This article talks a little bit about his faith, not that I care much about that aspect, as long as nobody is preaching at me... but the odd thing is, these days it seems to be the athiest are more preachy than the people who go to church.
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Article by Larry Rodgers - Mar. 3, 2011 03:37 PM
The Arizona Republic [www.azcentral.com]

When Sheryl Cooper met her husband-to-be, the 18-year-old dance student barely knew anything about the world of rock and roll, much less something about a leather-clad singer using a woman's name.
Fellow students at a Los Angeles academy had told her in 1975 about auditions for Alice Cooper's global Welcome to My Nightmare tour, and Sheryl cracked them up by replying, "Wow. Alice Cooper. Who is she?"

Trained as a ballerina, Sheryl explains, "I knew everything about Bach, Rachmaninoff, Schumann, Mozart - but nothing about rock and roll.

"I could tell you who the Beatles were, and that was about it."

Yet, a year later, after winning one of two dancing jobs on the concert tour, Sheryl was married to the man with whom she has built a partnership that she would stack up against any other, despite some rough spots involving Alice's long-rehabbed alcohol abuse. The Detroit-born singer's million-selling career will hit a pinnacle when he is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on Monday. Sheryl sees Alice's pioneering work to meld theater and rock as a prime factor for that induction.

"What he did with the Welcome to My Nightmare tour was the first time that anybody had ever seen the marriage of Broadway and rock," she says. "Disney did the costumes. To have dancers backing the band up was unprecedented."

The pair's 12-month courtship began one night on that tour, when musicians and dancers gathered in Alice's hotel suite to eat pizza and watch horror movies after a concert.

"We were engaged in a conversation that was so much fun, I didn't notice everyone slowly leaving the room," Sheryl says.

When she told the star she needed to go, he replied, "Well, aren't you going to kiss me goodnight?"

After a brief hesitation followed by a more passionate kiss than she expected, Sheryl recalls, "I don't know how I found my way back to my room. I was careening off the walls, thinking, 'Oh, am I in trouble.' "
The were married in 1976 in Acapulco, Mexico, officiated by their two clergymen fathers, and have three children - Calico, 29, a dancer and actress living in Los Angeles; Dash, 25, who just graduated from Arizona State University; and Sonora, 18, wrapping up her senior year at Arcadia High School in Phoenix.

"I don't think there is such a thing as a perfect marriage," says Sheryl, a brunette who has retained her dancer's physique at 54. "But ours is probably one of the best I've ever seen."

They've raised their family in a home (which includes Alice's mother, Ella) in Paradise Valley that has been expanded from "a nice little 2,000-square-foot bachelor pad," as Sheryl describes it, to a sprawling setup three times as large that's perfect for parties tied to church or charitable events.

"We have a bit of a view, and you feel like you are tucked away in the desert," she says. "At night, the stars come right down to the horizon because there are no streetlights."

On any given day, the Cooper home can be a busy place as Alice heads out to play golf (nearly every day when he is in town); Sheryl fires up her candy-apple-red Dodge Durango and drives off to teach a dance class; Sonora goes to and from school; and Dash finalizes details for his April wedding.

Sheryl and Alice are so active during the day that they tend to be homebodies after the sun goes down.

"A great time for me is smashed up against each other on the couch, watching something great (on TV)," Sheryl says. "Sounds pretty wonderful to me."

When the pair go out, they may grab some sushi at the Kona Grill at Scottsdale Fashion Square or have dinner at Tarbell's in Phoenix (operated by close friend Mark Tarbell), before catching a movie.

Family first

Sheryl is proud that her children steered clear of trouble in their teen years and that Calico and Dash are pursuing career goals. (Dash has played in a band called Runaway Phoenix, but he's taking a break as he tries to land an internship with the Phoenix Coyotes.)

"Our kids have an intact family, the security of two parents who are honestly sick in love with each other," Sheryl says. "There's a trickle-down effect."

Calico, who appears in the upcoming independent film "Thirty Proof Coil" as well as 2007's "Rolling," says, "We were well-adjusted because we weren't spoiled. Everything we got, we had to earn."

