Songs You May Have Missed #707

12 Aug 2021 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: , ,

Hollywood Vampires: “I Got a Line On You” (2015)

Fittingly, Alice Cooper-fronted supergroup/side project Hollywood Vampires mostly covered dead rockers on their 2015 debut release.

Cooper, guitarist Joe Perry and Johnny Depp form the core of the band, with Cooper’s old pal Bob Ezrin producing and a stupifying list of guest stars dropping by throughout.

Guest vampires include Dave Grohl, Perry Farrell, Sir Paul McCartney, Slash, Joe Walsh, Robbie Krieger, Zak Starkey, Brian Johnson and Kip Winger.

The result is one raucous party of a record, with MC Alice bringing all his multiple vocal personalities to the mic as required to revive the spirits of legends such as Jim Morrison, T.Rex, John Lennon, Harry Nilsson, Badfinger and, on this burner of a track, Spirit’s Randy California.

Sacrilegious as it might sound, this supergroup’s performances might just out-do some of the originals.

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2019/08/24/songs-you-may-have-missed-642/

Songs You May Have Missed #642

24 Aug 2019 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: , ,

Hollywood Vampires: “Welcome to Bushwackers” (2019)

Hollywood Vampires are an Alice Cooper-fronted side project that also features Joe Perry and Johnny Depp.

Their first album’s guest list reads like a debauched Hollywood rock ‘n roll party, which in a sense it was. Paul McCartney, Slash, Joe Walsh, Robby Krieger, Kip Winger, Dave Grohl, Perry Farrell and Brian Johnson all contributed to an album that mainly featured covers from the days when Cooper stalked SoCal with another group of musicians, also dubbed the Hollywood Vampires. That merry band included John Lennon, Harry Nilsson, Keith Moon, Ringo Starr and Mickey Dolenz and their antics were legendary, as you might expect from any merry band containing two drummers.

This Hollywood Vampires is an actual band, and not only do they rock, but they’re aptly named. Alice of course is the king of theatrical rock. And though Johnny Depp might not be a name that would come to mind if you were forming a supergroup, his own theatrical tendencies actually make sense in the context of a band fronted by a guy whose best work always conjured a visual element.

“Welcome to Bushwackers”, from their second release, features yet another guest superstar, Jeff Beck.

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2021/08/12/songs-you-may-have-missed-707/

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