Customer Reviews

Alice Cooper, Golf Monster: A Rock 'n' Roller's Life and 12 Steps to Becoming a Golf Addict

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I bought this book and read it in one setting. There are a few stories told here that I didn't know about, and he does seem to take golf very seriously. I myself detest golf but I must admit Alice is very persuasive. The style of writing utilized here is very difficult to resist and I found the book difficult to set down.
There are a few parts in the book where Alice discuses his religious faith, but he's not pushy with it. There are some genuinely funny stories relayed in the book and he does cover a few of the lesser known events of his career.
Overall I would recommend this to anyone with an interest in classic rock. I'm not a big golf person and would not know how good his golf tips are.

Half of this book is golf tips and golf philosophy from Alice. The other half is his autobiography. Alice has apparently met many celebrites. He always did like to name drop but there are plenty of photos of him with Hollywood royalty so he did meet a lot of show biz people.

Alice has been known to be a story teller though. In the 70's he used to get bored answering the same old questions from reporters so he'd start to make up stories to shock and amaze reporters and amuse himself, like starting the rumour that he was really the actor who played Eddie Haskell on Leave It To Beaver.

One of the new wrinkles in this auto-biography is how he met his manager Shep Gordon. In his 1976 autobiography, "Me Alice", Alice decribes how his then drummer Neal Smith's sister Cindy Smith ran a clothing boutique in LA. Shep Gordon and his pal Joey Greenburg came into the boutique for some reason. They mentioned to the sales lady that they were rock n'roll managers. Cindy overheard this and convinced Shep and Joey to check out her brother's band who were in desperate need of a manager. Shep didn't seem too receptive at first until she told them they were to receive a six thousand dollar advance from Frank Zappa to join his record label. All of a sudden Shep and Joey's ears perk up and the rest is history.

In Alice's 2nd auto-biography, "Golf Monster", no mention is made of Cindy Smith. Alice and his original band mates were staying at the famous Land Mark hotel in LA. Shep Gordon was also staying there. Jimi Hendrix was also there and met Shep Gordon. In casual conversation Jimi asked Shep what he did for a living and such. Then Jimi said, Are you Jewish? "You should be a manager." Jimi arranged for Alice to meet Shep and the rest was history.

I guess this is more exciting story than the first one with Cindy Smith. It's better to say that Jimi Hendrix introduced me to my manager. What's Jimi going to do, deny it?

So take whatever you hear from Alice with a grain of salt..still interesting reading though.

Fans of the radio show "Nights With Alice Cooper" will know what to expect with this book.

Alice Cooper is easy company and a great story teller. He is open with his thoughts about everything in life, frank with his views and has a dry sense of humour.

He bounces the reader between his passion of golf (you don't have to be a fan), his development of "Alice" (again, you don't have to be a fan), backgrounded by his long battle with alcohol addiction - by the end of his story, you will be a massive fan!!

I've never been into football. Nevertheless, I really like the TV show "Friday Night Lights," even during the football scenes. It's all about football, and yet, it's all about people.

I have a similar like for "Alice Cooper, Golf Monster."

I don't golf. I would tend to agree with Mark Twain when he said, "Golf is a good walk spoiled." But even though ACGM is filled with lots and lots of talk about golf, and a good swing, it manages to remain interesting. Yes, it's about golf, but it's still about Alice. There are stories about Elvis, Donavan, Groucho Marx, Zappa, and dozens of others.

I've always liked the music of Alice Cooper. When I learned, years ago, of his Christianity, I felt like a brother had come home. No, I've never met the man, but somehow, I feel a connection. Silly, maybe, but I do. (I've seen him once in concert, and can't wait for him to return to Fort Wayne, IN.)

So, reading this book was, to me, like listening to an old friend. The stories, the insights, the drama, and the humor; they're all there. Occasionally, I find his theology a little too religious for my tastes, but I'm big on "agree to disagree."

If you enjoy golf, or rock-n-roll, you find this a very interesting read. If you hate golf, or rock-n-roll, you will still find this an interesting read. Addiction. Redemption. The return of the prodigal. Timeless themes as seen through the mascara-laden eyes of rock legend.

PS. My wife also liked it.

A laconic autobiography intermingled with a zen approach to golf. Alice (et al) discribe overcoming a destructive addiction through love and by redirecting his addictive personality to a healthy persuit (golf). He discusses his faith without being preachy or pious and gives some sound advice on golf along the way. A good read for the non-golfing rocker, the golfer and anyone struggling with thier own addictions. At times funny, at times insightful, entertaining throughout.

I enjoyed this book, my only gripe is he talks too much about golf not enough about Alice. Also I hate "autobiographies" that are in actually ghostwritten because they just sound fake to me. Other than that this is an excellent read and I suggest it for any fan of Alice Cooper.

I bought this book, read it in one evening and returned it. Alice has had a very long career - which is still going - has toured with so many bands, experienced quite a bit on the road and has released a very dense body of work that could be compared with David Bowie's in originality and variety. This book skims over everything, only touching on specific events most people already know about, such as the chicken incident, his changing his name to Alice Cooper in 1974, his appearance on Hollywood Squares and his alcoholism. He gives some details on the early group, how they got started at the high school talent show, the different bands he played with in the 60s and what the rock scene was like during the hippie era, in which Alice and his mates were outcasts. However, the book is way too sanitized for the guy who said, "the sicker our fans get, the sicker we'll get." I know he's a Christian and family man, and he's done a lot to sugarcoat his initial shocking gender bending persona, but still, he was pretty darn weird in his day. And songs about necrophilia, which he apparently regrets writing, are still taboo today. It would have been great if he touched on his being a Republican, which is somewhat contradictory to his strangeness. He does talk about his being a Christian and how that works with rather than against his rock persona. But probably the biggest issue I have with this book is that half of it is about golf! Sure golf means a lot to him, but it means little to me for how many chapters he dedicates and how much detail he dedicates to it.

This book was a great read. I am an Alice Cooper fan, and an avid Golfer which is why I found the book so good. Alice's stories about his rise to stardom and his experiences overcoming his alcohol adiction are really interesting and keep you turning the pages. Anyone would like the book, even if you're not a big fan because the stories are interesting, and the golf sections could be applied to whatever your hobby may be.

After reading this book I gave my mid-70's parents a copy for Christmas. They both loved it! Neither are golfers but they still enjoyed the stories Alice had about many of the celebrities he met throughout the year. They also seemed to warm up to Alice. I had to remind them both how they would chastise me as a teenager for being such a big fan of his.
I love it.

If your a fan of Alice Cooper (like I am) this Is the book to read. His hole life story. I know he loved golf and Music but had know idea how much. read it you'll Love it.