Early History Timeline

Disclaimer: The information in the timelines on this site has been researched and put together by myself and Andy Michael (with additional input by Kurt Scheinpflug). We have used many, many sources including interviews, first person recollections, tour itineraries, posters, books etc. but have in some cases still had to try and deduce certain events and dates from these sources. There are certainly errors here, and many shows are missing so we welcome any further information/evidence, however small, gratefully.

Please do not simply copy and paste information onto other sites. While it is here for all to use freely, there are sites that are simply copying pages in part or in whole from the Trivia File word for word with no credit or link being made to the original source. This site has taken many years and a lot of hard work to put together and I`d appreciate a credit/link back here at least. Thank you.

TIMELINE: Part 1: From The Beginning

Dec 9th '46 Dennis Dale Dunaway born Cottage Grove, Oregon

Sept 23rd `47 Neal Smith born, Ohio (Moved to Phoenix in `63)

Nov. 11th `47 Glen Buxton born Akron Ohio

Feb 4th `48 Vincent Furnier born Detroit MI

Me, Alice: "I was born Vincent Damon Furnier in a hospital they call the "Butcher's Palace" in Detroit and I was lucky I made it out of there because a lot of people didn't. They didn't do such a bad job on me, except that I was born with eczema, and infantile asthma."
Named after Uncle Vince and Damon Runyon.

March 16th `48 Michael Bruce born

By late `48/early `49 Furniers` had moved to L.A. and back to Detroit in an unsuccessful attempt to help Alice`s asthma.

`51 Furniers` moved to Phoenix for a couple of years, again partly in an attempt to help Alices` asthma.

Me Alice: "They sent us home penniless after a year or so, and we braved it out in Detroit again for five years"

Fall `53 Furniers` to Detroit for "three winters"

Alice attends Havenhurst Elementary School.
Ether has various jobs including Cab driving and Used car salesman.

Spring/Summer `58 Furniers` moved to L.A. Living presumably temporarily, in Uncle Lonson`s front room. - Father works at Jet Propulsion Lab

Feb `61 The Buxtons move to Phoenix from Akron, Ohio. Glen attends 8th Grade at Glendale Elementary School

April `61 Ether Moroni Furnier ordained (Me, Alice)

May `61 Furniers` move to Phoenix, to a `little trailer camp` and Ether begins working with the Apache Indians at the St. Carlos mission which he helped establish..

July 4th `61 Alice gets ill. A couple of days later he`s rushed to hospital with peritonitis from a burst appendix. He claims to have then spent a year in bed watching TV!

"I was only ninety-eight pounds and had spent a year and a half hunched over in bed, which left a curvature of my spine and shoulders which could have put the hunchback of Notre Dame to shame."(Me Alice)

Nov `61 Vince move to house in Campbell Ave, Phoenix,AZ

Spring `62 - Vince recovers enough to start at Squaw Peak Elementary School. He later also attends Madison No 2.

Ether gets new job working on the space program at an electronics factory. This allows the family to move to a three bedroomed house in Coral Gables, Phoenix.

July 4th `62 Vince returns to hospital where they reopen his appendix scar to find that he has lesions on his intestines. The two operations leave a Y shaped scar which he tells everybody is a shark bite!

Summer `62 The Buxtons moved to 39th Ave and Orangewood where Glen started at Cortez High School.

Fall `62 Cortez High School, Glendale which was new the year Alice started. He lettered in Track for four years.

Sept `63 Vince `letters` in cross country.

He excelled at running in school and was a member of the track team. He was so good that he reputably broke the 26 mile marathon record for Phoenix. The story goes that on completion of the race,he promptly fell over and broke his nose, an injury that explains his distinctive face
(Cortez Message Board:Vince-Class of `66: John Tatum-class of `65)
Vince was member of Cross Country Team Division II Champions as were Speer and Dunaway.

Fall `63 Vince and Glen start working on the Cortez Tip Sheet. Glen is the photographer, Vince has his own column called "Get Out Of My Hair" which he writes under the name of `Muscles McNasel`. The two become close friends.

1964

The Earwigs - Furnier, Buxton, Dunaway, Speer, Tatum

Earwigs Bio from `65 says they were formed in March `64. One name referred to as a 'manager of the Earwigs' was Nick Sataslow (possibly a fellow student).

Spring`64 Lettermen Talent Show, Cortez High School, Phoenix, AZ

From 'Me, Alice':

"In the fall of my junior year I got shafted with the job of organizing the Letterman's talent show. My biggest problem was that nobody had any talent. Nobody even deluded themselves. I put up signs all over the school and all I found was a freshman who wanted to do magic tricks. I called a meeting in the locker room before a track meet one day and asked for suggestions.
"All right," I said, clapping my hands together to get their attention, "who wants to do what in the talent show?"
"Let's put Dunaway in a dress and have him sing 'I Enjoy Being a Girl,'" John Speer said. John Speer loved to torture Dennis Dunaway. Speer was a senior, a tall well-built eighteen-year-old with a good Midwestern face. He was a scene queen. He had to be the center of attraction and everything had to be his way, which he usually achieved because he was long-winded and determined not to fail. He brayed at people, donkeylike, insistent.
Dennis Dunaway was exactly the opposite and Speer hated him because of it. Dennis was my height and almost as skinny, with deep set, moist brown eyes. Speer was frantic and impulsive, Dennis lethargic and good-natured, like a farmer in Iowa. He had the slowest heartbeat on the team, a good advantage for a runner, but he was so very retiring sometimes we didn't think he could have had more than two heartbeats a day. His placidness drove John Speer nuts, but all of Speer's venom just splattered on Dennis' impenetrable hide.
"C'mon. How about if we all sing?" I said. We had been making up parodies of Beatle songs as we ran around the track: "We beat you, yeah, yeah, yeah," or "Last night I ran three laps for my coach." But nobody was listening to me. John Speer was hovering over Dennis Dunaway like the Angel of Death, trying to get him angry. I stepped between them and Speer pushed me aside.
"Listen, Dunaway, I want to make a deal with you. Whoever wins this meet doesn't say one word to the loser. I know it's going to be a big deal if I beat you, but I won't say nothing to you if I win, and if I lose you don't say nothing to me."
Dennis just sat there nodding, and I forgot about the talent show until after the meet. John Speer beat Dennis. At the last minute he took over in an incredible sprint. When they got back to the lockers Speer was screaming, "Ha! What's the matter with Dunaway? Didn't win the meet, did you? Huh, old slow poke?"
Dennis couldn't have cared less. As he was getting dressed, he said to me, "You want somebody to sing with you? I'll do it." Speer was at his side instantly "Sing what? Track songs? Is that what you're gonna do? Make it look like you're the big track stars? Not without me, buddy. I represent the track team around here."
That's how it started. I convinced Glen Buxton, who already played guitar, to join Dennis and John, and along with the track coach, Emmet Smith, we formed the Earwigs. An earwig is a water scorpion. If you step on one, it releases a terrible stink, and if one gets in your ear it'll chew right through the ear drum, get into your brain, and drive you crazy.
The night of the Letterman's talent show we got dressed up in our track suits and long Dynel wigs. Save for Glen, none of us knew how to play any instruments, so we faked it. We all stood on the stage in the cafeteria/auditorium, singing Beatle parodies feeling like idiots. During the last number we arranged for three girls to rush on stage and scream, "Earwigs! Earwigs!"
We caused an uproar in the school, mostly because we were so bad, but I loved the sudden attention. Everybody was talking about it. People complimented me the next day for having the guts to do it, and girls started talking to me who never before would have anything to do with the skinny guy with the big nose from the track team. It stimulated my entertaining chemicals like never before. I got hooked on the limelight. That's why I went into rock and roll. For fame and sex. I wanted more and more from that night on. To this day coach Emmet Smith hasn't forgiven himself for letting me taste that moment.

