Dragontown
Dragontown | ||||
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Studio album by Alice Cooper | ||||
Released | September 18, 2001 | |||
Recorded | 2001 | |||
Genre |
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Length | 50:48 69:11 (Special Edition) | |||
Label | Spitfire | |||
Producer | Alice Cooper, Bob Marlette[3] | |||
Alice Cooper chronology | ||||
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Special Edition | ||||
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Dragontown is the fifteenth solo album by American rock musician Alice Cooper. It was released in 2001 on Spitfire Records. Like Brutal Planet, the album displays a heavier metal style than many of his previous releases. It peaked on Billboard's "Top Independent Albums" Chart at #12, and the Billboard 200 at #197, his lowest album chart performance since 1983’s DaDa, which did not chart at all.
This is the first Alice Cooper studio album to contain no singles. Although Cooper toured the album with his Descent into Dragontown tour in 2001 and 2002, only four Dragontown songs – "Sex, Death and Money", "Fantasy Man", "Every Woman Has a Name", and "Triggerman" – were performed at all during this supporting tour, with only "Sex, Death and Money" and "Fantasy Man" remaining in the setlist to the end. With the exception of five performances of "Disgraceland" in July 2003 during the Bare Bones Tour, nothing from Dragontown has ever been performed live subsequent to the end of the album's supporting tour.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Rolling Stone | (favorable) link |
HM Magazine | [4] |
Story and themes
Doug Van Pelt, editor of the Christian music oriented HM Magazine, likened Cooper to C.S. Lewis, stating that he "grabs the devil's microphone and attempts to spill his guts and reveal his wicked schemes."[4] Van Pelt further states that "It's Much Too Late" exposes "unrestrained truth" in stating that "The road to hell is littered with nice guys and good intentions..." and likens "Sex, Death and Money" to Proverbs 5 and isn't really about 'Sex, Death, and Money, but talks against it, as the Bible states.[4]
"Somewhere in the Jungle" addresses the issue of genocide and tribal warfare in Africa.
The track Disgraceland sees Cooper deliver verses while impersonating Elvis Presley.[5] The song relates to Presley's final years and subsequent death and of the track, Cooper has said: "I'm sort of doing a commentary on the absurdity of it, the fact that the greatest rock 'n' roll hero of all time died on a toilet."[6]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Alice Cooper and Bob Marlette, except where noted
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Triggerman" | 4:00 |
2. | "Deeper" | 4:36 |
3. | "Dragontown" | 5:06 |
4. | "Sex, Death and Money" | 3:39 |
5. | "Fantasy Man" | 4:05 |
6. | "Somewhere in the Jungle" | 5:22 |
7. | "Disgraceland" | 3:34 |
8. | "Sister Sara" | 4:35 |
9. | "Every Woman Has a Name" | 3:45 |
10. | "I Just Wanna Be God" | 3:53 |
11. | "It's Much Too Late" | 4:40 |
12. | "The Sentinel" | 3:53 |
A special edition was released on September 24, 2002, limited to 7,500 units. It includes the original album and a bonus disc with four additional tracks.
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Can't Sleep, Clowns Will Eat Me" | 4:09 | |
2. | "Go to Hell" (live) | Cooper, Dick Wagner, Bob Ezrin | 3:48 |
3. | "Ballad of Dwight Fry" (live) | Cooper, Michael Bruce | 4:27 |
4. | "Brutal Planet" (remix) | 5:27 |
Personnel
- Alice Cooper - Vocals
- Ryan Roxie - Guitar
- Greg Smith - Bass
Session musicians
- Tim Pierce - Guitar
- Wayne Swinny - Guitar
- Bob Marlette - Rhythm Guitar, Bass, Keyboards and programming, String arrangement
- Sid Riggs - Keyboards and programming
- Teddy Andreadis - Backing vocals
- Eric Dover - Backing vocals
- Calico Cooper - Backing vocals
- Gionvanna Morana - Backing vocals
- Kenny Aronoff - Drums
Charts
Chart (2001) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA)[7] | 182 |
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[8] | 75 |
French Albums (SNEP)[9] | 142 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[10] | 54 |
Scottish Albums (OCC)[11] | 98 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[12] | 41 |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[13] | 98 |
UK Albums (OCC)[14] | 87 |
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[15] | 6 |
US Billboard 200[16] | 197 |
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[17] | 12 |
References
- ^ "Classic Alice Cooper Albums To Be Released On Vinyl". Blabbermouth.net. September 26, 2016. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
- ^ Coleman, Mark; Edmonds, Ben (2004). "Alice Cooper". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 11–13. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
- ^ "Alice Cooper : Dragontown - Listen, Review and Buy at ARTISTdirect". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2008-06-19.
- ^ a b c Van Pelt, Doug (January–February 2002). "Reviews / Dragontown". HM Magazine (93): 56. ISSN 1066-6923.
- ^ Alice Cooper - Dragontown (CD). Metal Temple. 25 January 2002. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
- ^ Flying the coup. Las Vegas Sun. 1 August 2003. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
- ^ "Bubbling Down Under Week Commencing July 6, 1992". Bubbling Down Under. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
- ^ "Austriancharts.at – Alice Cooper – Dragontown" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
- ^ "Lescharts.com – Alice Cooper – Dragontown". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Alice Cooper – Dragontown" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
- ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Alice Cooper – Dragontown". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – Alice Cooper – Dragontown". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
- ^ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
- ^ "Alice Cooper Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
- ^ "Alice Cooper Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
External links
- Alice Cooper Dragontown Tour Program
- v
- t
- e
- Original band members
- Former solo band members
with Alice Cooper (band) |
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as Alice Cooper (solo) |
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with Hollywood Vampires |
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- The Alice Cooper Show
- Toronto Rock 'n' Roll Revival 1969, Volume IV
- A Fistful of Alice
- Brutally Live
- Live at Montreux 2005
- Live from the Astroturf
- "Reflected"
- "I'm Eighteen"
- "Caught in a Dream"
- "Under My Wheels"
- "School's Out"
- "Elected"
- "Hello Hooray"
- "No More Mr. Nice Guy"
- "Billion Dollar Babies"
- "Halo of Flies"
- "Teenage Lament '74"
- "Only Women Bleed"
- "Department of Youth"
- "Welcome to My Nightmare"
- "I Never Cry"
- "You and Me"
- "How You Gonna See Me Now"
- "Clones (We're All)"
- "7 and 7 Is"
- "I Am the Future"
- "He's Back (The Man Behind the Mask)"
- "Teenage Frankenstein"
- "Freedom"
- "Poison"
- "Bed of Nails"
- "House of Fire"
- "Only My Heart Talkin'"
- "Hey Stoopid"
- "Love's a Loaded Gun"
- "Feed My Frankenstein"
- "Lost in America"
- "It's Me"
- "Brutal Planet"
- "Gimme"
- "Keepin' Halloween Alive"
and box sets
- School Days: The Early Recordings
- Greatest Hits
- Prince of Darkness
- Toronto Rock 'n' Roll Revival 1969, Volume IV
- Classicks
- The Life and Crimes of Alice Cooper
- Mascara and Monsters: The Best of Alice Cooper
- The Definitive Alice Cooper
- The Essentials: Alice Cooper
- Hell Is
- School's Out and Other Hits
- Good to See You Again, Alice Cooper
- The Nightmare
- Welcome to My Nightmare
- Alice Cooper and Friends
- The Strange Case of Alice Cooper
- The Nightmare Returns
- Alice Cooper Trashes the World
- Brutally Live
- Live at Montreux 2005
- Super Duper Alice Cooper
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