Dash says, "I never let it get to me that it was such a big hype that my dad was kind of a celebrity."

He recalls seeing his father on television at age 6 and his mother explaining what Alice did for a living.

"Once my mom explained that to me, that's how I've felt about it for the rest of my life. I thought, 'Your dad is a lawyer, your dad is a plumber, and this is just what my dad does.' "

Calico adds, "We were raised to respect his fans. He told us, 'Those people are the reason you go to college, drive a car, have nice clothes, because they like my music and buy my records.' "

Calico saw those legions of followers when she danced with her father's touring show for several years starting at age 16.

"He is a shoo-in for the hall of fame because he has die-hard fans all over this planet. It's not one area; it's everywhere."

Dash adds, "My dad's induction should have happened sooner, with the way he paved the way for so many other things. I am super-proud of him."

Keeping the faith

Strong religious faith has kept the Cooper family close, with all its members active through the years at Camelback Bible Church in Paradise Valley.

"Alice and Sheryl are so committed to each other and to their kids," says Lisa Savale, one of Sheryl's closest friends. "I think part of that is their faith."

Sheryl and Lisa, whose husband, Chuck, plays golf with Alice, co-founded a women's aerobic ministry at Camelback Bible Church. It involves several dance and exercise classes each week, with Sheryl teaching a Friday class called Dance It Off.

She operated a 500-student school called Destiny Dance International from 2003 to 2007, then closed it to teach a weekly class at a Scottsdale studio and devote more time to Solid Rock, a non-profit group co-founded by Alice that serves inner-city teens in Arizona. "Solid Rock started a summer program with Neighborhood Ministries, at 19th Avenue and Van Buren, and we had 400 kids show up for our dance camp," Sheryl says.

Alice adds, "It's right in the middle of gangland. They have recreation and sports like basketball. The gangbangers' little brothers and sisters go there. It's kind of off-limits to gangs."

Happy ending

Sheryl intervened to get Alice away from his own bad influences decades ago.

Her new husband was up to his eyebrows in the rock-star lifestyle in 1976.

"There was a period where I always had a beer in my hand," Alice says. "Then my wife grabbed me by the ear and said, 'We're going to do something about that.' "

After two stints in rehab in 1976 and 1979, Alice made a commitment to sobriety that stuck in 1983.

"There was a point where I did just about everything you could do in the world of rock and roll," he says. "You get to a point where you've bought everything you could want - cars, houses - you're still not satisfied. You ask, 'What else is out there?' "

Alice has never attended an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting and credits God for abruptly eliminating his desire to drink.

His struggle with alcohol and the challenges of remaining active in the music business at age 63 have made the pair's marriage only stronger.

"Someone once said, 'Never waste a good crisis,' " Sheryl says. "There is so much opportunity and wisdom to be gained from it.

"Marriage is work, but work can be fun. And the rewards are immense."
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Full article here [www.azcentral.com]

PS
Today I learned Sheryl and Alice have a daughter named Calico
When I was a kid, I had a calico kitty cat who we called Calico, I'm not sure what her name really was.



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 2013-02-19 23:31 by Max'sKansasCity.

I say, let the music do the talkin... Boogie in Chihuahua @ 2:42

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DaveG
He was very entertaining when I saw him in 1970. At one point during a song, he draped linen sheets over each of the band members while they were playing, and threw a live chicken into the audience. They were loud and radical and good.

you were at the famed chicken show?? when john lennon played?

Well he nailed Raquel Welch.....he was doing something right!

.......OH EDITH!!! .... doesn't this gang know how middle aged men are expected to present themselves in public



ROCKMAN

I didn't know there was a "chicken show" where John Lennon played! No, the show of which I speak took place at the Rose Palace in Pasadena, California, which also featured Lee Michaels, and Eric Burdon and War. It was sometime in January of 1970.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2013-02-20 01:57 by DaveG.

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DaveG
I didn't know there was a "chicken show" where John Lennon played! No, the show of which I speak took place at the Rose Palace in Pasadena, California, which also featured Lee Michaels, and Eric Burdon and War. It was sometime in January of 1070.

