How's this for interesting couples: Roger Daltrey and Slash. Ronnie James Dio and Toto's Steve Lukather. Sting drummer Vinnie Calaiuta and Dokken guitarist George Lynch. These dynamic duos are only a small portion of the musical marriages comprising a forthcoming Alice Cooper tribute album currently being compiled by producer/ guitarist Bob Kulick. "I did a couple other tributes -- AC/DC and Queen -- for the same company, and I had a lot of fun," relates Kulick, "but I hadn't worked with either band. It wasn't like Alice Cooper, who I actually did the 'Welcome To My Nightmare' tour with, so I knew these songs intimately, and I felt I could plug in for the people who would make the best soup out of this; a sprinkling of this, that and the other thing."

The 11 songs on the album, which is tentatively titled Humanary Stew, after a lyric in the song "Black Widow," include: Daltrey and Slash on "No More Mr. Nice Guy"; "School's Out" sung by Dave Mustaine; and "Elected," sung by ex-Sex Pistol Steve Jones and former Guns N' Roses bassist (and Jones' partner in Neurotic Outsiders) Duff McKagan. Def Leppard's Joe Elliot and Phil Collen -- on vocals and guitar, respectively -- shine on "Under My Wheels," and are joined by E Street Band saxophonist Clarence Clemons. A few slots are still open, and Kulick, who also plays on most of the disc's songs, is seeking more alternative- leaning artists to round out the album. "There's going to be 50 people total on this album," he notes. "It's always a challenge, but there are no weak links. They all put their own little stamp on what they did, which, to me, makes this what it is." While a label for Humanary Stew isn't yet confirmed, Kulick is going for a worldwide deal for the project. While Kulick jokes that spending the better part of the year coordinating and producing the Cooper tribute makes the LP seem like "the longest pregnancy known to mankind," he's looking for an appropriately Cooper- like Halloween release date.

-- Katherine Turman

source: Rocktropolis