I suspect a new album is already being prepared...

[pitkin88]

I like all kinds of sub-genres of rock. I just want more interesting, original quality music. Metal/folk/electronica whatever Alice feels like - just make it good. What's good? I can't give you a definition - I just know it when I hear it (hint: it ain't Ghouls Gone Wild)

prefer 0 comedic songs, horrible guests and mentions of people like j Lo. Be nice if it wasn't brickwalled too.

[Daggers & Contracts]

Sometimes "Topical" is good but direct individual references have a short shelf life. Hard to create a "Classic Rock Song" handcuffed from the start. Sweet Home Alabama comes to mind as one that worked.

[pitkin88]

Sometimes "Topical" is good but direct individual references have a short shelf life. Hard to create a "Classic Rock Song" handcuffed from the start. Sweet Home Alabama comes to mind as one that worked.

I'm not sure what impact " Donny Osmond " has on someone hearing Dept Of Youth years later, but at the time that was brilliant.

[Babysquid]

Sometimes "Topical" is good but direct individual references have a short shelf life. Hard to create a "Classic Rock Song" handcuffed from the start. Sweet Home Alabama comes to mind as one that worked.

I'm not sure what impact " Donny Osmond " has on someone hearing Dept Of Youth years later, but at the time that was brilliant.

I'd never heard of him (or the Bay City Rollers for that matter). But to be honest as I had no concept as to what was being referenced I didn't really think about it back then, he could have said Bill Blogs and it wouldn't have made any difference.
As for the guest artists you have a point. If I buy an Alice Cooper lp I buy it to listen to Alice not Steve Vai and the Pointer Sisters.
If I went to a restaurant and ordered steak I probably wouldn't be impressed if it arrived tasting of beef with a hint of lamb, duck, chicken and fudge sundae.

[Mr. Skull]

Lou Reed teaming up with Metallica worked fine for me...also Transformer made together with David Bowie still is a gem...

[GailsFriend]

After losing so many artists in 2016 so far....we should appreciate what we have. David Bowie was brilliant and creative...and also, Alice Cooper...both of which have made musical choices to push boundaries that make people uncomfortable.

Just ask Freddie Mercury...everyone knows he's brilliant for "Bohemian Rhapsody"....what? mixing opera and rock? who would do that? why do that?

I am sure Freddie heard a lot of that...but, the creativity has lived on and no one would dare say one negative comment. I think the same goes for David Bowie.....and it will continue for Alice Cooper, until he dies....and then everyone will value everything differently.

Appreciate creativity and creative people.

[Babysquid]

Lou Reed teaming up with Metallica worked fine for me...also Transformer made together with David Bowie still is a gem...

To be fair David Bowie wasn't really a guest artist on transformer, he was the albums producer. Metallica and Lou Reed was an equal collaboration.
I don't think I made my point very clear. I find nothing wrong with artists collaborating if it's in the genuine interest of the music, but what I've found with Alice is a lot of the time he seems to try and sell albums on the back of the guest artists who are playing on them when their actual contributions to the songs are minimal. Would House of Fire really sound that much better or worse if Joe Perry hadn't played the solo in it?

[A_MichaelUK]

From Babysquid:
"what I've found with Alice is a lot of the time he seems to try and sell albums on the back of the guest artists who are playing on them when their actual contributions to the songs are minimal."

You make it sound like he does it all the time though. It would be like saying he used Vince Gill or Wayne Kramer for the same reason.

> Would House of Fire really sound that much better or worse if Joe Perry hadn't played the solo in it?

He like Aerosmith though. Does that mean no members of Aerosmith should ever play on an album?

[Mr. Skull]

Lou Reed teaming up with Metallica worked fine for me...also Transformer made together with David Bowie still is a gem...

To be fair David Bowie wasn't really a guest artist on transformer, he was the albums producer. Metallica and Lou Reed was an equal collaboration.
I don't think I made my point very clear. I find nothing wrong with artists collaborating if it's in the genuine interest of the music, but what I've found with Alice is a lot of the time he seems to try and sell albums on the back of the guest artists who are playing on them when their actual contributions to the songs are minimal. Would House of Fire really sound that much better or worse if Joe Perry hadn't played the solo in it?

I never used the word guest artist. Bowie did sing background vocals and did bring Mick Ronson together who did play on that album. Lou Reed's Lulu was a Lou Reed project from the start according to Metallica.

[Babysquid]

Lou Reed teaming up with Metallica worked fine for me...also Transformer made together with David Bowie still is a gem...