There were TWO Lettermen Shows! Dispite what 'ME, Alice' says at this first show it seems the Earwigs featured Vince, Glen, Dennis and John Tatum along with a drummer called Phil Wheeler. They couldn`t play (GB and Tatum excepted) and were awful, apparently coming in last. They basically mimed to a tape of Beatles songs. After the show "Phil left, to be replaced by John Speer.
Various band names were considered including "Husky Babies Sandwich" and "Joe Banana and The Bunch(The band with a-peal)"
A newspaper clipping about the Earwigs(not this show) denotes it must have been pre Oct. 16 as by then had improved enough to play proper shows.

"The actual date of origin would have to come from one of the original members. You are right about them forming before October of 1964 because there is a date on the paper. Upper left hand corner to the left of the Lettermen's Talent Show the newspaper clipping shows a date of Friday, October 16, 1964 so we know it was before that. When the Night Riders played for a Cortez dance kids in the crowd would raise their fist and yell "Earwigs To Eternity!" That's also how John Speer signed my Me & GB book".
(Skip Ladd, August 1998)

Dennis(GBMW2001) mentions they had another drummer before Speer for about three weeks

"They were talking about the early days, early as in Earwigs, and Dennis said that they had another drummer before John Speer. Before Michael & Neal joined. His name: Phil Wheeler. He was only with them for about 3 weeks, and Dennis says that the only other person who could confirm this is Alice himself."

However John Tatum also confirms this:

"Yes, I was absolutely with them from day 1. Buxton and I had been jamming in his garage for a while, and we were both plugged in to his amplifier. He actually originally spoke to Vince and Dennis about getting together for the talent show (Letterman's Club). The exact lineup for the talent show included another drummer (Phil something?? ) he was a great drummer, but opted to not continue with the group, then we got Speer."

Michael Bruce(NMMNG) says that Dennis, Vince, Glen and John Speer decide to form a `proper` band after the first Lettermen. He goes on to say "Originally called The Earwigs, they teamed up with John Tatum and changed their name to The Spiders"
This is oncorrect as Tatum was there all along and it was Speer who joined later.

From 'Me Alice':

"Over the year, we taught ourselves how to play instruments and changed our name to the Spiders. We learned all our songs from Yardbirds and Rolling Stones albums which we had to play several hundred times each to figure out the chords."

Oct `64 Cortez High Paper dated 16th Oct. `64 reports Earwigs playing shows during lunch hours at school. (Also reports the band will be playing at the upcoming `Pit and The Pendulum` dance on Oct 23rd.)

Oct 23rd `64 `Pit And The Pendulum` Dance, Phoenix, AZ

Nov. 25th `64 Vince, Dennis and John Speer take part in the Division Cross country Meet at Glendale High School

1965

Early `65 Lisa Hawks Sweet Sixteen Party, Phoenix, AZ - First paying gig(first gig in Me Alice)

Jan 14th '65 Vince breaks his nose while running during track.

Jan 26th `65 Earwigs arrive for a talent show at Washington Grade School but get date wrong

In an interview from `67 Dennis says they turned up for a gig two weeks early and set up their gear during someone's Little League meeting.

Feb 9th `65 Talent show at Washington Grad School.

(Mar 30th `65 Talent show at Janice Buxton's school - Earwigs not allowed to play?)

May 7th `65 The Earwigs come second in Talent show, AZ

Likely to be the 2nd Cortez Lettermen show. The band were playing better now. The added year of practice gave them second place. Speer gets a shaving cream pie in the face.

(`65?) The Dunes on Glendale, AZ.)

June `65 Several Battle Of the Bands, Phoenix, AZ

Neal`s band Surf Tones poss. on one bill(me Alice) Other bands around at the time included The Trolls(feat. Michael Bruce) and the XLS(Who partly went on to become The Tubes)

The Spiders 1 - Furnier, Buxton, Dunaway, Speer, Tatum

Jack Curtis claims to have suggested they change the name to The Spiders as it was more commercial.
The Spiders used to performed behind (or in front) of a spiders' web.

"We had auditioned for Jack Curtis (Phoenix promoter) and we thought he didn't like us after many weeks went by, but later I went back to the teen club and spoke to him and he said he was looking everywhere for us, and that he wanted to hire us. He was the person that changed the name to "The Spiders", and he set up the first concerts. We even played the first concert at the opening of the Coliseum in Phoenix. I was actually sharing the same guitar amp with Glen Buxton and Jack bought me my first guitar
amp and my first car, a 56 chevy."
(John Tatum, January 2008)

Jun 1st `65 Pizza Pub in Phx.

"They had a gig playing for four hours in a pizza parlor for all they pizza they could eat only to end up with one small pizza to share"(DD int.)

Sept. `65 VIP Lounge, 7th Street, Phoenix, AZ

Band get regular/every weekend gigs for $500 a weekend (Me, Alice). Presumable meet Jack Curtis, who owned the VIP.

Sept `65 `Why Don`t You Love Me` (by the Mersey Beats)/`Hitchhike (by Marvin Gaye)` single released (Mascott 112)

Other possible shows at The Red Dog Au Go Go in Scottsdale and Merriweathers in Paradise Valley, AZ

The Earwigs also get to perform on the TV show `Wallace and Ladmo`(Possibly Called `It`s Wallace` on one of the occasions which was shown on KPHO). Also on the show was Wayne Newton. They play the show again later as The Spiders.

"I remember Glen and band all sitting around and talking about themselves, and how they happened upon the name "The Earwigs"...which cracked up "Wallace".Vince did most of the talking and explained to the TV audience "EXACTLY" what a earwig was and looked like etc...to more chuckles "
(Rob, co-founder of the Wallace and Ladmo club, May 2002)

1966

Spring `66 - around Jan 15th `66 (Janice has her ticket) Phoenix Star Theatre, Phoenix, AZ - Jan Murray road show of Bye Bye Birdie - Spiders provide Music having rehearsed for three weeks before the show.

