Content Warning: This article about Alice Cooper and Johnny Depp discusses domestic violence. If you or someone you know is affected by the following story, you are not alone. To speak to someone, you can call Lifeline on 13 11 14, or 1800 RESPECT on 1800 737 732.
Alice Cooper has given an honest review of his Hollywood Vampires bandmate Johnny Depp’s guitar skills.
Speaking on the Mistress Carrie podcast (via Ultimate Guitar), Alice Cooper revealed whether Johnny Depp’s guitar playing holds a candle to his acting.
“I respect Johnny – of course, he’s a great actor. He’s really great, he’s fun, I’ve seen all of his movies…but I see him as a guitar player, and he can play – he just did an album with Jeff Beck! I mean, anybody who thinks he’s a movie star trying to be a rock star is totally wrong on that,” he said.
He continued: “He’s a much better rock star, and it’s in him, he was a guitar player way before he was an actor. So when he steps on stage with [Aerosmith guitarist and Hollywood Vampires bandmate] Joe Perry, he can trade leads with Joe, and Joe says, ‘Yeah, he’s good.’
“And I can totally trust Johnny to take any lead up there, but like I said, we all respect each other so much that nobody would ever argue, it would just be so uncool to argue with the other.
“We would rather just say, ‘OK, let’s try that,’ and we try it, rehearse it, and go, ‘Ah, it doesn’t work, OK, let’s go on to the next idea…’
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“But nobody goes, ‘Oh, you never use my ideas!’ That’s what bands are like, but both of my bands are like best friends, and that makes touring so easy,” he concluded.
In other news, Cooper also recently defended Depp following accusations of domestic violence by his ex-wife Amber Heard.
“Johnny Depp and I are best friends… I’ve never seen him lift a finger against anybody. He’s one of the most gentle people. And all of his former girlfriends and wives say the same thing,” he told NME.
“It’s really hard to believe that all of a sudden he’s gonna turn into this monster. And I know the guy — I’m with the guy on tour all the time. He’s one of the most gentle, harmless people I’ve ever met.”
Check out ‘Whole Lotta Love’ by Hollywood Vampires:
