For many years Alice Cooper fans were cursed with a never ending number of "new" Alice Cooper titles. That might sound like a funny thing to say until you realise every single one of these titles contained exactly the same material. They were all the same recording from the legendary Toronto show in 1969 when Alice threw the chicken into the audience. The recording wasn't owned by Alice Cooper, Warner Brothers, or any other official entity and so whoever it was that did own the recording figured it was a great idea to license it to absolutely anyone and everyone. No one involved with the original performance ever got a penny from any of these releases. For all intents and purposes they were legal bootlegs.
New versions of this recording still turn up to this day, but in the last few years other recordings have started to appear that seem to fall under the same catagory. They mostly come from old live radio broadcasts, and have been bootlegged many times previously. Since the advent of the internet all of them have been freely available if you bothered to look. However the makers of these releases know that hardcore fans will buy anything if it has the name of their favourite artists on the cover, and so even of they only sell 100 copies they will still make money. They don't pay the artists or the publishes of the material a penny so every penny is profit.
Trying to stop these releases through the legal system would likely cost far more then any possible damages would recover, so unless you are a major record company with money to burn it generally isn't worth the trouble trying to stop them. Of course for the fans these newer releases are often quite nice items to add to the collection, but the fact remains they aren't authorised by Alice Cooper (band or person), Alive Enterprises or any official Alice Cooper representative.
'Freak Out'
The recording made at the Toronto Rock N Roll Revival in 1969 may be the most widely reproduced Alice Cooper live recording. It has been released by many different labels under many titles and many covers. These releases are not authorized Alice Cooper albums. However, they are not bootlegs as the recording is owned by a private party. Unfortunately, the private party was so uncaring in the production of these things that two of the songs ("Ain't That Just Like a Woman" and "Goin' to the River") are NOT Alice Cooper at all (the actual performer is Ronnie Hawkins and they were recorded at Hallmark Studios in Toronto in late 1964). Also, almost all of the song titles on the album were fabricated.
More InformationOn almost all of the varies releases of this material the actual titles are incorrect. Not only that but various versions have the tracks in differing orders. Below is common track listing for these things with more correct titles in parentheses. Most are live versions of songs from "Pretties For You".
- Ain't That Just Like A Woman> (NOT Alice Cooper)
- Painting A Picture (No Longer Umpire)
- An Instrumental (part of "Lay Down and Die, Goodbye")
- I've Written Home To Mother (part of "Lay Down and Die, Goodbye")
- Freak Out Song ('Don't Blow Your Mind' with different lyrics)
- Going To The River (NOT Alice)
- Nobody Likes Me (aka Freak Out)
- Science Fiction (Fields Of Regret)
Brian Nelson (September 1996): "The rights to the recording were sold by Alice's management at the time of the recording to a third party. That party has licensed out the rights to the recording many times to various companies. Alice Cooper do not make a penny from it. My theory is that the two non-Alice songs somehow wound up on the original master tape. The distributors not knowing and not particularly caring, put the album out of the tape as is. When the album was pressed again later by other companies, they didn't bother to check if all the songs were Alice or not. They would have no particular reason to."
The following are just some of the many titles this recording has been released under. If you would like to check out more details about these releases there is a much longer list of the various releases here:
- Ain't That Just Like A Woman
- Alice Cooper
- Blood On My Chopper
- Freak Out
- Freak Out Song
- Home To Mother
- Ladies Man
- Legends
- Live At "Toronto
- Nobody Like Me
- Nobody Likes Me
- Painting a Picture
- Rock Legends Vol. 2
- Science Fiction
- Slack Alice
- Snorting Anthrax
- Toronto Rock 'N' Roll Revival 1969 Vol. IV - Possibly the first ever release
Nobody Likes Us
The recording made at the Toronto Rock N Roll Revival in 1969 is the most widely reproduced Alice Cooper live recording ever. It has been released by a ridiculous number of different labels and under many different titles and covers. However this particular release is unlike any of the other versions of this material. Firstly the sound quality is improved. Secondly it's longer and more complete then ANY other version in circulation, and thirdly the tracks are correctly named. If you need to have one copy of this recording this is the one to get.
As an added bonus you also get the San Francisco 3rd March 1969 bootleg recording tacked on the end (tracks 6-13) although they don't own the rights to the recording making this half legitimate and half bootleg!
More Information- Intro...No Longer Umpire
- Lay Down & Die, Goodbye
- Fields Of Regret
- Nobody Likes Me
- Don't Blow Your Mind (I. Neal Smith Solo II. Prisoner III. Animal Pyjamas IV. Dont Blow Your Mind Reprise)
- No Longer Umpire
- Reflected
- Ten Minutes Before The Worm
- Swing Low Sweet Cheerio
- B.B On Mars
- Fields Of Regret
- Nobody Likes Me
- Don't Blow Your Mind
'Alone In His Nightmare' - L.A.Forum 1975
First releasd in 2012 this unofficial release is taken from the much bootlegged 'King Biscuit Flower Hour' broadcast which was recorded at the Los Angeles (Great Western) Forum on the 18th June 1975 and features the full 'Welcome To My Nightmare' show.
'Back On Black' released a limited edition red vinyl 2 LP version of this in early 2013 with a red tinted version of the cover image.
In 2019 yet another version showed up on Amazon under the rather misleading title of 'Alice Cooper Live - Bllion Dollar Babies' on the 'House Of Humbug' label.
More Information- Intro - Welcome To My Nightmare
- Years Ago 1
- No More Mr Nice Guy
- Years Ago 2
- Billion Dollar Babies
- Years Ago 3
- I'm Eighteen
- Steven Intro
- Welcome To My Nightmare reprise
- Some Folks
- Cold Ethyl
- Only Women Bleed
- Devil's Food
- Black Wdow
- Steven
- Welcome To My Nightmare reprise 2
- Escape
- School's Out
- Department Of Youth
Slicker Than A Weasel'
This is a unauthorised 2015 release is from the 1978 King Biscuit Flower Hour radio broadcast from Saginaw, MI which has been bootlegged numerous times over the years. It was also released on vinyl with a different cover.
More Information- Under My Wheels
- Billion Dollar Babies
- I'm Eighteen
- Is It My Body
- Devil's Food
- The Black Widow
- You And Me
- Only Women Bleed
- Unfinished Sweet
- Escape
- I Love The Dead
- Go To Hell
- I Never Cry
- School's Out
San Diego 1979
First released in early 2013 this is an unauthorised release but seems to fall into the same catagory as the Toronto '69 releases in that somebody other then an official record company have the rights to the recording and so Alicew no say in it's release. Taken from the same show as 'The Strange Case Of Alice Cooper' film recorded on April 9th 1979 this is presumably take from the radio broadcast that aired at the time.
Also released on vinyl and CD (edited?) in 2018 as 'Inside Out Live 1979' by Cult Legends from the Netherlands.
More Information- From The Inside
- Serious
- Nurse Rozetta
- The Quiet Room
- I Never Cry
- Devil's Food intro
- Welcome To My Nightmare
- Billion Dollar Babies
- Only Women Bleed
- No More Mr. Nice Guy
- I'm Eighteen
- The Black Widow-instrumental
- Wish I Was Born In Beverly Hills
- Dead Babies Jam
- Ballad of Dwight Fry
- Go To Hell
- How You Gonna See Me Now
- Inmates (We're All Crazy)
- School's Out
Inside Out Live 1979
- Intro
- From The Inside
- Nurse Rozetta
- The Quiet Room
- I Never Cry
- Welcome To My Nightmare
- Billion Dollar Babies
- Only Women Bleed
- No More Mr Nice Guy
- I'm Eighteen
- I Wish I Was Born In Beverly Hills
- It's Hot Tonight/Go To Hell
- How You Gonna See Me Now
- School's Out
'El Paso 1980'
Another semi-legitimate release from 2016, taken from another radio broadcast. As the title suggests it was recorded on the 'Flush The Fashion' tour in El Paso, TX in 1980.
More Information- Instrumental 1:43
- Grim Facts 3:26
- Go to Hell 5:29
- Guilty 3:16
- Pain 4:00
- Talk Talk 1:51
- I'm Eighteen 5:14
- Gutter Cats vs. The Jets 5:29
- Clones (We're All) 2:44
- Nuclear Infected 2:08
- Billion Dollar Babies/I Love the Dead 9:24
- Instrumental Jam 4:27
- Dance Yourself to Death 3:13
- Only Women Bleed 7:43
- Road Rats 3:39
- Sick Things 1:00
- Is It My Body 2:32
- Devil's Food/Black Widow 6:31
- Elected 4:09
- School's Out 2:27
'Mar Y Sol' - Puerto Rico 1972
Another semi-legitimate release from 2016 This one is slightly different from the other recent releases as despite what it claims on the sleeve this show was never broadcasted on the radio. It was recorded at the Mar Y Sol Festival in Puerto Rico on April 2nd 1972 by Warner Brothers Record themselves, for a possible live album which never happened. One can only assume that by claiming it's a radio broadcast they hope to get it under the radar but it's interesting to note this one is no longer listed on Amazon in the UK, so maybe someone is working to stop to it.
