Shock rock pioneer Alice Cooper will revisit more than six decades of music, theater, and controversy in a new autobiography titled Devil on My Shoulder: A Memoir, scheduled for release this fall.
The book is set to be published on October 6, 2026 through Da Capo Press, with Cooper promising a deeper look at the complicated relationship between the larger than life stage persona that made him famous and the man behind the makeup.
Born Vincent Damon Furnier, Cooper rose to fame in the late 1960s as the frontman of the original Alice Cooper band, helping define a theatrical brand of rock that would eventually earn him the title “Godfather of Shock Rock.” His stage shows became legendary for their dark humor and horror inspired spectacle, featuring props such as guillotines, snakes, and elaborate theatrical sets.
Despite the theatrical persona, Cooper says the new memoir will focus on separating myth from reality.
“I’ve written this book to track Alice’s ‘evilution,’ and how I’ve tamed him at last,” Cooper said in a statement. “After more than 30 records and over 60 years, the story of Alice Cooper has become a tangle of embellishments, elaborations, and outright fabrications. I think it’s time to sort reality from myth.”
The book will explore the tension between Cooper’s onstage character and his offstage life as a sober, religious family man. It will also include stories about the many cultural figures he encountered throughout his career, including John Lennon, Salvador Dalí, Groucho Marx, Frank Sinatra, and Jimi Hendrix.
Devil on My Shoulder will mark Cooper’s third memoir, following Me, Alice in 1976 and Alice Cooper, Golf Monster in 2007.
Across his career Cooper has released more than 30 albums and built one of rock’s most recognizable stage shows. His work with the original Alice Cooper band produced classic albums such as Love It to Death, Killer, and School’s Out before the group split in the mid 1970s. Cooper continued as a solo artist beginning with the 1975 album Welcome to My Nightmare, launching a career that has spanned multiple generations of rock fans.
In recent years he has remained active both in the studio and on the road. Cooper reunited with members of the original Alice Cooper band for the album The Revenge of Alice Cooper, released in 2025, and continues to tour extensively.
To support the book’s release, Cooper will also host a series of live discussion events in the United Kingdom this October.
Alice Cooper Devil on My Shoulder U.K. Book Tour Dates
October 11 – Cardiff New Theatre
October 12 – Cambridge Corn Exchange
October 13 – London Palladium
October 14 – Brighton Dome
October 16 – Manchester Opera House
October 17 – Stockton Globe
October 19 – Glasgow Pavilion Theatre
October 20 – Wolverhampton Civic Hall
After more than 60 years in music, Cooper’s latest book promises to look back at the man, the myth, and the theatrical alter ego that helped shape the sound and spectacle of modern rock.