Alice suspended from Cortez for long hair the second time on the opening night. He was suspended until after the show finished when he had his hair cut.

Summer `66 - Tatum Leaves, Michael Bruce arrives(from The Wildflowers) being the only applicant to an advertisement(and because he had a van!).

"I later quit the band to join with Bill Spooner who later founded the "Tubes", and Michael Bruce was the rhythm guitar player for Bill. Bill replaced Michael Bruce with me, and Michael then joined the "Spiders" who later became 'Alice Cooper'."
(John Tatum, January 2008)

Spiders still playing covers. Tracks played in the early years included 'Lil' Red Rooster' ( Glen play slide guitar), 'Love that Dirty Water', ' Hey Mona!', ' Midnight Hour', 'Louie Louie', 'Route 66', 'Stormy Monda'y, '19th Nervous Breakdow'n, 'I'm a Man', 'Smokestack Lightning', 'As Tears Go By' and 'Love Potion Number 9'.

Me, Alice:

"We advertised for another guitarist and expected hundreds of calls, but only one person contacted us. His name was Michael Bruce, and he had been in a Beatle band called the Trolls. The Trolls were called a Beatle band because at the time nobody was playing original music. We were all "copy" bands. The Spiders were the best copy band for the Rolling Stones and Yardbirds material; the Trolls played great Beatle music. The only problem with Mike Bruce was his image. Michael was short and broad-beamed. What could have been a finely layered body of muscles was always just beyond that in the realm of beefiness. But he moved and thought with his groin, and although not a pretty boy, he was handsome because he believed in himself physically.
Michael, for instance, is the type of guy who touches himself a lot. Not an obvious jock scratch like you might see watching the NFL on TV. Michael's hands would gracefully fall to his crotch or a nipple and hover there. You never knew if he just rested his hands in funny places or he was actually coddling his balls.
He has, to his credit, nice blue eyes, and because we had no choice, we hired him. John Tatum sold him a dirty pair of pants he had worn on stage for five dollars, and Mike let his hair grow long."

John Tatum is living somewhere in California and has been for many years. He was in a band called "Avenue" about 10-15 years ago.
(Sickthing Mike, November 1997)

The Spiders 2 - Furnier, Buxton, Dunaway, Bruce, Speer

Article dated `66 from Vince states "Spiders will play Texas, Oklahoma, California, New Mexico"

Summer `66 Alice leaves Cortez.

Summer `66 Don`t Blow Your Mind/No Price Tag recorded in Tucson.

Would Don`t Blow Your Mind be the first Spiders original song?

Skip Ladd(2002): "This Mike guy said he worked for a while with Foster Casey down in Tucson, Arizona. There was a recording studio called Santa Cruz Records that changed their name to Copperstate Recording Company. He said Foster Casey was wondering what to do with all these master tapes of the Spiders he had. Foster Casey said he didn't know if the Spiders wanted them to release them or not, so he hasn't. So if any of the guys were wondering where those tapes went to, Foster Casey has them at Copperstate."

21st Aug `66 Tucson, AZ, Thrift City (Possible show date supporting The Yardbirds)

Were they in town to record single?

Sept 4th `66 VIP club, Jaycees, Phoenix (Spiders support The Yardbirds - billboard shown in Behind The Music)

" I remember that we had to go get Jeff Beck a Vox Superbeatle amp, and he actually kicked out the bottom speaker (right through the grill covering) and put the mic down on that speaker. We were blown away when he did that."
(John Tatum, February 2008)

The Spiders played the VIP many weekends. One eyewitness says they were there virtually every weekend until `68 however they moved to LA in March `67 so this may be an exaggeration. Certainly they played there a great deal.

Sept `66 Don`t Blow Your Mind/No Price Tag (Santa Cruz SCR 10.003) released

Me, Alice:

"We went to Tucson the summer of 1966 and recorded another single for Jack Curtis called "Don't Blow Your Mind," which we wrote.
Recording wasn't an easy chore for us. We had no idea of what we were doing. There wasn't even a producer around, just us and the engineer. See we played our parts in unison and came up with a version of the song that sounded like we were all stuffed into a phone booth.
Jack Curtis got them to play it on KFIF in Tucson and the station received hundreds of phone calls requesting the song, most of them placed long distance from Phoenix by our families. The first time I heard myself on the radio I was washing my car in the driveway of our house. I couldn't believe it was me. It was familiar but foreign, like meeting a twin. After the first adrenaline rush I got very nonplused about it. Whenever the song would play on the radio I'd switch to another station as if I hadn't heard it. "Don't Blow Your Mind" became the number three song on the KFIF play list."

Sept. `66 Vince enters Glendale community College as an Art major. He drops out in spring `67 as more gigs start to come their way. At Glendale they met Mike Allen(Who roadied for the band for the next four years), Dick Christian(Who became their unofficial manager)and Charlie Carnel(also ex-Cortez who would do the lights for the next five years and actual become an equal member of the band with an equal share of money).

Possible Shows:

- The Lunchroom at Brophy College Prep School, 4701 N. Central Ave, Phx.

This one definitly happened.
"YES it did happen, and I was there. The Catholic Boys High School!. Our boys with the pre-CBS Black face Super reverbs with 4 10" JBL D-110's (Often blown and reconed at Nutone speaker reconing on 24 th street!) in each did not get a particularly warm response. They gigged well tho, and I enjoyed the show. "(Chuck Warriner, October 2003)

- Stage 7 on 7th St.,
- Saguaro High School(as Spiders and did lots of Stones covers)

Quote from Phoenix TV guide:

"By 5 Nov. 1966, Spiders had already opened for The Drifters, The Coasters, Dean of Jan And Dean, The Lovin' Spoonful, Bobby Fuller, The Hollies, Beau Brummels, The Mamas and The Papas, Peter And Gordon and a statewide tour with the Byrds"

Most of these shows were likely at the VIP club in Phoenix.

" It was cool talking to [David] Crosby at the club, and I asked him if he minded being the rhythm guitar player and he responded that he was very content to not play lead, and as I was the rhythm for the Spiders, this gave me more enthusiasm to be the rhythm and not the lead."
(John Tatum, February 2008)

1967

- Some converted Church, AZ., in 1967

"The Church referred to below was also the site of very theatrical shows by Oat Willie and the Dream Band newly renamed the BEANS (Bill Spooner and company, soon to be the TUBES) This band included ED Black (RIP) who later played with Linda Ronstadt, and Roger Steen (Who on the same day along with me alone walked out of our draft physicals as free men!) who was the master of guitar in the TUBES." (Chuck Warriner, October 2003)

Jan 25th `67 Spiders write up in `Tuscon American`

Feb `67 Eyewitnesses report of the Spiders playing with The Byrds at the Phoenix Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix. Dennis Dunaway confirms there were three shows with the Byrds in Arizona. John Tatum mentions the first was at the VIP club.

