Billion Dollar Babies

By-the-numbers corny 70s cock rock. Unimpressive and generic.

Alice Cooper is always fun. I always appreciate the bizzare contrast between horror type visuals and the significant Meatloafy, musical theatre nerd vibe present in so much of his music. Elected is a a certified S-Tier banger.

I'm not really convinced by the album. One of course must consider that ist was published 1973. But still I miss something. The songs are ok, they are quite good to listen to. But nothing convincing.

gutes album

Doesn’t really settle on a genre. Which makes the whole thing feel a bit disjointed. Kinda like an Ed Sheeran album but Ed doesn’t sing about how he fucks dead people. At least I don’t think that’s what “the shape of you” is about

This is what Alice Cooper sounds like?? I’d steered clear based on his image thinking it was some Marilyn Manson Rob Zombie nonsense. Instead it’s closer to T-Rex and Bowie… except.. not as good as either of those.

I'm always on the fence about Alice Cooper. You see the pictures and think "death metal." The album covers definitely lean that way too. Then you hit play and get catchy glam rock and heavy metal instead, leaving you wondering if he found an exorcist on the way to the show and got his head on straight. The music works, honestly. There's more to this album than just "No More Mr. Nice Guy" which, to be honest, is one of the tamest songs here. The deeper cuts hold up surprisingly well and make a good case for why Billion Dollar Babies remains one of his most celebrated albums. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to listen to some Korpiklaani to scratch the death metal itch Alice Cooper accidentally gave me. My Rating: 4/5 rhinestones.

Long, repetitive, and neverending. Some dodgy themes as well. 2/5

Mixed bag here, preferred it when it was trying to be less rock and roll and more weird and oddball. But still not a bad album!

I like Alice cooper. Sue me.

Good album, and all great songs. Enjoyable until the end and it stay the right amount of time.

Decent album with some catchy moments.

ugh, he thinks he's so dark and cool and he's just making 70s dad rock with shitty creepy lyrics.... no thank you

It's a decent 70s classic rock album, kinda reminded me of Quadrophnia-era The Who which I wasn't expecting. Didn't realize Alice Cooper was the name of the band and not the lead guy at first.

💀💀

Am I just not that into rock?

Bueno

Well, the first couple of songs were OK, but then there was some drudge, and while there were still some OK songs in there the whole experience was dragged down.

Alice Cooper is very intelligent and find a great niche. Still just an average album though. 6/10 Top song... No more Mr. Nice Guy

Good album Favourites: No More Mr. Nice Guy, I Love The Dead and Hello Hooray

One song sounded very James Bond and I liked it

Alice Cooper never fails to disappoint me. I always expect a guy with the look he has to rock hard and instead I get nothing but songs that remind me of mellowed-out, late era Cheap Trick.

Better than the other Alice cooper album, Mary Ann is a tune, but not my cup of tea still

Maybe this is a bit of unorthodox (or maybe not at all), but I think this is way better than other entry on this list from Mr. Cooper, which was "Schools Out". 4 great tracks and nice deep cuts too. Rounding up to 4 stars quite easily without much hesitation.

Alice Cooper are at their best on this album. Alice is his creepiest demented and evil self. The band is very accomplished on this album and the extra instrumentation will lead onto Cooper's 1st solo effort. His 1st loose conceptual album.

Didn’t realize Alice Cooper was so glam. I really only knew the persona and not really any of the music

5/10 Like many my age, my first real exposure to Alice Cooper was through his appearance in Wayne’s World. What’s slightly confusing is that this record is actually the 6th album by Alice Cooper the band, of which vocalist Vincent Furnier was a member. When the band broke up, Vincent legally changed his name to Alice Cooper and continued to perform under that name, despite the actual Alice Cooper band being over. Which is a fairly odd turn of events. Alice Cooper the band began as a psychedelic rock band before transitioning into a more glam and shock-rock group as time went by. This is their second to last album as a group, until 2025, so one would assume that they had more or less stabilised their sound by this point, but to be honest, I found this to be an incredibly scattergun effort. The record opens with something that feels like it could have been pinched from a quirky rock musical from broadway, before moving on to a fairly straight rock and roll number. As it progresses, they touch on various styles from glam rock to country, even landing on an almost music-hall sounding moment with Mary Ann. It’s a fairly bizarre collection that doesn’t seem to have too much of a musical thread to it, even if lyrically, the themes of horror, necrophilia and, um… the fear of dentists are something of a unifier. While I get that this is a record from 1973, it feels like there’s a fairly significant disconnect between the music and the developing Alice Cooper theme. Tracks like Sick Things and No More Mr. Nice Guy do lean into it to various degrees, but as a whole, it’s a bit inconsistent and lightweight when you consider the nature of the live shows, which included the ripping apart of baby dolls and mannequins and Alice himself being decapitated by guillotine. That all sounds pretty dark and exciting, and perfect for the kind of thing that Black Sabbath had being doing for 4 years at this point, not to mention bands like Coven and Budgie. Regardless, there’s some decent stuff on the record and the band do a decent job of dragging out the heavier elements of the work when they introduce them. The drums and guitar work are very strong in places, and when Alice properly gets into character on songs like No More Mr Nice Guy, things really start to kick. I do appreciate a band that’s willing to experiment and be brave with production and the blending of styles, but for a band on their 6th record, I just don’t feel that there’s a consistent enough level of quality or identity, even allowing for the freedom of expression and experimentation that I’ll always make allowances for. Perhaps I’m missing something, as this was a number one album in both the US and UK, but it kind of feels like the music is somewhat secondary to the presentation, so despite getting some enjoyment from the record, it ends up falling down on that most vital of aspects. Hello Hooray - This is quite an odd start. Firstly, it’s a cover. Secondly, it’s very, very musical theatre. It’s quite slow and dramatic, but not in the heavy way I was hoping for. There’s a bit of weight from the guitars, but it’s fairly thematically unfocused and feels like a setup song for a stage musical, rather than a rock song. Not for me. Raped And Freezin' - This is a bit better. It’s a rock and roll effort, with a cool bit of swagger and some nice punchy rhythms. The slightly grubby and glam coded edges are poking in around the edges, but probably not enough for this to stand out as anything more than a fairly middle of the road Rolling Stones-esque bluesy rock and roll number. It’s not bad, just a bit unremarkable. Elected - This is a bit more like it. Alice starts giving things a bit more grit and dramatic flair and the more bombastic, theatrical elements blend a bit better thematically with the rest of the track. There are some good moments in here and some interesting, if not incredibly hooky riffs and sequences. But I appreciate what they’re trying to do, even if it doesn’t completely connect for me. Billion Dollar Babies - Again, we’re moving in a stronger direction and I can feel a direct line from this to stuff like Kiss, Rob Zombie and even Ghost. There are some solid riffs in here, and there’s much more weight and edge to the delivery from vocals and instrumental performances here. There’s some cool shredding too, and it feels like the record has actually started to deliver the kind of thing I was expecting. Unfinished Sweet - This swings back towards the glam sound now, so why not on a song about being afraid of the dentist. There are some nice little bits of instrumental work, particularly from the guitarists. Then we get a weird break into a surf rock take on the James Bond theme tune and the musical theatre style starts to swarm back over the production. It then descends into some sparse sound design sections before a build back to the song proper. It’s pretty weird stuff and, while I’m not in love with it, I certainly appreciate the experimentation and willingness to toy with production and structure in such a way. No More Mr. Nice Guy - Now we’re cooking. This is hooky, has a slightly gritty edge, but still plays beautifully with that glam rock take on rock and roll. The chorus is excellent, and the performances and production are both punchy and engaging. It doesn’t need to do a great deal, because everything it does is right on the money, and it’s in and out in three minutes. Great. Generation Landslide - The rolling drum beat here is pretty good and the Southern drawl of the vocal is an interesting change up of style. There’s some cool bass playing in here, and it’s good a groove to it. But it never really connects into anything particularly hooky, and ends up messing around in an almost country blues section that’s just a bit jarring with the rest of the album. Sick Things - This is much better. It’s atmospheric, weighty, has some cool sound design and a dark and menacing approach to vocals. It’s fairly slow and considered, but they work dramatic edges into it very well and I can imagine something like this would be fantastic as part of the band’s stage show. The guitar solo rocks too Mary Ann - Another weird diversion, this time into lightweight music hall ballad territory. It’s well executed, but I don’t really understand what it’s doing here. Good piano playing though, I suppose. I Love The Dead - From that last song to a song about necrophilia? Why not? It’s theatrical and dramatic, but within the glam rock, slightly proto-metal edge of that type of music. It’s fairly considered and has some good grooves and guitar soloing work. The lo-lo-lo-lo,de-de-de-de stuff doesn’t really do it for me though, and while I think the production and drama take this in an interesting direction, it could have been a touch darker and grittier and would have been more effective. I know this was released in 1973, so it’s early for this type of music, but Sabbath had had 4 records out by this point, so I can’t excuse the lighter tone of this too easily.

Never really heard his stuff. Thought this was ok

Ew.

Very entertaining with lots of variety.

