Billion Dollar Babies (song)
| "Billion Dollar Babies" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
7" LP Single
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| Single by Alice Cooper featuring Donovan | ||||
| from the album Billion Dollar Babies | ||||
| B-side | "Mary Ann" | |||
| Released | July 1973 | |||
| Format | 7" Vinyl | |||
| Recorded | 1972 | |||
| Genre | Hard rock, heavy metal | |||
| Length | 3:43 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. | |||
| Writer(s) | Alice Cooper, Michael Bruce, Reggie Vinson | |||
| Producer(s) | Bob Ezrin | |||
| Alice Cooper featuring Donovan singles chronology | ||||
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"Billion Dollar Babies" is a popular 1973 single by rock group Alice Cooper, taken from the album Billion Dollar Babies. It was released in July 1973, months after the album had been released. The track is a duet between Alice Cooper and Donovan, who provides the falsetto vocals.[1] BMI lists [2] the composers of "Billion Dollar Babies" as Alice Cooper, Michael Bruce and Reggie Vinson (a session guitarist who had worked with the Alice Cooper band previously.[3]). Some sources list the composers as Cooper, Bruce, drummer Neal Smith, and "R. Reggie," the latter being an allusion to Vinson's nickname "Rockin' Reggie Vinson."[4]. The chorus has the same melody as The Hollies' 1966 song "Tell Me to My Face."
Billion Dollar Babies also became the name of a band which descended from the Alice Cooper band that recorded the song. The Billion Dollar Babies album was one of the last recorded by the Alice Cooper band, before singer Alice Cooper went solo. Legal complications ensued; all five Alice Cooper band members had shared ownership of the band's name. The original band never again recorded under the name Alice Cooper, but former Alice Cooper Band members Michael Bruce, Dennis Dunaway, and Neal Smith, along with additions Bob Dolin, Stu Daye and Mike Marconi, recorded as Billion Dollar Babies. [5]. The band Billion Dollar Babies only released one album, 1977's Battle Axe, before disbanding.[6]
Appearances
- It appears in The Secret Life of Girls.
- It appears in the episode "Monty Can't Buy Me Love" of cartoon The Simpsons.
- A cover version, which is mislabeled in the manual as "Million Dollar Babies", appears in Xbox 360 version of Guitar Hero II.
- Live version is downloadable content for Rock Band series.
- Phil Lewis, George Lynch, Bob Kulick, Stu Hamm, Vinnie Colaiuta, Derek Sherinian and David Glen Eisley perform it on the 1999 tribute album Humanary Stew: A Tribute to Alice Cooper.
Track listing
- "Billion Dollar Babies" (Bruce, Cooper, Vinson) - 3:43
- "Mary Ann" (Bruce, Cooper) - 2:21
Personnel
- Alice Cooper - vocals
- Steve Hunter - lead guitar
- Dick Wagner - lead guitar
- Michael Bruce - rhythm guitar
- Dennis Dunaway - bass
- Neal Smith - drums
- Donovan - vocals
Charts
| Chart (1973) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| German Singles Chart[1] | 30 |
| US Hot 100[2] | 57 |
References
- ↑ ""German Singles Charts Search for Alice Cooper"" musicline.de. Retrieved on August 11, 2009."
- ↑ "Alice Cooper - Charts & Awards - Billboard Singles" Allmusic. Retrieved on August 10, 2009."