Spring `67 Dick Christian heads to LA with posters and singles. Me Alice says he didn`t get very far but as they got their first LA show he might have managed something.

Mar 16th `67 VIP Club, Tucson

They played the VIP in Tucson, and Glen was ill. Skip Ladd was called to deputize for the show.

One night down at the V.I.P. club in Tucson Glen Buxton got sick and couldn't play, they needed someone right away so their manager called my manager and flew me into Tucson. Mike Allen was roadie for them at the time and he drove my equipment down in a van. The van beat the jet to Tucson! Cause you have to get to the airport early then wait around. Mike Allen had everything set up before I even walked in the V.I.P.! I knew a lot of their material but there were some foggy areas with breaks, but Dennis Dunaway would shout chord changes and breaks to my back, too cool! I played a song called Orange Blossom Special & Alice would stand just off to my left and vibe to me to play ever faster the kids loved it! Alice said I played it like "a derailed freight train from Hell! " I received a Western Union Telegram while on stage from my girlfriend Mad Wagner in Phoenix, her father had just died and she wanted me to come back to talk her through the night. Alice reminded me that I was playing an Orange guitar that night, think it was like a Gretch Nashville with the black pad in back, well Mike Bruce's guitar was the same model and color so we looked like we should be playing together too. Glen told me, "I'll never know how close I was to becoming a Cooper, our manager was just going to the phone and stopped. " Buxton & I used to hang out together, go see the Rolling Stones at ASU or Rick Derringer at some club in Tempe. Later I made a light show and used it for his local group Virgin.
(Skip Ladd, Band Friend, February 1998

March 26th `67 Festival, Griffith Park, Los Angeles, CA

Me, Alice: First time in LA-easter sunday(w/Iron Butterfly).
The band meet Sgt. Garcia.

In the Spiders, they started getting more grungy and casual (like the Rolling Stones). It really wasn't until they went to Los Angeles that they started getting freaky. There is a very early picture of the Spiders in the Prime Cuts video.
(Renfield, March 1996)

Neal Smith On The Early Days and Movements:

"You have to remember that I came to California to stay with my buddies, "The Nazz" until I could find a band to join in LA. The first house that I lived in with the guys, was in Santa Monica, late summer of 1967. Then in September, the guys asked me to join the band. The next move we made, was to Topanga Canyon in the spring of 1968. The Topanga Canyon house is where we changed the name of the band to "Alice Cooper", and met Shep Gordon and Joe Greenberg. Then we moved to "Hollywood Hills". This home was owned by actor John Phillip Law, who I saw at the "Chiller Show" last year in NJ. And the last place that we lived in LA was for only two weeks, thank God! I will never forget the address it was 2001 Ivar Street. It was the worst location. I had a 2nd floor apartment, outside of my window was a view of oncoming traffic coming right at you and then curving away on the "Hollywood Freeway". There was no way a human being could ever sleep in that place. Then sometime in 1969 we left LA for good.
(Neal Smith, GBM Mailing List Interview, 14/11/99)

Michael Bruce On The Early Days and Movements:

"I believe the first house was ( I don`t know the guys name ) but it was the guy we met in Griffith Park, and for $160.00 we sleep where ever we could, moved all his stuff, rehearsed, and stayed there for a couple months. Then it was back to Phoenix to regroup. Then we stayed at Doke Roberts, the guy that Dick was seeing, who was Tony Curtis` private secretary. All the neighbors were gay and took real good care of us. I believe the house was on Doheny off of Santa Monica Blvb. and Sunset. Next it was off to Topanga Canyon were we met Joe and Shep. I believe we moved to Beethoven Drive were we did our shows at Cheetah club and Sheri Cottle, I may have these to places confused, its all a blur. I think it was Observation Drive and the John Philip Law house then. It was off to Michigan and the farm I like to call `Refrigerator Heaven`. Hope this adds to the confusion
.(Michael Bruce, November 1999)

March 28th `67 Gazzarri`s, Sunset Strip, Los Angeles, CA

May `67 Gallup, NM - Unknown High School Prom

Search for Gallup high school`s list just `Gallup High School` actually IN Gallup. There are others in surrounding area though.

??/??/67 Albuquerque, NM prom at unknown high school

??/??/67 Riverside, CA

??/??/67? The Spiders with Electraloosened Mind Machine(Charlie Carnel`s band)

NAZZ 1 - Furnier, Buxton, Bruce, Dunaway, Speer

One Newspaper caption lists Fabian Buxton and Neal S. Muth as members of the Nazz - Looks like they were trying out stage names.

The Yardbirds had a song called "The Nazz Are Blue." It comes from that. The Yardbirds may have gotten it from a Lord Buckley reference. I'd say it's safe to say that Todd Rungren got the Nazz band name the same way AC did. As far as I know, Todd's Nazz did not have a hit at the time but were getting known by that name so the guys figured it would be smart to change the name to Alice Cooper to be on the safe side before it was too late.
(Renfield, July 1995)

One early song was called 'Everything is Orange' which "...was a song about getting high, according to Michael Bruce. They used to play it when they were the Nazz. He doesn't remember what it turned out to be or if it was used on "Easy Action" or "Pretties for You". There was another song called "Travel Agent", and another called "Mr. Machine" (which turned into "Woman Machine") that they used to play back then, and also, "Animal Pajamas", which turns up on "Ladies Man" as "Science Fiction" (he thinks).
(Jeff Jatras, November 1997)

67 Wonder Who`s Loving Her Now /Lay Down And Die Goodbye single (Very 001)

`67 moved to LA Staying in $6 a night cubicles at the Sunset Motor Inn(Me Alice)

'67 Los Angeles, CA Hullabaloo Club (two nights)Me, Alice

Band meet Merry Cornwall, booker for the Cheetah Club after the second night, broke, and having to go home to Phoenix the next day.
The band stay with Sgt Garcia`s front room in lower LA

`67 third show at the Hullabaloo show where Dick Christian meets Bob Roberts. Roberts offers them his front room to stay in. Me Alice states they stayed for three months.

Bob Roberts(Dick`s boyfriend) house on Doheny off of Santa Monica Blvb. and Sunset(MB int.)
Bob Roberts lived just off Sunset Boulevard on Wetherlee Drive, Not far from the Whisky-A-Go-Go.(Me Alice)

Alice has his first beer(Me Alice)

Week long residency at Gazzari's - on Sunset Strip in June 1967

July `67 Nazz shows with The Who, The Young Rascals, McCoys and Ian Whitcomb (press release calls this a "tour during the month of July"

Sunday in late summer `67 Cheetah The band audition for Merry Cornwall. She offers to get them a place to stay and for the meantime they could stay in a 2 room apartment near the Hollywood Freeway. They lasted three days here before the police threw them out as Merry hadn`t paid the rent for two months.
The band move into the Chambers Bros house with `Long Gone Miles` for a month. They still haven`t played a proper show at the cheetah.(Me Alice)

22 Aug `67 Cheetah Club, 1 Navy Street, Venice Beach, LA supporting Watts 103rd Rhythm Band(JB poster) - Could this be the first Cheetah show?

