Alice Cooper praises Johnny Depp as a 'real' guitar player

He speaks about his Hollywood Vampires band mate

Johnny Depp and Alice Cooper
Author: Scott ColothanPublished 14th Aug 2023

Alice Cooper has lavished Johnny Depp with praise saying ‘he’s not a movie star’ when he’s with Hollywood Vampires, ‘he’s a guitar player.’

Taking their moniker from the celebrity drinking club formed by Alice Cooper in 1970 at Rainbow Bar & Grill on Sunset Boulevard, Alice, Johnny Depp and Aerosmith’s Joe Perry formed Hollywood Vampires in 2012 and they released their star-studded debut album three years later.

In July, Hollywood Vampires performed a rapturously received six-date UK tour, which included a special guest appearance from Tony Iommi in Birmingham, before Alice headed back to the US for his stadium shows with Mötley Crüe and Def Leppard this month.

Johnny Depp and Alice Cooper

In a new interview with QFM96’s Torg & Elliott Show, Alice was asked what it’s like sharing the stage with Johnny Depp.

“You have no idea. You have no idea,” Alice quipped. “It’s so funny because Joe is on the left side of the stage, I’m in the middle, Johnny is on the right.

“Every woman is looking on the right side of the stage. Every once in a while I slide over there just to get a little bit of that and then go back to my spot.”

Hollywood Vampires

Going on to praise Johnny’s musicianship, Alice continued: “Johnny’s great. When he’s with us he’s not a movie star – he’s a guitar player. And he’s a great guitar player. You don’t go out with Jeff Beck unless you can play guitar, and he really is a player.

“The band is so tight. We’ve been together nine years and there’s never been one argument in that band. It’s just fun.”

Johnny Depp performed with late-great guitar legend Jeff Beck on select dates of his 2022 tour, and they released the collaborative album ‘18’ last summer.

Featuring the singles ‘I’m Alice’, ‘White Line Frankenstein’ and ‘Welcome to the Show’, Alice Cooper releases his 29th studio album ‘Road’ on Friday 25th August 2023 via earMUSIC.

‘Road’ was produced by Alice Cooper’s long-time collaborator Bob Ezrin, and it’s written, composed and recorded with his beloved bandmates Ryan Roxie (guitar), Chuck Garric (bass), Tommy Henrikson (guitar), Glen Sobel (drums), and Nita Strauss (guitar).

Rage Against The Machine’s Tom Morello also co-wrote, played, and contributed backing vocals on ‘White Line Frankenstein.’

The greatest guitar solos of all time:

75) Pink Floyd – ‘Wish You Were Here’ (1975)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

74) Iron Maiden – ‘Hallowed Be Thy Name’ (1982)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

73) Guns N’ Roses – ‘Paradise City’ (1987)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

72) Guns N’ Roses – ‘Estranged’ (1991)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

71) Bon Jovi – ‘Wanted Dead or Alive’ (1986)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

70) Iron Maiden – ‘Powerslave’ (1984)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

69) UFO – ‘Lights Out’ (1977)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

68) Neil Young – ‘Like a Hurricane’ (1977)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

67) Judas Priest – ‘Beyond The Realms of Death’ (1978)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

66) Free – ‘All Right Now’ (1970)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

65) Extreme – ‘Play With Me’(1989)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

64) AC/DC – ‘Back in Black’ (1981)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

63) UFO – ‘Love To Love’ (1977)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

62) Led Zeppelin – ‘Whole Lotta Love’ (1969)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

61) Eric Johnson – ‘Cliffs of Dover’ (1990)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

60) Stevie Ray Vaughn – ‘Little Wing’ (1984, released posthumously in 1991)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

59) Pearl Jam – ‘Alive’ (1991)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

58) Metallica – ‘Nothing Else Matters’ (1991)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

57) Fleetwood Mac – ‘The Chain’ (1977)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

56) Dragonforce – ‘Through the Fire and Flames’ (2005)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