[en.wikipedia.org]

Very interesting reading about the Toronto incident. Who knows, by the time I saw him a few months later, he may have incorporated a chicken into his show based on that incident. I do remember that either Eric Burdon or Lee Michaels, who both performed after Alice, mockingly said that they don't use chickens in their show, the just play music.

great tune

The chicken business is disgusting. I wanted to believe it wasn't true for years but it was as confirmed here. His commentary on the Good To See You Again DVD was pretty unedifying too. I totally take on board everything that's being said here about how great a man he is but it doesn't change that stuff and I'm not aware he's ever expressed regret for it.

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DaveG
It was sometime in January of 1070.

That damn sure pre-dates the Rolling Stones' 1792 tour.

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rebelrebel
The chicken business is disgusting. I wanted to believe it wasn't true for years but it was as confirmed here. His commentary on the Good To See You Again DVD was pretty unedifying too. I totally take on board everything that's being said here about how great a man he is but it doesn't change that stuff and I'm not aware he's ever expressed regret for it.

it happened once- someone threw he chicken on stage - coop tossed it off thinking it could fly - that was it - but the legend remains, hewn, into the living rock of stonehenge

Great man.

As for faith wasn't his Dad a preacher?

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Edith Grove

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DaveG
It was sometime in January of 1070.

That damn sure pre-dates the Rolling Stones' 1792 tour.

LOL!! No wonder I'm feeling so old!!

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Max'sKansasCity
Cool ole Alice diddy

My favorite Alice tune EVER!

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hbwriter

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rebelrebel
The chicken business is disgusting. I wanted to believe it wasn't true for years but it was as confirmed here. His commentary on the Good To See You Again DVD was pretty unedifying too. I totally take on board everything that's being said here about how great a man he is but it doesn't change that stuff and I'm not aware he's ever expressed regret for it.

it happened once- someone threw he chicken on stage - coop tossed it off thinking it could fly - that was it - but the legend remains, hewn, into the living rock of stonehenge

It may very well be that. at the Pasadena show, someone may have tossed a chicken onstage and that he simply tossed it back.

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Jah Paul

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Max'sKansasCity
Cool ole Alice diddy Generation Landslide

My favorite Alice tune EVER!

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hbwriter

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rebelrebel
The chicken business is disgusting. I wanted to believe it wasn't true for years but it was as confirmed here. His commentary on the Good To See You Again DVD was pretty unedifying too. I totally take on board everything that's being said here about how great a man he is but it doesn't change that stuff and I'm not aware he's ever expressed regret for it.

it happened once- someone threw he chicken on stage - coop tossed it off thinking it could fly - that was it - but the legend remains, hewn, into the living rock of stonehenge

As said.... some goofball probably took the chicken to the show, tossed it on stage, Alice tossed it back... and then the audience sacrificed it to the Devil and then it turned into a bat and flew back on stage and then Ozzy bit off its head and then Gene Simmons spewed the blood everywhere... myths and legends of RnR.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 2013-02-20 03:40 by Max'sKansasCity.

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hbwriter
I spent some time with Alice this weekend - awesome guy - talk about a Stones fan! Seeing them in '65 changed his life and totally inspired him - more on that later- but I did shoot some video of him doing No More...

[www.noisecreep.com]

Couldn't agree more. I was fortunate enough to play golf with Alice a few years ago at The Phoenecian GC in Scottsdale. One of the nicest guys I've ever met. It was just he and I for 5 hours in a cart on the course.

He was humble, funny, personable and genuine. Talked to me about his family, his career and alot about the Stones.

He took photos with us and signed a picture I had taken of him at an earlier concert, personalizing it to my wife and I. He also signed our scorecard and gave it to me.

That evening, my wife and I and another couple traveling with us went to Cooperstown, his Phoenix restaurant. He called down to the restaurant and had our entire bill comped.

One of the best days of my life.


P.S. His last album- Welcome 2 My Nightmare, (follow-up from the original) is VERY good, especially if you liked the original release.

"Take all the pain...It's yours anyway"

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Woody24

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hbwriter
I spent some time with Alice this weekend - awesome guy - talk about a Stones fan! Seeing them in '65 changed his life and totally inspired him - more on that later- but I did shoot some video of him doing No More...

