June 26, 1975: Alice injured: Welcome to his nightmare
With a bandaged head and audibly groaning between lyrics, American rocker Alice Cooper looked and sounded as if he should be in hospital, not performing for more than 16,000 fans at the Edmonton Coliseum (now Rexall Place).
The 27-year-old singer (born Vincent Furnier) was showing the after-effects of cracking ribs and splitting his head open after an accidental nosedive in Vancouver four days earlier.
“It was obvious from Alice’s appearance (following opening act Suzi Quatro and band) that he was hurting,” the Journal wrote. “Rolled out to centre stage on a cobweb-infested bed that is supposed to be the focal point of his Welcome To My Nightmare show, Alice had difficulty getting up out of the bed to sing the song Only Women Bleed.
“When he did get up, he staggered about the stage, unable to walk normally. Between songs he sat at the corner of the stage, holding his bandaged head and trying to get up for the next number.
“For a guy supposed to have no principles, it was a pretty fair display of guts. And not the chicken kind he’s best known for,” the Journal said.
Cooper cut the strenuous numbers from his act with none of the “obscene” or “depraved” parts that he was known for, like “Alice getting hanged. Alice getting guillotined.”
The parts had prompted Edmonton city council to try to have the show stopped and Cooper banned, and inspired Edmonton Report magazine to do a cover story headlined Depravity Trade Reaches Edmonton. (Cooper had been banned in April from performing in Australia as a “degenerate who could possibly influence the young and weak-minded.”)
About 40 minutes into the show, Cooper returned from backstage in an Oilers sweater. He got through Eighteen, one of his biggest hits, before clutching his ribs and giving up.
“An aide helped him off the stage and the music stopped,” the Journal wrote. “The crowd, appreciative of Alice’s efforts, cheered wildly. Though the show was incomplete and with the star in pain, it was still good. And they loved it.”
Cooper’s back on Dec. 12, opening for Motley Crue at Rexall Place.