55) Thin Lizzy – ‘Emerald’ (1976)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

54) Dire Straits – ‘Brothers in Arms’ (1985)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

53) Steve Vai – ‘For the Love of God’ (1990)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

52) Deep Purple – ‘Sometimes I Feel Like Screaming’ (1996)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

51) AC/DC – ‘Thunderstruck’ (1990)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

50) Rainbow – ‘Gates of Babylon’ (1977)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

49) Metallica – ‘The Unforgiven’ (1991)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

48) Rush – ‘La Villa Strangiato’ (1978)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

47) Pantera – ‘Cemetery Gates’ (1990)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

46) Pink Floyd – ‘Shine on You Crazy Diamond’ (1975)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

45) Dire Straits – ‘Telegraph Road’ (1982)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

44) Peter Frampton – ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps’ (2003)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

43) Slash – ‘Anastasia’ (2012)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

42) The Beatles – ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps’ (1968)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

41) Pink Floyd – ‘Time’ (1973)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

40) Genesis – ‘Firth of Fifth’ (1973)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

39) Deep Purple – ‘Smoke on the Water’ (1972)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

38) AC/DC – ‘Let There Be Rock’ (1977)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

37) Megadeth – ‘Tornado of Souls’ (1990)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

36) Ozzy Osbourne – ‘No More Tears’ (1991)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

35) Metallica – ‘Fade To Black’ (1984)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

34) Marillion – ‘Easter’ (1990)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

33) Joe Bonamassa – ‘India / Mountain Time’ (2008)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

32) Ozzy Osbourne – ‘Crazy Train’ (1980)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

31) Cream – ‘Crossroads’ (1968)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

30) AC/DC – ‘Whole Lotta Rosie’ (1977)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

29) Led Zeppelin – ‘Since I’ve Been Loving You’ (1970)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

28) Queen – ‘Brighton Rock’ (1974)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

27) Metallica – ‘One’ (1989)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

26) Extreme – ‘Get The Funk Out’ (1990)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

25) Thin Lizzy – ‘Still In Love With You’ (1974)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

24) Metallica – ‘Master of Puppets’ (1986)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

23) The Jimi Hendrix Experience – ‘Voodoo Chile (Slight Return)’ (1968)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

22) Joe Bonamassa – ‘Sloe Gin’ (2007)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

21) Ozzy Osbourne – ‘Mr Crowley’ (1980)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

20) Derek & The Dominoes – ‘Layla’

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

19) Gary Moore – ‘Still Got The Blues (For You)’ (1990)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

18) Prince - ‘Purple Rain’ (1984)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

17) Deep Purple – ‘Child in Time’ (1970)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

16) Bon Jovi – ‘Dry County’ (1992)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

15) The Jimi Hendrix Experience – ‘All Along The Watchtower’ (1967)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

14) Deep Purple – ‘Highway Star’ (1972)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

13) Gary Moore – ‘Parisienne Walkways’ (1979)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

12) UFO – ‘Rock Bottom’ (1974)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

11) Dire Straits – ‘Sultans of Swing’ (1978)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

10) Queen – ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ (1975)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

9) Rainbow – ‘Stargazer’ (1976)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

8) Guns N’ Roses – ‘Sweet Child ‘O Mine’ (1987)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

7) Van Halen – ‘Eruption’ (1978)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

6) Guns N’ Roses – ‘November Rain’ (1991)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

5) Eagles – ‘Hotel California’ (1976)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

4) Led Zeppelin – ‘Stairway To Heaven’ (1971)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

3) Alter Bridge – ‘Blackbird’ (2007)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

2) Lynyrd Skynyrd - ‘Free Bird’ (1973)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

1) Pink Floyd – ‘Comfortably Numb’ (1979)

The Greatest Guitar Solos of All Time

Listen to Planet Rock on DAB nationwide, on our Rayo app, online or via your smart speaker (“Play Planet Rock”).