OK, I’m not much of a quote-link-comment blogger, but this is a must see: An interview with Alice Cooper (HT: Chrenkoff, Tim Blair–gotta love those Aussies).

Alice Cooper was over the top, even for me–and I was a fan of King Crimson and Kiss. Never much cared for gross-out rock (vomiting blood? beheadings?? Maybe this is where the jihadi’s got their ideas), but as it turns out, it was–and still is–all an outrageous act–late twentieth century vaudeville, in essence.

Count among his fans: Jack Benny, Groucho Marx, Salvador Dali, George Burns, Mae West, Fred Astaire.

Count among his mentors: Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin, Keith Moon.

Count among his skills: scratch golfer, good cook.

Count among his character assets: great sense of humor, married faithfully for 29 years (to a Joffrey Ballet dancer), recovering alcoholic, Christian. And one of the sanest assessments of why we are in Iraq I have heard (could the Bushies hire this guy for PR?? Well, maybe not…).

Here’s a teaser:

When I did take the cure for alcohol, which by the way was not a cure, it was a healing. I came out of the hospital never, ever being tempted by a drink, never, ever being like in the least bit, under the worst stress, ever thinking about taking a drink, never went to AA. Everybody’s sitting there going, “Wow, what great willpower.” I have no willpower. I came out and it was a total… It was a healing. My dad was a pastor, my grandad was a pastor, my wife’s father is a pastor, and I’m Christian now. It was a… people say, “There are no miracles,” and I go, “Oh, yes there are.” I’m a walking miracle because I was the worst alcoholic you could imagine, and 24 years I haven’t had, not a drop.

This is right up there with Jeff Baxter. I just love the irony of it all.

Check it out. Really.