How Alice Cooper Became Alice Cooper When He Launched His Solo Career

Before there was the man, Alice Cooper, there was the Alice Cooper band. Initially, Alice Cooper was a band name. Lead singer, Vincent Furnier, legally changed his name to Alice Cooper in 1975. The same year, he launched his solo career. He’s been known as Alice for so long that many forget it was the bands name first.

The group was formed in 1964, with a quirky idea to perform for the school’s talent show. Furnier conjured up the idea of recruiting his cross-country teammates to perform a parody of Beatles songs. They wore costumes and wigs, and performed Beatles songs with altered lyrics about school. Among the friends recruited were future Alice Cooper members Dennis Dunaway and Glen Buxton. Among them, the only one who truly knew how to play an instrument. He played the guitar while the other pretended to. They won the talent show and decided to start a group.

The Spiders, Nazz, and Eventually Alice Cooper

They were orignally named The Spiders, with Dunaway on bass and Glen Buxton on lead guitar. Michael Bruce soon joined the band as rhythm guitarist, and in 1967 the band made frequent trips to Los Angeles for shows. They renamed themselves Nazz, and released multiple early singles. After drummer John Speer was replaced by Neal Smith, the band relocated to Los Angeles. The band soon learned Todd Rundgren’s group was called Nazz, so they began looking for a new name.

Furnier pushed the idea of the band having a gimmick, and the band chose Alice Cooper as the name because it contrasted with the band’s dark image. They were heavily influences by horror films, and took concepts from films such as What Ever Happened To Baby Jane? and Barbarella to complete their look. They paired the influences with their love of Salvador Dali’s surrealist art to ignite their daring stage antics.

The Alice Cooper Band Finds Success

With their lineup set, along with their gimmicks and antics, Alice Cooper set out to record their first album. They recorded Pretties For You with Frank Zappa, which didn’t sell well ultimately. Their second release, Easy Action, performed even worse. Due to this, the band decided to relocate to the Midwest where their on-stage antics were well received. They moved to Pontiac, Michigan until 1972. They had one more chance with Straight Records, and the group teamed up with Bob Ezrin for their third studio album. The band recorded Love It To Death and released “I’m Eighteen” as a single in November 1970. It was the band’s first hit, peaking at No. 21 on the Billboard Hot 100. Soon after, Warner Bros. Records purchased Alice Cooper from Straight Records. Love It To Death reached No. 35 on the Billboard 200.

Their follow-up, Killer, was a commercial success as well. In the summer of 1972, their single “School’s Out” peaked at No. 7 on the Hot 100, and hit No. 1 in the UK. The studio album, School’s Out, reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200. In February 1973, their sixth studio album, Billion Dollar Babies, became the group’s most commercially successful release. It hit No. 1 in the US and UK. They released one more album with the classic lineup, before jealousy ended the band. Lead singer, Vincent Furnier, was getting all the attention as the Alice Cooper character.

Vincent Furnier Legally Becomes Alice Cooper

In 1975, Furnier legally changed his name to Alice Cooper to avoid a lawsuit and launched a solo career. The band Alice Cooper band, became just the man, Alice Cooper. He released Welcome To My Nightmare which peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard 200. His solo career launch was widely successful. Alice Cooper has released 30 studio albums, which include 7 with the original band and 23 solo albums. In 2025, the original band reunited for The Return Of Alice Cooper. The only member not included was Glen Buxton, who passed away in 1997. The band returned to their initial sound, releasing songs that could easily fit their early 1970s albums.