Aug 27th `67 Cheetah Club, LA, CA supporting The Doors.

The band move into house on Venice beach (Beethoven Street with Floyd?).(Me Alice)

Sept 1st-2nd 1967 Cheetah Club, LA, CA (w/ Buffalo Springfield, The Watts 103rd Street Rythm Band) (Poster extists)

Oct 27-29th(poss. only Sunday 29th) '67 Los Angeles, CA The Cheetah (w\Mandela)(the Nazz become house band) - Me Alice: Merry

(Oct 31st `67 LA Halloween Ball and Orgy)

Nov. 17th-19th `67 The Cheetah, LA (w/Clearlight As The Nazz)

Late Summer `67 Neal Smith has already arrived in LA(in April), with an aim to joining a band. He moves in with the Nazz in Santa Monica. (MB book also mentions this)

Late Sept '67?? Mad Hatter, Scottsdale, AZ (Nazz getting $750 a night)` This was the closing night of the club and apparently caused a near riot (eye witness)

Early Nov `67 Alice, Michael and GB mention they met Pink Floyd w/Barrett. Dennis also says Shep Gordon booked the Floyd tour.

Pink Floyd dates:
November `67
3 - Winterland, San Francisco, California (all scheduled U.S. appearances prior to this one were canceled)
4 - American Bandstand TV Show, Hollywood, California and Winterland, San Francisco, California
5 - The Pat Boone TV Show, Los Angeles, California and The Cheetah Club, Santa Monica, California (two shows)
9 - Fillmore Auditorium, San Francisco, California
10 - Winterland, San Francisco, California
11 - Winterland, San Francisco, California
12 - The Cheetah Club, New York (final show of U.S. tour)

So it would be likely they stayed with them from/around 5th Nov `67 which is pretty much what we figured before.
MB book mentions Piper album so this would be it. Also mentions Sherry Cottle got them to play the Cheetah. MB mentions Alice playing after eating Hash Brownies and that Speer left directly after this so it all fits.

Vince dyes his hair blonde.

Dec `67 Neal Smith replaces John Speer.

At the GBMW, John Speer said that he did not leave the band voluntarily at all, but he would not say any more than that.

"John Speer came to a show a couple of years ago and had a great time."
(Renfield, November 1997)

"I believe in the 'Me, Alice' book that it was Glen that really wanted Neal in the band. Neal auditioned against one other drummer. I think Alice thought Neal was a bit stuck up but knocked everyone out with his playing by walking in and doing a simple military styled drumming. "
(Renfield, October 1997)

"I always thought Neal Smith was a jerk. I first saw him as a Battle of the Bands in Phoenix when he was the drummer in a rival band, the Surf Tones. Every group in that particular Battle of the Bands agreed to pool their equipment so each band wouldn't have to reset the stage after each set and lose the attention of the parking lot audiences. Neal Smith was the only musician there who was against it. He made all the musicians disassemble their equipment so he could set his drum kit on risers. Then in the middle of a sixteen-minute version of "Wipe Out," he did a fourteen minute drum solo."
(Me Alice)

NAZZ 2 - Furnier, Buxton, Bruce, Dunaway, Smith

Dec `67 Possibility that band supported Janis Joplin at the Whiskey. She played 14-17 Dec and there are claims that they supported her at some stage. Having looked at dates, these seem a possibility.

Dec 20-24th `67 Cheetah, LA (w/ Chambers Bros. The Nazz(listed as special attraction), New Years Specials, Buffalo Springfield, Seeds)

Merry throw the band out of the house in Venice Beach. The band return to Phoenix and the Draft board.

At some stage around here the band played a club called JD`s in Tempe. AZ which was owned by Waylon Jennings.

Janice: "But I have that picture of Glen with the pink guitar. My dad took the picture when the boys came back from LA one time and played at JD's. It was a club owned by Waylon Jennings in Tempe, AZ. If I remember correctly"

1968

?? Snoopy`s Phoenix
?? Philippo`s Oddessey, Phoenix
?? The Fifth Estate, Phoenix
?? VIP Club, Tuscon supporting The Medallions (Mentioned by Alice on NWAC as being during the Spiders period)

?? The Beau Brummel's Club, Phoenix

Jack Curtis opened this club in Dec `68: "Teen Gazette" article from Saturday, Nov. 18, 1967, "the opening of Jack Curtis' new teen club Beau Brummel's was scheduled "for the end of this month." It was formerly the Wax Museum"

?? Encanto Park, Phoenix

Skip Ladd: "The Phoenix Love In's were sponsored by the Phoenix Parks & Recreations Department and were held at the Phoenix Bandshell in Encanto park. Neal Smith was the Master Of Ceremonies for a couple of them. "

Early in `68 Alice accidentally shoots Neal in the ankle, thus allowing the last band member to escape the draft.

?? J.D.'s in the Riverbottom in Scottsdale, AZ

Michael Bruce Letter(Duels Stationary)Date unknown:

"We played Fri, Sat, + Sun. at the Flying Jib"

Mar `68 The band return to LA (on the Thursday night before Good Friday) having spent two months scraping together the money to return. Neal`s ankle is still in a cast. Alice had started wearing dresses over his jeans as they fitted him better on stage.(Me Alice)

Alice Cooper - Cooper, Buxton, Bruce, Dunaway, Smith (w/ Christian,Carnel and Allen still working with them)

Early press flyers apparently describe the musicians as 'Glen Buxton- 'A Black Knight', 'Michael Bruce- 'A Street Poet', Dennis Dunaway- 'Artist Of The Courts' and Neal Smith as 'A Warrior King'

For more information on the name and the 'stories' behind it, go here.

Mar 16th `68 Santa Barbara, CA, Earl Warren Fairgrounds (The posters promoting the show were printed prior to the name change and still had the name as Nazz. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and Blue Cheer also played.) [Ticket]

"I actually have excellent documentation of when they became "Alice Cooper." I have a concert poster for a show in Santa Barbara, CA for the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. The opening act is listed as The Nazz. However, between the time the poster was printed and the time the concert began, the Nazz had decided to become Alice Cooper and were introduced for the first time at that show as such. I don't have the poster in front of me and as psycho as I am, cannot recall the exact date. I'll try to check it when I am in poster mode. "
(Renfield, July 1995)

Michael Bruce Letter(Duels Stationary):

"We are going to play at the Cheeta Wednesday and then leave after that and go to Phoenix. A promoter in Phx has given us charge of his club. I don't know if I told you that we changed the name of the group. Alice Cooper is the name. Vince has changed his name to Alice Cooper and ratted his hair up. The club in Phx is called Alice Cooper, after us, we run the club and give orders."