[www.noisecreep.com]

Couldn't agree more. I was fortunate enough to play golf with Alice a few years ago at The Phoenecian GC in Scottsdale. One of the nicest guys I've ever met. It was just he and I for 5 hours in a cart on the course.

He was humble, funny, personable and genuine. Talked to me about his family, his career and alot about the Stones.

He took photos with us and signed a picture I had taken of him at an earlier concert, personalizing it to my wife and I. He also signed our scorecard and gave it to me.

That evening, my wife and I and another couple traveling with us went to Cooperstown, his Phoenix restaurant. He called down to the restaurant and had our entire bill comped.

One of the best days of my life.


P.S. His last album- Welcome 2 My Nightmare, (follow-up from the original) is VERY good, especially if you liked the original release.

FREAKING AWESOME

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Woody24

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hbwriter
I spent some time with Alice this weekend - awesome guy - talk about a Stones fan! Seeing them in '65 changed his life and totally inspired him - more on that later- but I did shoot some video of him doing No More...

[www.noisecreep.com]

Couldn't agree more. I was fortunate enough to play golf with Alice a few years ago at The Phoenecian GC in Scottsdale. One of the nicest guys I've ever met. It was just he and I for 5 hours in a cart on the course.

He was humble, funny, personable and genuine. Talked to me about his family, his career and alot about the Stones.

He took photos with us and signed a picture I had taken of him at an earlier concert, personalizing it to my wife and I. He also signed our scorecard and gave it to me.

That evening, my wife and I and another couple traveling with us went to Cooperstown, his Phoenix restaurant. He called down to the restaurant and had our entire bill comped.

One of the best days of my life.


P.S. His last album- Welcome 2 My Nightmare, (follow-up from the original) is VERY good, especially if you liked the original release.

DUDE!!! DUDE!!!! TOO KEWL!

i thought welcome 2 my nightmare was pretty average. the last really great alice album was brutal planet

He's definitely not Hall of Fame material. Of course some of the ones already in there aren't. Jethro Tull, Stevie Ray Vaughan, the Moody Blues for god's sake, these are groups that need to be in the Hall of Fame that have been ignored. Alice was a minor player that didn't really influence anyone. We already had men dressing like women. We already had hard rock.

I was discussing this with a Cooper fan. I said in reality Alice had a couple great songs. 'I'm Eighteen' is classic of teen angst. But really, he became the equivalent of Cher, ruling the AM airwaves with smooth rock-pop singles like 'Schools Out', 'Elected', and 'No More Mr. Nice Guy'. I never found his horror shlock to be scary or interesting. Oh, sorry, I just read that Alice Cooper is already a member of the Hall of Fame, circa 2011. Well, that sucks.

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keefriffhard4life
i thought welcome 2 my nightmare was pretty average. the last really great alice album was brutal planet

I agree about Nightmare. I had relatively high hopes for it, being the sequel and everything, and having Bob Ezrin and the original band back on board. It had the makings of being a classic, although it was definitely hard for that hype to be achieved as a longtime fan. Overall, I thought it was OK. I liked about 6 or 7 songs, but nothing classic. I wasn't a fan of his industrial/metal rock stuff like Brutal Planet, but I thought his last great album was The Eyes Of Alice Cooper. That was excellent garage rock right there.

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24FPS
He's definitely not Hall of Fame material. Of course some of the ones already in there aren't. Jethro Tull, Stevie Ray Vaughan, the Moody Blues for god's sake, these are groups that need to be in the Hall of Fame that have been ignored. Alice was a minor player that didn't really influence anyone. We already had men dressing like women. We already had hard rock.

I was discussing this with a Cooper fan. I said in reality Alice had a couple great songs. 'I'm Eighteen' is classic of teen angst. But really, he became the equivalent of Cher, ruling the AM airwaves with smooth rock-pop singles like 'Schools Out', 'Elected', and 'No More Mr. Nice Guy'. I never found his horror shlock to be scary or interesting. Oh, sorry, I just read that Alice Cooper is already a member of the Hall of Fame, circa 2011. Well, that sucks.

