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Alice Cooper to Rock WesBanco Arena in Wheeling Sunday

Alice Cooper to Rock WesBanco Arena in Wheeling Sunday

WHEELING -- Alice Cooper: Too Close for Comfort Tour invades WesBanco Arena at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 8, in Wheeling.

The rock legend pioneered a grandly theatrical brand of hard rock that was designed to shock. Drawing equally from horror movies, vaudeville and garage rock, the Alice Cooper Group created a stage show that featured electric chairs, guillotines, fake blood and boa constrictors.

Alice Cooper's albums and singles are iconic in rock'n'roll. "School's Out," "No More Mr. Nice Guy," "I'm Eighteen," "Billion Dollar Babies," and many more.

In 1975, Cooper released his first solo album "Welcome to My Nightmare," accompanied by the groundbreaking theatrical concert tour.

Cooper was widely praised in 2018 for his performance as King Herod in NBC-TV's live production of "Jesus Christ Superstar." He has also made memorable appearances in "Wayne's World," "Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare" and on "That '70s Show."

With his influence on rock'n'roll and popular culture long since acknowledged, there is little that Alice Cooper hasn't achieved in his remarkable career, including platinum albums, sold-out tours and any number of honors and career achievement awards.

Having finally gotten back out on the concert trail in 2021-22, Alice insists he's still motivated to continue touring and recording albums, as well as making time for other projects.

Released in February, 2021, his album "Detroit Stories," produced again by Bob Ezrin, is inspired by the garage rock music of Detroit in the late '60s, including several classic covers of Detroit hits from that era, recorded in Detroit with all Detroit musicians.

It entered Billboard's album sales chart at No. 1 the week of release, and also charted high upon release on the album charts in the UK, Germany, Australia, Sweden and other countries.

In late August of this year, he released his latest album, "Road," featuring a critically acclaimed slate of new songs written and recorded with his stellar touring band that includes guitarists Ryan Roxie, Tommy Henriksen and Nita Strauss; bassist Chuck Garric and drummer Glen Sobel.

Also produced by Ezrin, "Road" includes rocking singles that have been released so far - "I'm Alice," "Welcome to the Show" and "White Line Frankenstein," which was co-written by and features guest guitarist Tom Morello of Rage Against The Machine.

"For 'Road,' I wanted the band to be involved in the foundation of all the songs," Cooper said. "I only see these guys when we're on the road. So, I wanted them to be as tight as they are for the show but on all new material. When you have a band this good, I believe in showing it off, and this is my way of doing so."

As if that wasn't enough, "Nights With Alice Cooper," Alice's nightly radio show, continues to air in nearly 100 cities in the USA, Canada, Australia, and the UK.

The five-hour long show features his favorite classic rock songs along with his insider anecdotes about many of the artists.

Cooper was born in Detroit Michigan, and moved to Phoenix with his family. The Alice Cooper band formed while they were all in high school in Phoenix, and was discovered in 1969 by Frank Zappa in Los Angeles, where he signed them to his record label. Their collaboration with Ezrin, then a young record producer, led to the break-through third album "Love It to Death" which hit the charts in 1971, followed by "Killer," "School's Out," "Billion Dollar Babies," and "Muscle of Love."

Each new album release was accompanied by a bigger and more elaborate touring stage show. The year 1974 saw the release of a "Greatest Hits" album, and then Cooper, in 1975, released his first solo album, "Welcome to My Nightmare" in 1975, accompanied by the legendary groundbreaking theatrical Welcome to My Nightmare concert tour.

Associated with that album and tour was the ground-breaking network TV special "Alice Cooper: The Nightmare." Other film and television appearances include "The Muppet Show," Mae West's last film "Sextette," "Roadie," "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearst Club Band" and appearances on "The Tonight Show" starring Johnny Carson and Tom Snyder's "Tomorrow Show."

Members of the classic lineup of the Alice Cooper Group were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2011.

Tickets for Sunday's show can be purchased at WesBancoArena.com, calling 304-233-4470, or visiting the WesBanco Arena Box Office.

Follow WesBanco Arena and Capitol Theater on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for event updates.

For additional information about Alice Cooper and the new album "Road," visit his website at alicecooper.com.