?? Bortz Brothers Studios, Mill Ave. Tempe, AZ

"Great scene there with Mike Smith helping to make Mill AVE the cultural Epicenter of the Arizona scene. This was the First time I remember laying eyes on Neal Smith. BUT NOTE! They were calling themselves Alice Cooper there and then. It was big weird news and confused all of us. I think they were practising some of the Pretties for You songs" (Chuck Warriner, October 2003)

Wed. March `68 Cheetah, LA (MB letter lead could be 6th,13,20,27th)

(Mar 27th `68(?) - Thee Experience, LA - (w/ Slim Harpo, Rockin' Foo))

April 5th `68 Poss. Alice Cooper Club opens(certainly first week of April).

There is a "Teen Gazette" article dated Saturday, April 6, 1968, that is headlined "New Club 'Alice Cooper' Meets Valley Teens". "Alice Cooper loves you! You'll love Alice Cooper. "The Valley's newest teen night club opened last night with Alice Cooper, formerly the Nazz, namesake of the club. Tonight, the second night of the club's grand opening weekend features Alice Cooper, Thirst and Art Willy. "Alice Cooper's entire interior color scheme is done in Alice's favorite color -- pink. (Alice the group, that is.)
"The building, located at 5555 E. Van Buren, was completely redecorated, including wood paneling on the walls and pink crepe-like material draped from the ceiling of the lobby.
"With this combination, Alice Cooper is a sure winner."

April `68 Move into Topanga Canyon(Beethoven drive?). Neal states they were in Topanga Canyon when they changed the name and met Shep/Joey(NS int.) however Me Alice states that the name change was just before.

April 12th `68 Los Angeles, CA No show – band is involved in a traffic accident and Vincent Furnier claims to have died and been reincarnated as Alice Cooper

Michael Bruce Letter(AC Headed Stationary):

"Did you get my letter telling you that we were going to play in Albque? We are going to be there on May 24 and maybe the 25th. Did you hear about our accident? We should be getting our new truck in about a week. This Sunday we are playing at the old Hullabuloo, which is now the Kaleidoscope on the Sunset Strip."

End/04/68 Kaleidoscope, Sunset Strip, LA(Michael Bruce Letter - A Sunday-possibly 21st, or 28th or at a push even 5th May)

May 1st `68 Los Angeles, CA The Cheetah

First Cheetah show after changing name according to (kurt`s) research.

??/??/68 Los Angeles, CA The Cheetah

Said to have opened for the Doors on numerous occasions however I can find no reference to The Doors playing The Cheetah after 1967.

23rd May 1969 Phoenix Memorial Coliseum, Phoenix, AZ (w/ Iron Butterfly) (Photos exist of both bands)

24th May `68 Albuquerque, NM (MB letter - states *maybe* 25th as well)

Sat. June 1st 1968 Lake Berryessa Bowl (Spiders) - no idea where this one came from :(

`68 Alice meets Miss Christine(first Zappa connection?) at Canter`s Deli.

Me Alice: "Miss Christine was practically his social secretary, and after much begging and cajoling she promised me an audience with Frank. One night Miss Christine took me to a party and Zappa was there sitting on a sofa drinking wine, his mustache bigger than life"

June/July `68 Me Alice also says that they auditioned in the basement before Zappa saw them. This is also intimated in Prime Cuts.

Me Alice: "I asked if he would come hear us at the Cheetah, but he put me off saying he was too busy, but I didn't take no for an answer. As the party went on and he got drunker, I got more insistent. Finally he said, "All right. Come by in the morning and I'll listen. I suppose he meant we should bring a tape, or maybe he forgot the next day was Sunday. Miss Christine let us into his house at the break of dawn, and we set up our equipment and lights in his basement and started playing. Zappa came rushing downstairs, naked, holding his ears. "All right, all right," he shouted, his cock swinging back and forth as he shook his head, "I'll sign you! I'll sign you! Just stop playing!"
Zappa wasn't kidding. Just like that, out of the clear blue sky, he told us to come to his office on Monday and talk to his business manager, Herbie Cohen. Cohen offered us a six-thousand-dollar advance for our first three record albums to be released on Zappa's newly formed Straight-Bizarre label distributed by Warner Brothers"

Me Alice: Zappa was `chomping at the bit` to sign the band but they stalled for two weeks until Shep and Joey could see them at the Bruce gig.

PURE SPECULATION NOTES

Maybe Zappa offered the contract in End June. Contracts were drawn up (by Herb Cohens Attorney brother Martin "Mutt" Cohen by the looks of it) but then they realised they needed parental signatures as the band were under age. This would take another few weeks to sort out(if attorneys work as fast as they do nowadays) which would get us to maybe End July `68/beginning of Aug.

These new contracts would possibly be reasoned to be a formality as everyone was in approval, so MB refers to them having been signed by Zappa despite the full legal process not having been completed. In a letter(3) he says "We have signed to Frank Zappa, to Bizarre Productions on Warner Bros Records. We are going on tour all over the west coast on the `Left Bank tour`. Later we will be back east. It`s the break we`ve waited forever for. We will be playing in Phx the weekend of the 29th".

This mention of the weekend of the 29th places the letter in June 1968 or Sept `68 as the 29th is only at the weekend during that month in the time period we have. The fact that this was written by Michael at the time to his family means it`s unlikely he`d get the date wrong. He`s going home!

The Left Banke were one of the bands MB(in book) and Alice (in ME Alice)says were already managed by Shep so for them to be on the tour would sound likely. Unfortunately I can`t find one tour date for this band at all!

Alive(Shep/Joey) are also the US representatives for Pink Floyd and West Coast reps for Left Banke and Blueberry Jam according to 1968 documentation (press release or letter) but this could be hype.

END NOTES

June 24th '68 Whiskey A Go Go, Hollywood, CA (opening for Ten Years After)

June 27th `68 Los Angeles, Wrigley Field. (First day of a four-day festival called Phantasmagoria: A Community Effort. Frank Zappa was the MC for that first day. The gig is confirmed by a poster and ads before the fact and two reviews after the fact. Alice Cooper is mentioned only in the ads, not on the poster or in the reviews)

July 14th `68 Cheetah, Los Angeles (w/ Butterfield Blues Band, Chicago Transit Authority, Pacific Gas & Electric.)

