headbanging, it's "show your versatility" time. Disco, funk, rock, ballad, even a 1917 Vaudeville song.

In a very real sense, 2011's Welcome 2 My Nightmare -- which brings back Hunter and, briefly, the ailing Wagner, plus the surviving members of the ACB on the song "Runaway Train" -- is a much better remake of this album. But Goes to Hell has its own special charm. In many ways, it's a very naïve album, but earnest and funny.

[Digital_Man]

I have a few Alice Cooper cds including this one. I should look for it and give it a spin.

[SteveSly]

Wow! Tony Levin was in the AC band?
I guess sometimes it really is all about the paycheck. As a freelance video producer, I fully understand. ����

Not sure why that is so hard to believe. Alice has had top notch musicians on pretty much every album he has ever done including his live bands.

[SteveSly]

I actually quite like this album... This was the second with the inimitable Steve Hunter and the inevitable Dick Wagner (RIP) -- and also TLev, who played on Welcome to My Nightmare) as well. Like Nightmare, it isn't a straight-ahead rocker; it's a soundtrack for a show that, alas, never happened, but would doubtless have been spectacular.

So, rather than headbanging, it's "show your versatility" time. Disco, funk, rock, ballad, even a 1917 Vaudeville song.

In a very real sense, 2011's Welcome 2 My Nightmare -- which brings back Hunter and, briefly, the ailing Wagner, plus the surviving members of the ACB on the song "Runaway Train" -- is a much better remake of this album. But Goes to Hell has its own special charm. In many ways, it's a very naïve album, but earnest and funny.

Personally I like "Welcome 2 My Nightmare" a lot better than "Goes To Hell". I agree that in concept "Nightmare 2" is pretty much a repeat of the concept of "Goes To Hell", but I think he pulled it off a lot better on the latter album. A lot of people seem to hate "Nightmare 2" and I kind of get why, but I still really like it.

[Trane]

I'll take Alice Cooper Goes To Hell over those latter-day albums, but it pales in comparison to the band albums and the early 80s period, for my tastes.

Don't remember much of the 80's AC albums (can't have been very relevant), but I dropped the thing after Caught In The Zipper.
Otherwise I agree with the rest of your statement

I remember getting it upon release and selling it few years later. It's a bad album. Only the title track stood the test of time. The rest is utterly forgettable.

Utterly forgettable might be too strong a word, but truth is that the only thing I do remember of this album is the (great) title track.

I actually quite like this album... This was the second with the inimitable Steve Hunter and the inevitable Dick Wagner (RIP) -- and also TLev, who played on Welcome to My Nightmare) as well. Like Nightmare, it isn't a straight-ahead rocker; it's a soundtrack for a show that, alas, never happened, but would doubtless have been spectacular.

In a very real sense, 2011's Welcome 2 My Nightmare -- which brings back Hunter and, briefly, the ailing Wagner, plus the surviving members of the ACB on the song "Runaway Train" -- is a much better remake of this album. But Goes to Hell has its own special charm. In many ways, it's a very naïve album, but earnest and funny.

Well those two first "solo" albums did get my attention because of the WTMN film, which was cultish with me and the Friday midnight local theatres seances along with TSRTS, The Wall, Rocky Horro, Quaddrophenia, Tommy, Rust Never Sleeps and stuff. The Wagner & Hunter duo was quite competent too.

But ultimately I haven't kept anything 33RPM from him (& the band), but I still own the movie in VHS.
Never bothered with Nightmare2, like I didn't with Bat Out Of Hell 2é3

[Progbear]

Was this the one with the Liza Minnelli duet, or am I thinking of one his other albums?

[Crawford Glissadevil]

Yeah, hard to believe. But he was a working session musician back then and it was smart for him to take as many projects as he could. Meeting Bob Ezrin was the connection to Peter Gabriel. I gather the Goes To Hell tour never happened because of AC's illness. Would Tony have been part of that tour? Interesting what if because it might have kept him too busy to work with PG.

That is interesting. The guts of Cooper's "Goes to Hell" band (Levin, Ezrin, Schwartzberg, Maelen, Hunter, and Wagner) form around Gabriel.

[Garden Dreamer]

Had this back in the day and like others, the only thing I recall about it was the title track.

[SteveSly]

Was this the one with the Liza Minnelli duet, or am I thinking of one his other albums?

He did "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows" on the album, a song that I think Minnelli recorded at some point, but I don't believe she is on the actual album.

[Paulrus]

That is interesting. The guts of Cooper's "Goes to Hell" band (Levin, Ezrin, Schwartzberg, Maelen, Hunter, and Wagner) form around Gabriel.

Which Gabriel went with instead of the Happy the Man guys. PG must have figured he was in safer hands with Ezrin and his band of pros than a bunch of green college kids.

[Jerjo]

I saw Coop on the Whiskey and Lace tour. The "new material" went over OK but the crowd obviously preferred the early stuff. He did open with "Under My Wheels", which was a smart move.

[Monet]

Vincent Furnier's decision to leave the well-trodden 'glitter rock' paths and play more substantial, demanding rock music with a newly formed band was rewarded with success right from the start. The 1975 record "Welcome to My Nightmare" and the single "Only Woman", "Welcome to My Nightmare" and "Department of Youth" that were extracted from it, proved to be quite successful.

