Good to See You Again, Alice Cooper: Live 1973 - Alice Cooper

In 1973 the Alice Cooper band was at the pinnacle of fame. The Billion Dollar Babies record and subsequent tour combined sleazy glam rock with horror movie theatrics. Good to See You Again, Alice Cooper documents the pageantry of the original lineup with footage from two separate concerts in Dallas (April 28) and Houston (April 29). A few snippets from these live clips have appeared on Cooper bio shows, but now fans can see the full-length performances of "Elected," "My Stars," "Billion Dollar Babies," "Under My Wheels," and "Unfinished Sweet." It becomes obvious that the musicianship of the original band was just as important as the shock tactics, as they play above and beyond throughout. By the time the nightmarish theatrics really kick in during "Sick Things," "Dead Babies," and "I Love the Dead," you remember how strange Alice was in 1973, and still is today, endearingly so. Even though the Billion Dollar Babies tour was a financial success, the film has a D.I.Y. feel as opposed to a slickly produced film; after all, it was rock & roll, not a corporate investment. Breaking up the concert segments are several oddball comedic sketches centered around a vengeful director who chases the band after they ruin his "Alice Cooper movie" by demolishing the sound stage in protest of their Vegas-style performance of "The Lady Is a Tramp," complete with cheesy tuxedos and wigs. The remaining scenes were all ad libbed -- and it shows. Had this portion of the film been tightened up, and actually included the band, it could have rivaled the Cooper gang's favorite goofball movie of the time, the comedy-Western Evil Roy Slade. Instead, this was a wasted opportunity and pulled from the body of the film shortly after premiering on the midnight movie circuit. The DVD boasts loads of extras including a new high-definition film transfer, a new Surround Sound mix created from the 16-track master tapes, movie-length commentary by Alice, a "play-concert-only" option, a deleted scene, and the original graphics and radio spot for the film. Without a doubt, Good to See You Again, Alice Cooper is one of the great lost rock films of all time and is highly recommended. ~ Al Campbell, All Music Guide