More Information- Be My Lover (5:21)
- You Drive Me Nervous (2:42)
- Yeah, Yeah, Yeah (4:05)
- I'm Eighteen (5:37)
- Halo Of Flies (10:35)
- Is It My Body (7:46)
- Dead Babies (5:53)
- Killer (7:14)
- Long Way To Go (4:36)
'Radio Waves 1975-1979 (3CD)'
This is a three disc set featuring the 'LA 1975', 'Saginaw 1978' and 'San Diego 1979' shows in one package. There also seems to be a single vinyl LP on red vinyl which has a few songs from each show under the title The Very Best OF...Radio Days'
More InformationNothing Here!
'Broadcast Collection 1971 - 1995'
This is a set of 8 discs in a card box. It's a collection of several of the recordings listed above plus a couple of other old bootlegs. It includes Rooster Tail 1071(aka 'Paracidal Slumbers' bootleg), LA 1975, Saginaw 1978, San Deigo 1979, El Paso 1980, Cincinati 1987 (part of which is officially released material) and Santiago 1995 (which isn't a radio broadcast but a TV soundtrack).
Of note is that the El Paso show is spread across 2 discs with the original interviews and tracks from the official 1977 'The Alice Cooper Show Live' included. Why these were included in the original broadcast is unknown, but the conay releasing this certainly don't have permission to use these.
Disc 1 - Rooster Tail, Detroit, MI March 1st 1971
- Caught In A Dream
- I'm Eighteen
- Is It My Body
- Sun Arise
- Second Coming
- Ballad Of Dwight Fry
- Black Juju
Disc 2 - L.A.Forum, Los Angeles 1975
- Intro - Welcome To My Nightmare
- Years Ago 1
- No More Mr Nice Guy
- Years Ago 2
- Billion Dollar Babies
- Years Ago 3
- I'm Eighteen
- Steven Intro
- Welcome To My Nightmare reprise
- Some Folks
- Cold Ethyl
- Only Women Bleed
- Devil's Food
- Black Wdow
- Steven
- Welcome To My Nightmare reprise 2
- Escape
- School's Out
- Department Of Youth
Disc 3 - Saginaw, MI May 10th 1978
- Under My Wheels
- Billion Dollar Babies
- I'm Eighteen
- Is It My Body
- Devil's Food
- The Black Widow
- You And Me
- Only Women Bleed
- Unfinished Sweet
- Escape
- I Love The Dead
- Go To Hell
- I Never Cry
- School's Out
Disc 4 - San Diego, CA, April 9th 1979
- From The Inside
- Serious
- Nurse Rozetta
- The Quiet Room
- I Never Cry
- Devil's Food intro
- Welcome To My Nightmare
- Billion Dollar Babies
- Only Women Bleed
- No More Mr. Nice Guy
- I'm Eighteen
- The Black Widow-instrumental
- Wish I Was Born In Beverly Hills
- Dead Babies Jam
- Ballad of Dwight Fry
- Go To Hell
- How You Gonna See Me Now
- Inmates (We're All Crazy)
- School's Out
Disc 5 - El Paso, TX, June 4th 1980 Part 1
- DJ Introduction
- Instrumental
- Grim Facts
- Go to Hell
- Guilty
- Interview
- You And Me
- Pain
- Talk Talk
- I Never Cry
- Interview
- I'm Eighteen
- Gutter Cats vs. The Jets
- Clones (We're All)
- Nuclear Infected
Disc 6 - El Paso, TX, June 4th 1980 Part 2
- Interview
- Billion Dollar Babies/I Love the Dead
- Only Women Bleed
- Interview
- Unde My Wheels
- Instrumental Jam
- Dance Yourself to Death
- Road Rats
- Sick Things
- Is It My Body
- Interview
- Devil's Food/Black Widow
- Elected
- School's Out
Disc 7 - Cincinatti Gardens, OH, March 6th 1987
- Intro
- Welcome To My Nightmare
- Billion Dolar Babies
- No More Mr Nice Guy
- Be My Lover
- I'm Eighteen
- The World Needs Guts
- Give It Up
- Cold Ethyl
- Only Women Bleed
- Go To Hell
- Ballad Of Dwght Fry
- Elected
- Under My Wheels
- Sick Things
- I Love The Dead
- School's Out
Disc 8 - Santiago, Chile September 7th 1995
- Intro - Under My Wheels
- Hey Stoopid
- I'm Eighteen
- No More Mr Nice Guy
- Desperado
- Billion Dollar Babies
- It's Me
- Lost In America
- Cleansed By Fire
- Go To Hell
- Devil's Food-Steven-Black Widow
- Gutter Cat Vs The Jets
- Street Fight
- Feed My Frankenstein
- Only Women Bleed
- Welcomme To My Nightmare
- Ballad Of Dwight Fry
- School's Out
- Elected