Together with his companion band The Hollywood Vampires, he recorded the album “Goes to Hell” in 1976 in Toronto, New York and Los Angeles under the direction of Bob Ezrin. The Hollywood Vampires consisted of Dick Wagner (guitar, vocals), Steve Hunter (guitar), John Tropea (guitar), Bob Ezrin (keyboards, vocals), Al MacMillan (piano), Tony Levin (bass), Babbitt (bass), Alan Schwartzberg (drums), Jim Mealen (percussion) and the background choir consisting of Michael Sherman, Shawn Jackson, Colina Phillips, Joe Gannon, Shep Gordon, Denny Vosburgh, Bill Misener, Laurel Ward and Sharon Lee Williams. With the exception of "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows", the songs on "Goes to Hell" were all penned by Alice, Dick Wagner and Bob Ezrin. The fact that Bon Ezrin was involved not only as a producer but also as a composer and musician in “Goes to Hell” gives this work an incredible density.

The album begins with "Go to Hell", a powerful 'Rock' song with a strong bass line, thundering drums and sometimes heavy brass sections (the song reminds a little of "God of Thunder", a piece that Kiss recorded in the same year. Perhaps this similarity is not by chance, because in both cases the producer was called Bob Ezrin. However, “Go to Hell” sounds much more differentiated). "You Gotta Dance" is also a powerful rocker who is also suitable as a real dance floor sweeper. The chorus sounds almost like a rocking swipe at the disco sound that was emerging at the time.

"I'm the Coolest" comes across as unusually jazzy. The title says it all, Alice does indeed look very cool here. This title is certainly not everyone's taste, it is definitely original. "Didn't We Meet", a song with interesting tempo changes, is reminiscent of his big hits like "No More Mr. Nice Guy” and "Hello Hurray". That Alice also masters the soft tones, he proves with the very nice "I Never Cry". He proved that he can also interpret soulful ballads in 1975 with the sensational "Only Woman". As a single, the sometimes melancholy "I Never Cry" was a top hit in the American single charts in the fall of 1976.

The blues-rock song "Give the Kid a Break" is certainly not the best, but it shows the whole musical range of Alice Cooper of that time. The powerful rocker "Guilty" is not particularly noticeable but should please its real fans. The slightly morbid “Wake Me Gently” sounds to these ears somewhat like a version of some of the early Genesis songs. The song begins cautiously, but gradually increases into bombasticity. Here Alice combines all the qualities that made him a superstar in the first half of the 1970s. "Wake Me Gently" is a whole great rock cabaret. Another big hit is "Wish You Were Here". The song sounds like Santana, Isaac Hayes and Alice Cooper have merged into a seething unit. In his version of the classic "I'm Always Chasing Rainbow", Alice does not shy away from banal sounds. Just like the final song "Going Home", this song is very lavishly arranged and impresses with its powerful orchestral and choir interludes.

With "Goes To Hell" Alice has once again achieved a very good album, which impresses above all with its musical diversity. If you measure Alice Cooper by hits like "School's Out" or "Elected", you will probably be a little disappointed with his ninth album. But anyone who appreciates good American rock music and the musical development of an artist will definitely appreciate "Goes to Hell" as a quite successful album by Alice Cooper.

[Progbear]

He did "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows" on the album, a song that I think Minnelli recorded at some point, but I don't believe she is on the actual album.

I was mistaken, it’s Muscle of Love that features Liza Minnelli, and not on a duet, just background vocals on a couple of tracks. One of which is “Teenage Lament ’74,” which has the most insane cast of background vocals: also featuring Labelle, the Pointer Sisters and Ronnie Spector!

[Joe F.]

I got it when it came out. I was only 11 and I liked it a lot. I still do, especially the first side. Love the title track, I'm the Greatest, Didn't We Meet, etc..

[Sean]

I'm so hot it makes me shiver
Makes me wet
Makes me slide
It's some spirit I'm possessed by
I can't stop
We just got to dance
Dance
Dance

[SteveSly]

I'm so hot it makes me shiver
Makes me wet
Makes me slide
It's some spirit I'm possessed by
I can't stop
We just got to dance
Dance
Dance

As I mentioned in my review, this album is full of Alice tongue planted firmly in cheek humor. This song is a prime example putting the main character in hell where he must dance to disco music as his punishment. I am not really a fan of this song, but I get what Alice was trying to do.

[Sturgeon's Lawyer]

Personally I like "Welcome 2 My Nightmare" a lot better than "Goes To Hell". I agree that in concept "Nightmare 2" is pretty much a repeat of the concept of "Goes To Hell", but I think he pulled it off a lot better on the latter album. A lot of people seem to hate "Nightmare 2" and I kind of get why, but I still really like it.

I agree with you: I have Welcome 2 My Nightmare and have played it a good many times. (The opening number may be the best use of autotune I have ever heard.) I still have my vinyl of ...Goes to Hell, but have never bothered to buy it on CD, so I almost never listen to it.

Even the "disco" number is better, and a lot funnier: to those who have not heard "Disco Bloodbath Boogie Fever", give it a spin; it goes through so many little themes it's a kind of mini-epic.

[SteveSly]

Even the "disco" number is better, and a lot funnier: to those who have not heard "Disco Bloodbath Boogie Fever", give it a spin; it goes through so many little themes it's a kind of mini-epic.

Agree, exact same concept as the "disco" song on "Goes To Hell", but much better (and funnier). It also includes a great guitar solo from John 5.