Hi Dennis, I wonder, touring extensively around the world - there must be many highlights of taking the stage, playing to a packed audience, performing one of the greatest rock shows. But how about in between the stage shows on-tour ? Were there particular moments in the 'routine' that you look bac...

You mentioned the Battle Axe itself. It sounds impressive. Is that it onstage between Bob’s keyboards and Neal’s drums? Does it still exist somewhere? You spotted it sticking up from the spot where the fallen Gladiator had just been slain per a thumbs-down vote from the crowd. The Plexiglass body o...

By contract, an album had to be delivered on time in order to coordinate with the record company's release plans, which involved lots of things including marketing and distribution. Missing that deadline would force a delayed release, which would be pretty disastrous. At any given time, lots of band...

Thanks for your opinion on missing the originals. I felt the band was my baby and I intended to continue creating cooler music with bigger and better shows with all my heart. We were swept under the carpet so thoroughly that it seemed that hardly anyone noticed. The majority of fans that preferred t...

Greetings, Dennis. 'Follow-up question: What did you guys do about different tunings for certain songs on stage? I couldn't help but notice that the ending of "Killer" suddenly goes to drop-D mid-song, and other things like this? In the studio, back then, we always tuned up to pitch (A-440) unless ...

These days road trip music includes a variety of music but faves are anything by Bob Marley, the Beatles or Otis Redding, The Rising by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. But I also listen to current hits on the radio. In our touring days, I avoided listening to rock because I didn't want to b...

I have a follow up question on the subject. Did you guys have a lot of back up instruments lined up with stage techs ready to switch if needed? And did you do any planned switches during shows to play certain songs? Pre-School's Out Tour, due to lack of funds, our backup instruments were minimal - ...

Those annoying tuning pauses plagued bands more in the years before the invention of the Strobe Tuner. But even that couldn't compensate for the variations of temperatures in the dressing rooms, then the often cold hallways to the stage, and then the heat of stage lighting. Strings expand and contra...

There was the time when we were touring with Flo & Eddie (Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan) when both bands were staying at a motel in Texas and one of the guys in their band "short-sheeted" Howard's bed, so when he climbed into his perfectly made bed he could only stretch his legs halfway due to the s...

Yes, there was a night where a vending machine swallowed Neal's quarter and refused to fork over a can of soda and wound up at the bottom of some stairs (when the police knocked on the door of Neal's room, he answered with a Gideon Bible in his hand). Then there was the time the roadies celebrated t...

Yes, we knew we could finally afford the kind of spectacular production we had spent years planning, however, Shep hired Joe Gannon who had worked on stage productions for Neil Diamond and Liza Minelli and his credentials warranted putting him in charge of getting it done, which he did in style. Unf...

The button was made from a photo of John Speer's bass drum head that Vince had painted. Only a few, if any, were made in the Spiders era. They might have been made by a fan at a later time. The spider was added for the recent Mascot sessions release.

I just finished reading this about half an hour ago. I really enjoyed it. Every book I’ve read by those who were there helps paint a more vivid picture of what it must have been like and all the characters become more realised. I’m now really looking forward to Neal’s account but the one I’m really...

If you've seen the Live From The Astroturf, Alice Cooper film, it's up to pitch in A 440. That's one reason the songs sound more like the original recordings. When the original group has sat in with Alice, and when we did the UK tour in 2017, we've tuned down 1/2 a step. The reasoning is wise becaus...

so it has nothing to do with the fact that the ACG reputation at that time was stil "too special" ? Thought I read that somewhere .. But it would have fitted perfectly, imho... Which is likely why that story was spread around! Well, that could have been true as well but we missed the deadline. Also...

It was Doo Wop influenced. I think it was our roadie Artie King because he had a low voice.

Vince and I used to go to a local Drive-In near my house (my parent's home) in Phoenix. We saw the Pink Panther films, Psycho, Edgar Allen Poe's Tell-Tale Heart trilogy, and the Bond films. We noticed that at the very end of each James Bond film, following the final credits, the very last thing you ...

Hi Dennis I’m guessing this was before Michael joined the group, so you had Don’t Blow Your Mind already? In his book, Dennis states that Alice and him wrote DBYM following MB's encouragement for the Group to start writing their own songs. I'm interested about Michael recording his own original son...

I showed your post to Tish and Snooky.

Snooky said "So funny!"
Tish said, "Omg! I laughed so hard that I almost Keeched my breeks when I read this!"

I'll pass your message on to Tish and Snooky. Cindy and I met them at a Chiller Theatre Expo monster/scifi event. Their table was across from ours. We looked at them and they looked at us and we all felt like Kindred Spirits from the get go. Then I found myself performing on stage with them several ...