Alice Cooper es un personaje esencial, pionero en el espectáculo, con cierta ironía (hay que tomarlo así) aunque ha terminado derivando en autoparodia. Aquí hablamos de la banda, no del personaje. La banda era muy buena y tenñia gran material, hasta Muscle of love (demasiado prematuro y fin del grupo). Todo el Glam, Twisted Sister, Marilyn Manson y tantos otros le deben buena parte de su gracia a esta banda. Este disco sirvió de inspiración nada menos que a los Talking Heads para Psychokiller, a Lennon le encantaba.. Rock duro, toques siniestros, pero muy buen sonido, produce Bob Ezrin. «Elected» (I wanna be sedated de los Ramones es Elected acelerada y peor tocada.), «Hello Hooray» (su We Are The Champions), «Billion Dollar Babies» (con Donovan a la voz) y «No More Mr. Nice Guy». Más Detroit que otra cosa, pero no son Stooges ni MC5. Tampoco Roxy Music. Unfinished sweet, con sonidos claramente influenciados por los instrumentales de los 50 y 60 (Shadows o Ventures), no olvidemos que escribieron un tema para 007 pero fue descartado por el de Lulu... Generation Landslide es un tema muy bueno, Bowie seguro que se inspiró en él para sus cosas. Sick Things para mí es un bajón respecto al resto de material. Mary Ann es music Hall, pero los Beatles ya habñian pasado por ahí antes. I love the dead, no me acaba de gustar. Uno de sus discos más logrados y vendidos, pero a mi no termina de convecerme, ni lírica (si es que es ironía) ni musicalmente. Es el mejor? Bueno, es el mejor hecho de su trilogía entre Shool´s out y Muscle of Love.

5/10

I really liked this. I don't see it as going in my regular rotation, and I think that's mainly because it sounds outdated. I love that Alice Cooper is musical theater and they know it.

Niet mijn ding, zie de toegevoegde waarde ook niet

Enjoyed this one. Lots of catchy tracks.

Great album , loaded with classics.

3 stars

Clint Eastwood saw this and was like "What if if was 90% off?"

Better than I expected

Acho que não era surpreendido por um álbum tão teatral desde que escutei The Soft Parade, do The Doors, pela primeira vez. "Hello Hooray" abre o álbum como se estivesse levantando as cortinas para um grande espetáculo que todos aguardavam ansiosamente. E, faixa após faixa, você é contagiado por um exagero delicioso: guitarras estridentes, saxofone (porra, saxofone!), piano e caos, caos, caos... Este álbum poderia facilmente se tornar um musical da Broadway. E o que falar da capa? Achei fantástico que, no Spotify, a moeda fique girando enquanto a música explode nos seus ouvidos. Fantástico! Enquanto tento encontrar palavras para descrever este álbum, percebo que estou escutando-o novamente. E, faixa após faixa, vou me assumindo completamente apaixonado por esta obra absurda. O que deixamos de conhecer por não nos permitirmos explorar mais música, não é mesmo?

Not something I would actively choose to listen to, but not bad

It was fine for an early1970a rock album but nothing to write home about.

ok

Awesome, as much pulp and Queen as it is black sabbath, that's really not what I expected. Cool af

I wish there was a bit more of the Mothers of invention orchestral rock style, as you hear on the opening track (and earlier A.C. records). Otherwise, the schlock-rock tends to get grating. 3.5 stars

I like it

Not a big fan of “old rock”

Energizing music with charismatic performer, what not to like?

When I was a kid and had only seen images of Alice Cooper, I was disappointed to learn that his music was lukewarm rock n’ roll. At least this record has a bit of his theatricality in some of the tracks. “I Love The Dead” is particularly compelling.

I did not enjoy this album. I know people have raved about this, but it did not hit with me. 1.7.

Best Track - "No More Mr Nice Guy"

This album had good musicianship and instrumentation, featuring some classics. The title track includes a collaboration with Donovan, adding an unexpected twist. However, the lyrics are somewhat scattered, clearly aiming for shock value. With topics ranging from political satire to necrophilia, so If you’re into provocative lyrics, this album might be for you.

Actually sounds a lot like the Rolling Stones. I don’t mind it

A great - and very entertaining - album from start to finish. Alice always knows what he does!

While Alice is known for his live shows, which cannot be captured on an album, the music itself stands up and should absolutely be on this list. I really like this one.

..

I’m nore familiar with Alice’s later, more hard rock/metal albums, but this was good.

better than I thought it would be. Less heavy than I thought he was?

Alice is one of a kind. Some fun songs, some odd ones. Overall, this kept me entertained. 3.2/5.

Didn’t expect to enjoy this one as much as I did. Great 70s rock album.

It was OK. Probably needed a closer listen than I was able to give it; I completely missed all the thematic elements mentioned in the description. Musically, it was pretty good; the inclusion of "Mary Ann" was a nice curveball near the end, sounding like a Beatles knock-off and a pleasant change of mood.

I love Dazed and Confused - and since one of the songs on this album made the soundtrack, it evokes great memories. Shock Rock has definitely evolved, but bands like Kiss, Marilyn Manson are all standing on his back.

I liked this more than I thought I would, but still didn’t love it.