LA Free Press review of the Bastille Day Bash:
"Inside the Cheetah, which has been stripped of most of that obnoxious sheet metal which made one feel like the inside of a garbage can (Bob Gibson just kept enough to help the strobe lights along), a series of groups also played. Black Pearl, Ramblin' Jack Elliot, the BFD Blues Band (is it this group which accidentally took the PG & E Fender amplifier?), and a show stopping group called 'Alice Cooper.'"
"People have been asking: When is it going to happen again? Well, we can't give definite dates yet but John Carpenter is already at work lining up groups for another Free Press sponsored free party at the Cheetah to be held in August close to Lenny Bruce's birthday. It's going to be called Brucemas!!"

Alice seems to confuse this show and the Lenny Bruce show, combining them in retelling the story. Shep also mentions he first saw Alice at Brucemas but we now have a date for that show and it`s certain that Shep saw them before it. The description of this show points to this being the one.
Possibly first time Zappa saw them live as well(MB book).
Me Alice: Outside (the cheetah) on the pier, Five big name bands including the Doors were playing to 10,000 people on the beach.
Me Alice implies that Zappa had already seen them before this show but could be referring to the basement audition.

??/(06?)/68 Shep Gordon enters Cindy`s boutique(which she ran with Linda Lease) and finds out about the band. Three days later Shep and Joey Greenburg meet the band at the Landmark Hotel. Shep says "the next time you get a job, I want to see you".

June/July `68 Shep and Joey officially become ACG managers AFTER Zappa offers a deal but before it`s accepted.

July 23rd `68 Whisky-A-Go-Go, Hollywood, CA (w/ Frank Zappa - src:Michael Bruce letter)

This is only time Mothers appear to have been at the Whisky in the time period inferred however Bruce says `Gigs` plural so there may have either been two shows or more.) Going by the MB letter dated Aug 4th, Zappa recorded the bands performance. Zappa was famous for recording EVERYTHING.
'Levity Ball' ('Pretties For You') is credited as having been recorded live at the Cheetah club but it appears to my ears to be the same basic performance as `Live at the Whisky`.
Alive press release 1968 says Whiskey recording was July 1968

Aug 3rd `68 1ST ANNUAL NEWPORT POP FESTIVAL, ORANGE COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS, Costa Mesa, CA (w/ Janis Joplin, The Animals, The Byrds, The Jefferson Airplane, The Grateful Dead, Steppenwolf, Canned Heat, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Things to Come, Country Joe and the Fish, Illinois Speed Press, Sonny & Cher, Tiny Tim, the Byrds, Iron Butterfly, Eric Burdon & the Animals)(AC opened the festival)

Aug 4th `68 Michael Bruce Letter(AC Stationary)

"Yesterday we opened the Newport festival. We were the first group of about 30 groups that day. We talked to Frank Zappa last week at Sunset Sound and heard the tapes of the Whisky show. He said we`ll be going into the studio at the end of Aug. and into Sept. Our album will break with the whole Bizarre prod. big push."

Fri August 9 `68 Levity Ball at Fairground Exposition Hall, Phoenix, AZ (w/ Killing Floor, Red, White and Blues Band(feat. Mick Mashbir). Lights by Loren Thompson)

Skip Ladd: "Here was my invitation to the annual Levity Ball, but the band never played for it. "
Skip also reports that the band sent him a tape to play at the event. Could this be `Live at The Whisky` or `Levity Ball` from `Pretties For You`?
A Statement was read out to apologise for their nonappearance.

Aug 18th `68 Brucemas at the Cheetah, Los Angeles (w/ Kaleidoscope (canceled), Dino Valente (canceled), The Sherwood Fields, Bluesberry Jam & The Gypsy Wizard(managed by Shep), Black Pearl, Chicago Transit Authority, Illinois Speed Press, Murray Roman (MC)).

The Aug 3rd `68 issue of the LA Free Press has an advert for the show(the paper was the promoter), but it doesn't say who will be playing. There is then a review in the Aug 23rd `68 issue and although it doesn`t mention Alice Cooper specifically I think there`s enough mentions of the show by the band members and Shep over the last 30 years that it`s unlikely they didn`t play it.
Where Shep saw the band.
NOTE: Lenny Bruce was born 13th October 1925. He died in Aug 3rd 1966

Aug `68 Me Alice says they STILL haven`t signed the Zappa contract but are due to do it the following week.

Michael Bruce Letter(AC Stationary):

"You`ll never guess what has happened. We signed a management contract with Alice Enterprises, they manage The Left Bank. There(sic) two, young, really cool guys from back east. You`ll never believe this. We have signed with Frank Zappa, to Bizarre Productions o Warner Bros. Records. We are going on tour all over the west coast on the Left Bank tour. Later we will go back east. This is the break we`ve waited years for.
We will be playing in Phx the weekend of the 29th"

Sept `68 Pretties For you scheduled to be recorded(MB Letter)

Sept 16th `68 - MB Parental signed Contract acknowledged by State of Arizona, County of Maricopa signed by MB, mum and dad but NOT Cohen.

Could be that pic in MB book is a copy of the original made before Herb Cohen(Zappa man) signed it.
The document states that the approval of the `minors contract` will be heard anytime after this date. Having read it through, it appears that this isn`t the ACTUAL contract, but we can assume that the court hearing approved the contract as the deal went ahead.
A later contract states that the original Straight contract was agreed by the court on the 17th September 1968. It also infers that the original contract was for one album.

Oct. `68 Shep and the band move into John Philip Law`s house in the Hollywood Hills on Observation Drive (MB int)(Me Alice)

Alices` and the bands parents(possibly without MB parents as they had already signed on 16th Sept) come to the house to meet Shep and Joey. They signed the Contracts.

Poss. Oct 11th 1968 Philadelphia (w/ MC5 reportedly only 100 people in audience)

From MC5 timeline:

SUMMER ~ Following the rupture of the contract with Elektra: Danny Fields (Elektra Records) informs J.Sinclair that Jerry Wexler (Atlantic Records) is interested in signing the MC-5 as of their disengagement with Elektra. Sinclair goes back to New York where he meets Fields and Wexler. They quickly find an arrangement which gives to the MC-5 the total control of their recording, production, plus a money advance. Sinclair returns to Ann Arbor in time to face trial with Fred Smith for the assault charges from Oakland County July 23, 1968. He is acquitted but spends the night in jail. The following day he flies to Philadelphia where the MC-5 play with Alice Cooper (100 people attending.)

The Trial appears to have ended on Oct 10th(Trial Transcripts).

Nov 1st `68 Torrance, CA (The Bank )- support to Three Dog Night?

Nov 2nd `68 Torrance, CA (The Bank) - (w/ Mint Tattoo, Pollution)

Nov 3rd `68 As above

Approx. around now, Alice meets Ashley Pandel at a party. Pandel was later Alices` publicist from around `71-`74.

November Denver, CO unknown Army Base(me Alice)- (there seem to be about 4 military establishments in Denver to choose from)

Me Alice tells that this was the first booking Shep and Joey got the band and the were billed as Alice Cooper and the Hollywood Blondes.