To be fair David Bowie wasn't really a guest artist on transformer, he was the albums producer. Metallica and Lou Reed was an equal collaboration.
I don't think I made my point very clear. I find nothing wrong with artists collaborating if it's in the genuine interest of the music, but what I've found with Alice is a lot of the time he seems to try and sell albums on the back of the guest artists who are playing on them when their actual contributions to the songs are minimal. Would House of Fire really sound that much better or worse if Joe Perry hadn't played the solo in it?

I never used the word guest artist. Bowie did sing background vocals and did bring Mick Ronson together who did play on that album. Lou Reed's Lulu was a Lou Reed project from the start according to Metallica.

No you didn't use the word guest artist but you were replying to a conversation about guest artists.
Bowie and Ronson were the producers for Transformer. Of course you are most likely right regarding Lulu but it is credited to Lou Reed and Metallica. David Bowie and Mick Ronson helping and arrange and perform a whole album is a bit different to say Steven Tyler popping by one afternoon to add a few backing vocals to the refrain of Only My Heart Talking.

[Babysquid]

From Babysquid:
"what I've found with Alice is a lot of the time he seems to try and sell albums on the back of the guest artists who are playing on them when their actual contributions to the songs are minimal."

You make it sound like he does it all the time though. It would be like saying he used Vince Gill or Wayne Kramer for the same reason.

> Would House of Fire really sound that much better or worse if Joe Perry hadn't played the solo in it?

He like Aerosmith though. Does that mean no members of Aerosmith should ever play on an album?

You're quite right he doesn't do it all the time. My bad.

Of course the members of Aerosmith should play on their albums. I've just realized I've mentioned Steven Tyler in my above post and I wouldn't want anybody to think I'm singling out Aerosmith.
What I'm trying (and failing it seems ) to articulate here is that the names of the guests appear to be far more important than their actual contributions to the record. They are (at least on trash and hey stoopid) mostly little more than cameo appearances, not true collaborations.
I appreciate that trash was a make or break lp and any involvement from guests might help sales. Hey stoopid was the follow up and why fix what isn't broken.
Of course Alice has done this before, pointer sisters and Liza Minnelli on Mol, superstar jam during the bdb sessions etc....

[A_MichaelUK]

From Babysquid:
"They are (at least on trash and hey stoopid) mostly little more than cameo appearances, not true collaborations."

All of that may be true but it ultimately doesn't really matter. Those are only two albums in an entire career.

>Of course Alice has done this before, pointer sisters and Liza Minnelli on Mol, superstar jam during the bdb sessions etc....

I think the circumstances there were somewhat different.

[Mr. Skull]

And the other way around Babysquid ?
Alice mades some guest appearances , I bought those albums, songs.

[Si]

I don`t think having guests on an album (like Trash/HS) makes any significant difference to sales as such. What it does make a difference to is publicity and publicity fuels everything else. The more big names a news outlet can put in a report the more likely they are to run it. "Aerosmith, Bon Jovi guest on Alice Cooper album" is more of a story then "Alice Cooper releases new album". It's celebrity culture, especially nowadays, and the more people read the report, the more know the album exists, and inevitably a percentage of those people WILL buy something, an AC album (because it reminded them they like SO), a concert ticket (because the show sounds fun). It all helps.

How many of you had heard of 'Theory Of A Deadman' before reading that Alice guested on their album? I would suggest very few, but chances are you checked out the video to the song I posted on the news page. How many of you bought the album, again I would guess very few (I didn't, yet), but the point is their name has now crossed your radar. When you see the name again you hopefully remember it. That is how brands are built and maintained. The more you hear the name, the more relevant it can become. The aim is to convert people into customers. Bowie's death did more for his record sales then anything he could have done alive, because of the endless coverage of it on every outlet. Publicity fuels the brand and keeps it alive.

Now even that may not make something a "big" seller, but every little helps and its all part of the bigger picture.

[Toronto Bob]

I think those guest appearances made perfect sense. Alice was still in a comeback position. His brand needed updating and the younger metal heads could be introduced to his music via Vai etc. What would have been so cool is if Randy Rhoads was still alive, there could have been a possible collaboration, as an early LITD show Randy saw as a 17 year old made a huge impact on him. Ahh the possibilities.

[kevinuk81]

How many Ke$ha fans would buy W2MN because she was on one song?

[Si]

How many Ke$ha fans would buy W2MN because she was on one song?

About the same number of AC fans who bought any of his recent guest appearances ie very few I would think.
In this day and age there is no need to buy the album to hear the one song you want to hear.

[pitkin88]

How many Ke$ha fans would buy W2MN because she was on one song?

Any ideas?

[Si]

How many Ke$ha fans would buy W2MN because she was on one song?

Any ideas?

137

[pitkin88]

How many Ke$ha fans would buy W2MN because she was on one song?

Any ideas?

137

I was thinking 33.