Alice Cooper believes Frank Zappa “never got the credit for” being “one of the best guitar players out there”
Alice Cooper has argued that Frank Zappa “never got credit for” being “one of the best guitar players out there”.
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Discussing his experience working with Zappa, Cooper told QFM96, “Frank Zappa was a maestro. He directed the LA Philharmonic. This guy was the guy. He knew more about music than anyone out there.”
“He never got high. He drank beer and smoke cigarettes and drank coffee all day,” Cooper added. “But he was not difficult.”
“If you were in the Mothers of Invention,” he said, referencing the short-lived Zappa band known for its guitar heroics and sonic experimentation, “you had to be the best player in town. In other words, you couldn’t just be in the Mothers of Invention you had to be the sax player you had to be the best keyboard player. If you got in that band, you were the best of the best.”
“The thing that people didn’t realise about him was: the guitar players, the Eric Claptons, and Jimi Hendrixes considered Frank one of the best guitar players out there. He never got the credit for being that guitar player… he didn’t play like anybody else. He was a total original on guitar.”
Guitar prowess aside, the rocker also touched on Zappa’s perfectionist and critical tendencies, saying “He was totally – he didn’t care who he was offending… he made more fun of the hippies than he did the establishment.”
During the chat, Cooper also shared what it’s like touring and performing with rock supergroup Hollywood Vampires, and in particular actor Johnny Depp, saying “Johnny’s great. When he’s with us he’s not a movie star – he’s a guitar player. And he’s a great guitar player. You don’t go out with Jeff Beck unless you can play guitar, and he really is a player.”
“The band is so tight. We’ve been together nine years and there’s never been one argument in that band. It’s just fun.”
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