Anfänge des Heavy Metals, interessant

Enjoyed this way more than I expected. I’ve judged Alice Cooper based on his 80s output. Which was pretty cringe tbh. However this 70s version is something else altogether. It’s like a dark glam rock cousin of Meatloaf. It’s overblown and ridiculous, but it’s also good fun. Solid 3.5

Not every album needs to be on the list

Classic cooper

Alice Cooper has his shtick — morbid, shock rock. It’s creative, unique, and influential— but I’m not into music with a lot of negative innuendos and reactivity. It’s leering in a stalkerish, Silence of the Lambs kind-of-way. It’s interesting, but not that interesting. A 3, based on his influence.

Bob Ezrin did a pretty good job producing this. After listening to school's out a few weeks ago I'd definitely say that one is more influential and a better listen. Still enjoyed this one, didn't think it was that special though.

encore du hard rock punk de merde

Came into this album with low expectations for no reason. Left pleasantly surprised

Pretty good!

I've known for a while that Alice Cooper isn't just some dumb caricature, but this is the first time I've seen that borne out on a record. This shit is good.

I normally enjoy Alice Cooper. This album wasn't it for me though. 2/5.

Yeah, it's OK I suppose. Early 70s glam style stuff doesn't really float my boat, but this is better than most of it. Elected is by far the best thing on the album of course, and that track stands up today – probably better today given Trump other fuckwits. So, yeah, it's OK, but I won't be listening frequently

Not hating it, would I listen again, probably not. Still continuing my uninspiring run on this.

Fine

Wow i love

okay

Pretty goofy but also weirdly competent.

It was alright

Consistently strong - his best work

Ich hab nicht viel übrig für das ganze Horror-Getue und diesen teilweise melodramatischen Gesang. Ansonsten eine ganz okaye Rock-LP, klasse Gitarrensoli. Auf der B-Seite fällt es dann etwas auseinander. 2.5/5 - okay

Solid seventies rock. Alice Cooper was a defining artist of the era. Some solid offerings on this record. The title track, as well as No More Mr Nice Guy. The rest are solid, if not a bit forgettable though. I'll probably only just add the latter to the playlist. Probably a 3 but I'm in a good mood today.

Solid 70s rock album. Alice Cooper is pretty weird, though.

Very cromulent hard rock album that kind of shifts gears towards the end. I never paid much attention to Alice Cooper outside of their big hits to be honest. A mix of glam and shock rock just based on the content ("I Love the Dead" being a shining example of said shock rock...). Enjoyable listen for the majority of it.

Pensé que no me ibas a gustar y honestamente me gustó bastante. Lo escuché patinando

Ehhh didn’t really care for it.

Dit is heel raar en bijna zo slecht dat het goed is, maar toch wel best wel slecht. Maar ik kan de raarheid wel een beetje waarderen.

Not sure I like the punchline of the second song being our narrator getting raped. The shocking part is like, why does this sound so poppy lol. It’s too cutesy to be offensive but too stupid to be interesting.

Very good album (though I prefer "School's Out"). I enjoy some of the main singles, e.g., "Elected", "Billion Dollar Babies", or "No More, Mr. Nice Guy". I also think "Generation Landslide" or "Sick Things" are pretty good. However, I think my favourite track is the weird and macabre "I Love The Dead". This is between 4 and 5 stars for me. Overall, I enjoyed this a bit less than "School's Out" (which I awarded 5 stars), so I think I'm giving this one 4 stars.

Quite good.

There are some gems on this album that never made it to radio.

começo bem rock de pai genérico quando foi começando a ficar bom o álbum acaba mas a música com a orquestra surpreendeu positivamente acho que é o mais mcr que uma música dos anos 70 consegue ser

Alice Cooper! Alright! It's funny to think that this music was seen as so bad and satanic. lol It's so mellow by today's standards. Chat GPT literally said... "Alice Cooper helped make rock performance feel dangerous, campy, grotesque, and theatrical in a way that fed directly into glam rock, punk, metal, goth, industrial, Marilyn Manson, Rob Zombie, and basically every “scare the parents while writing hooks” artist after him. This album is one of the clearest documents of that. It’s not as heavy as later metal, but the attitude and imagery are absolutely part of that lineage." 😂 No More Mr. Nice Guy always reminds me of Dazed and Confused. As well as School's Out.

Some good moments. Some problems.

Classic

Going in I only knew No More Mr Nice Guy, which I always enjoyed. This whole album was great (ok - maybe not I Love The Dead - but everything else was rad). 9/10.

A bit odd. I will say some of the instrumentals was groovy to me and some of the vocal style was genuinely interesting to me. However, overall it wasn’t an album that particularly stood out to me as very good.

Big oof. I guess this was one of those "you had to be there" things. For all I've heard about Alice Cooper, this was unexpectedly boring.