Completely disagree. I'm biased as an Alice fan, but his Alice Cooper Group albums are stone cold classics. Love It To Death has classics like I'm Eighteen, Ballad Of Dwight Fry, Is It My Body. Killer is arguably one of the greatest hard rock albums ever. School's Out has the title track which every person in the world knows, and the album is actually pretty underrated and showed growth from them with My Stars, Alma Mater, etc. And then there's Billion Dollar Babies, which is a powerhouse album all the way through. That string right there definitely deserves to be acknowledged and influenced tons and tons of bands.

Having said all of that, the Hall Of Fame is such a joke it wouldn't matter if they were in or not. Its nice that they're acknowledged, but as you mention there are still so many not in and crap that is in that the Hall means nothing. But the Alice Cooper Group should be honored as a great influential band. They upped the ante.

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24FPS
He's definitely not Hall of Fame material. Of course some of the ones already in there aren't. Jethro Tull, Stevie Ray Vaughan, the Moody Blues for god's sake, these are groups that need to be in the Hall of Fame that have been ignored. Alice was a minor player that didn't really influence anyone. We already had men dressing like women. We already had hard rock.

I was discussing this with a Cooper fan. I said in reality Alice had a couple great songs. 'I'm Eighteen' is classic of teen angst. But really, he became the equivalent of Cher, ruling the AM airwaves with smooth rock-pop singles like 'Schools Out', 'Elected', and 'No More Mr. Nice Guy'. I never found his horror shlock to be scary or interesting. Oh, sorry, I just read that Alice Cooper is already a member of the Hall of Fame, circa 2011. Well, that sucks.

alice cooper is a true rock icon and original and is clearly deserving of being in the hall of fame

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RollingFreak

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keefriffhard4life
i thought welcome 2 my nightmare was pretty average. the last really great alice album was brutal planet

I agree about Nightmare. I had relatively high hopes for it, being the sequel and everything, and having Bob Ezrin and the original band back on board. It had the makings of being a classic, although it was definitely hard for that hype to be achieved as a longtime fan. Overall, I thought it was OK. I liked about 6 or 7 songs, but nothing classic. I wasn't a fan of his industrial/metal rock stuff like Brutal Planet, but I thought his last great album was The Eyes Of Alice Cooper. That was excellent garage rock right there.

i thought dirty diamonds was better than eyes. eyes of alice cooper has too many green day influences on it. dirty diamonds is straight up old school

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keefriffhard4life

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RollingFreak

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keefriffhard4life
i thought welcome 2 my nightmare was pretty average. the last really great alice album was brutal planet

I agree about Nightmare. I had relatively high hopes for it, being the sequel and everything, and having Bob Ezrin and the original band back on board. It had the makings of being a classic, although it was definitely hard for that hype to be achieved as a longtime fan. Overall, I thought it was OK. I liked about 6 or 7 songs, but nothing classic. I wasn't a fan of his industrial/metal rock stuff like Brutal Planet, but I thought his last great album was The Eyes Of Alice Cooper. That was excellent garage rock right there.

i thought dirty diamonds was better than eyes. eyes of alice cooper has too many green day influences on it. dirty diamonds is straight up old school

I tried Dirty Diamonds but really couldn't get as into it as Eyes. Maybe it was because I heard Eyes first and I was just totally taken aback because I wasn't expecting anything, and with Diamonds I heard it was a continuation? Either way, I just thought the first one was better, although I know alot that have said they prefer Diamonds. Eyes just seemed like such a breath of fresh air to me, in terms of the music and humorous writing again, and then with Dirty it was like "OK, now its all just starting to sound similar."

Coolness.
This is funny.... and cool... and interesting... and about that chicken

hbwriter- you are a lucky guy. Of all the rockers you've interviewed Alice is my favorite. He was the second rock icon in my life, after The Beatles. I remember at 10 years old my uncle telling me Billion Dollar Babies was out, we were both already fans for over a year by that point. I was a rockin' kid thanks to him. These days my wife and I enjoy his concerts most. But when I'm without her it's The Stones of course. Somehow she doesn't like them, lol.