Winter `68(school was still in session) Buffalo S.U.N.Y. Ballroom

Quote from website:
"The first concert Bob took several friends and myself to see was Alice Cooper at a ballroom at S.U.N.Y. Buffalo for 75 cents."

Nov 8th `68 Fullerton, CA California State (w/ Frank Zappa)

Me Alice - Alice mentions 'Pretties For You' being recorded in November(but gets the year wrong) and that it took a week.

Michael Bruce Letter:

"We are all just about finished with the album. It's will be a double fold-out with about 12 songs available in January. It is really strange to know that our record is going to be out. Bizarre expects to sell 100,000 on first release....we are playing at the Shrine on Dec. 5 & 6 with the mothers then three nights at the Whiskey. We'll probably be playing in Albque sometime after Jan."

Dec 6th `68 Los Angeles, CA Shrine Exposition Hall (w/ Zappa and MOI, Wild Man Fisher, GTO's, and Ethiopia)

Dec 7th `68 Los Angeles, CA Shrine Exposition Hall (w/ Zappa and MOI, Wild Man Fisher, GTO's, and Ethiopia)

A news/promo report states: "The band was introduced by Zappa(to the press) at a Bizarre Records concert in early December on the Shrine Auditorium in L.A."

Poss. 3 nights Dec `68(sometime after 7th) Whisky-a-Go-Go, Los Angeles, CA(or he could have been referring to the Zep shows)

1969

(Venue in Brackets means unconfirmed)

Jan 2nd-5th `69 Hollywood, CA Whiskey A Go Go (open for Led Zeppelin)

Neal talks about the finale being a song called Animal Pyjamas?
MB Book suggests they played a second week of shows with Buddy Miles headlining after Zeppelin went down with Hong Kong Flu

Jan `69 Boulder, CO University of Boulder(Me Alice)

Jan `69 Salt Lake City, UT(Me Alice)

Jan `69 Cincinnati Black Dome(Me Alice)

? Chandler, AZ(mention in MB book)

Late Jan. `69 - Band Equipment stolen.

Michael Bruce Letter(AC Stationary):

"Hello, again, I meant to write sooner but we've had many things to do. Last night we got some new equipment for the amps that were stolen with our truck. We are getting some new clothes and some props that we'll be using on stage.
During Feb 7th we are going to be in Denver with Iron Butterfly and Steve Miller. Then from there we are going to Aspen, Colo from the ninth to sixteenth, then back to the Whiskey (sic) with Blue Cheer. I hope we'll be coming to Albque in March or April. We have just signed with Creative Management Ass. who hand the "Cream" and "Jimi" and all the stars like Alice Cooper. They're sending us on a tour of twelve cities"

Feb 7th `69 Denver, CO (w/Iron Butterfly, Steve Miller)(Bruce letter)

Feb 9th-16th `69 Aspen, CO(Bruce Letter)

(February various Canadian venues)

Feb 19th-23rd `69 Whisky LA (w/Blue Cheer)(Bruce letter and advert) possibly with Linda Ronstadt

MB Letter: "I hope we'll be coming to Albque in March or April. We have just signed with Creative Management Ass. who handle the "Cream" and "Jimi" and all the stars like Alice Cooper. They're sending us on a tour of twelve cities"

March `69 Vancouver, BC ?

Me Alice claims that this is where they first saw a copy of `Pretties For You` but the boxset lists the release as June.

March 14th '69 Orangethorpe, Buena Park, CA The White Room (w/ Stack, Red Moss Blues Band)

March 15th `69 Fullerton, CA Cal State Fullerton (w/ Zappa and the Mothers, Stack, Red Moss Blues Band)

Mar `69 Reflected/Living promo released(ST101)

Mar `69 Hollywood Palladium

March 21-22nd `69 March - Eye-earn Try-Angle - Seaside Monterey(Tour itinerary)

Mar 28th `69 - Long Beach(Tour itinerary)

Mar 29th `69 - Tucson, Arizona(Tour itinerary)

Mar 30th `69 San Francisco, CA Avalon Ballroom (part of Rockarama w/ Pure Funk, Youngbloods, A.B.Sky, Initial Shock)

? Las Vegas, NV ?

(Tour itinerary=listed on Gene Grams handwritten tour itinerary)

April 4-6th `69 Avalon, San Francisco(Tour itinerary)

April 11th `69 Stanford Univ, Stanford(Tour itinerary)

April 18th `69 Agrodome, Vancouver, British Columbia (Mothers of Invention, Guess Who)

(Tour itinerary lists 18-19 April Eagle Ballroom, Seattle, WA)

April 19th `69 Seattle, Seattle Centre Arena (w/ Mothers Of Invention, Guess Who)

April 25-26th `69 - Paramount, Phoenix, Ariz.

May 2nd -3rd May `69 Kinetic Playground, Chicago, Ill(Tour itinerary)Review exists-Bill Risoli)

(2nd/3rd May `69- Old Mill - Salt Lake City, Utah(Tour itinerary))

May 8th `69 University Of Denver Colorado(Tour itinerary)

May 9th-10th `69 Denver, Colorado shows TBC(Tour itinerary)

May 16th-17th `69 Black Dome - Cincinnati, Ohio (Tour itinerary, poster)

Michael Bruce Postcard:

"Well, here we are back east in Cincinnati... We've been to Canada, Denver, Phx, and next New York...Write to me c/o Shep Gordon 7097 Franklin, Ave, Hollywood. Don't fail or I'll come there directly after New York and Chicago."

"We couldn't find anywhere to live," he remembered. "This was back in '68 and the band was basically thrown out of Los Angeles. We said, 'How about Cincinnati?' Now, picture how we must have looked like then. Somebody rented us a house down by the university."
But, Alice explains, the young rockers were scammed. The person who rented them the house didn't own it.
"All summer we fixed this house up. Fall comes and all the fraternity brothers show up. We had been rented a frat house and all these big frat guys show up and toss us out."

May 18th or 19th `69 NYC(MB Postcard)

Tues May 20th `69 Chicago, IL Kinetic Playground(Risoli review)

May 23rd `69 Phoenix, AZ The Coliseum (w/ Iron Butterfly) - article in AZ Republic(Tour itinerary)

Me Alice:Band arrive in New York on Memorial Weekend which appears to be the last weekend in May and it seems that in 1969 it would probably have been 24/25th May. They stay at Allison Hotel in Greenwich Village where Glens` Pink Les Paul is stolen.

May 30th-31st `69, 1st June `69 Electric Theatre - Pittsburgh, Penn.(Tour itinerary)

Press release/Record World 31 May `69 states:

"Alice Cooper, Straight Record's five-member, all-male group are set to begin a cross-country tour starting June 3rd and continuing until the beginning of July"

(June 3rd `69 Salt Lake City, Utah)

June `69 Pretties For You released