Given his longevity in the business and that he’s been a solo act for so long, it’s easy to categorize Alice Cooper as just a glam/shock/schlock performer. Certainly their early use of theatrics and makeup in their performances were at the forefront of what would become “glam rock” and was influential for many artists.
But in their earliest days, they were a really kick ass rock band. Love It To Death, was released in March, 1971 and was their third album, but the first with producer Bob Ezrin. For me, this is the real Alice Cooper: Neil Smith on drums, Dennis Dunaway on bass, Glen Buxton on lead guitar, Michael Bruce on rhythm guitar and keyboards, and Alice Cooper on vocals. There is a lot of killer guitar, bass & drum work here. All the band members contributed to the song writing, which results in some strong material that stands the test of time. The musicianship is also excellent.
You have the iconic anthem “I’m Eighteen”, and my favourites “Caught In A Dream” and “Long Way to Go”. “Black Juju” and “The Ballad of Dwight Fry” were quite the fresh takes for us as teenagers.
This album, and their subsequent releases came as we were coming of age in our teens, so we were definitely their target audience, and they absolutely hit the mark. We played the hell out of each release, and were fanatically awaiting the next album.
In retrospect, it’s funny that this was all over in the space of two years; it seemed so much longer at the time. This album came out in early 1971, and their last good album (my opinion) was Billion Dollar Babies, released in February, 1973. Muscle of Love, released in November, 1973, was a fail in our eyes. After Muscle of Love, the group disbanded, and Alice Cooper went on as a solo acted backed by different musicians.
But we still have Love It To Death, Killer, School’s Out, and Billion Dollar Babies to showcase the best of Alice Cooper.