mr. cooper & a blast from my past...

Alice Cooper returned to Idaho Falls on Monday night. And I watched it all go down. FROM THE SECOND ROW, baby! Cameron and I met up just outside the Civic around 5:20 and chatted in the cold until they opened the doors at 7:00. (Actually, Cameron got there around 5:00 and saved us a spot in line, which is why we were in the second row. Thanks, Cam!)

Once inside, we sat down (in row 2!) and talked some more until the opening band (some local yokles whose songs all sounded the same) performed at 8:00. Then we sat and waited some more while Mr. Cooper's roadies set up his stage.

And then the concert began!

The pictures:

I loved the stage set-up...

Alice and his 2 (amazing!) guitarists, Damon Johnson and Keri Kelli...

Mr. Alice. Cooper.

"Vengence is Mine!"


Fistful of Alice...
(We really were in row 2, but people crammed in front of us. Plus there were the VIP people way up front...)

And then on Tuesday, late-morning, I had brunch with my pal Carrie Cook. We were roommates my first semester at BYU-Idaho (Jan. 2001). We've kept in contact over time, but haven't seen each other in at least 2 years. She's living in Denver, but came home for a long weekend (she's from Rigby). It was stupendous to see her!

Me and Carrie...

Outside Perkins...

he's (coming) back!

Lookey here, and see what I just purchased:

Hot dang!

Yes, friends. Mr. Alice Cooper is returning to Idaho Falls on October 19th. Honestly, I thought it was beyond amazing that he came to such a small venue last August. And now...he's returning!

I can't wait!

Dear Alice...

Some of you, my BLAUDIENCE, might assume I'm writing a letter to one Alice Cullen. Such is not the case. I've read all the Twilight books and find them...interesting. But this blog is for another Alice.

I give you...

The following is a letter I've written to him. A letter, I daresay, he'll never read...

Dear Alice,

Sorry if "Alice" seems a bit too familiar; we've never met, after all. However...I figure that when you chose to go by Alice you weren't really planning on any formalities. I'm right, aren't I?

Anyhoo...Alice. This, technically, is "fan mail." But it ain't all good news and flattery, I'm sorry to say. (There will be some of that, but not entirely...)

Because you'll never read this, I'll be blunt. Your latest CD Along Came a Spider...well, it's just not good. At least I didn't like it. Fortunately for you, most of the critics love it. So...there you have it; my apparently worthless opinion. Not your best stuff on this album, Alice.

Having said that (and it hurt to to say it, Alice), I have to tell ya...even after listening to your less-than-stellar CD, it didn't really undo my excitement for your concert here in Idaho Falls. Oh NO, Alice! I know (and appreciate) enough of your other music to keep me excited. VERY excited! -A couple of my brothers have seen you in concert a number of times, and they told me you are an AMAZING performer. And when my friend Cameron told me (weeks ago) that you were coming to Idaho Falls (of all places!) I was DANG excited to see your show. I daresay I was one of the first to purchase tickets. Alice Cooper ROCKS!

So anyway, Alice, I went to your concert tonight. And it has to be said...you did NOT disappoint! Your concert was SPECTACULAR! It's almost like you were born to perform, Alice! You ROCKED the audience and I'm SUPER GLAD you came to IF! You were AWESOME! And I'm not saying you were awesome for a 60 year old grampa; you were FANTASTIC for a musician in general. BRILLIANT for a ROCKER! I'm not even embarrassed to tell everyone that I went to see an old man strut his stuff on stage. (You are quite agile and full of energy for a senior citizen!)

Oh yeah, I also wanted to let you know I'm so GRATEFUL you're such a tough old fart--continuing to perform your heart out through the pain of broken ribs, etc. Kudos, baby. KUDOS!

Nuttin' but love (from your realistic fan)...

~ginabean~

I took a TON of pictures at the concert. Here are a few...(by the by, the concert date was actually 13 Aug 2008; I'm not sure why my camera is a day ahead--I need to fix that.)

Part of the act...

The real deal...Alice Cooper!

Alice and his band. They all rocked! Amazing!

Me in front of the stage. I so looked like I didn't belong...
Most of his audience were 40+ years old
and wearing OLD Cooper tees and had tattoos, etc...

And here's Cameron.
We decided we might've been the only Mormons at the concert.
We were definitely the only non-smokers...

Yep, Cameron and I kinda stood out; me in my respectable jeans and tee shirt (most of the other gals were scantily clad) and my conservative bob cut; Cameron wearing his tee shirt that actually had sleeves. Oh yeah, and we weren't nursing beers or blowing smoke in people's faces either. (There was a guy behind me who blew all his smoke directly on me; I did not appreciate it.) AND we aren't nearly as close to senior citizenship as most of the rest of the crowd. (We weren't the youngest, but we so weren't the oldest.)

Anyway, Alice Cooper is an AMAZING showman! I was glad that I got to see him perform!!! -My favorite part was Poison (it has always been my fave Alice Cooper song; I recorded it on video, but do not have the time to upload it now.)

PS I heard, initially, that Alice Cooper broke his ribs at a supermarket, tripping over a box or something like that. But when I went to find the article online, all the articles said it happened during a show. Curious...

Get OUT!

Okay, so some of you might be surprised to find out that I like Alice Cooper. Well, his music at least. He's really got some awesome tunes. There you have it.

Well yesterday afternoon my friend Cameron called me to let me know that Alice Cooper is coming to Sandy Downs in August. Sandy Downs is in Idaho Falls, by the by. He's coming to IF! If you have never lived in South-East Idaho, you might not realize what a big deal this is; IF is not a venue that attracts many artists. I'm so excited!

Anyhoo, the tickets went on sale today. It's 9:30am, and I am already in possession of my ticket. And Cameron's too. It looks like it'll just be me and Cameron going to this one...for some reason none of our other friends like Mr. Cooper enough to buy a ticket and attend his concert. (Well, Tracie does, but she can't make it this time. So unfortunate!)

Anyway...it's gonna be RAD! I can't wait!