RAGINPIT MAGAZINE

Egg nog. The Grinch. Trans-Siberian Orchestra. Mall stampedes. All of these things are synonymous with Christmas and have all become traditions in their own way. One of the lesser known holiday traditions, at least outside of the Phoenix, AZ region, is Alice Cooper's annual "Christmas Pudding" show, which features a variety of acts performing for the benefit of Cooper's Solid Rock Foundation, whose main goal is the construction of a 20,000 square foot center where teens can engage in creative and athletic activities. This year, he has teamed up with SoundVision Recording Studio to produce A Taste of Christmas Pudding, a collection of Christmas songs recorded by a variety of local musical acts.

It all started back in 2005, when SoundVision Recording Studio owner Michael Beck assembled To The Left of Christmas, an album that featured different musical acts from the Phoenix, AZ area performing classic Christmas songs. The main ideas behind it were to a) get some rock-oriented Christmas music on the radio, and b) promote local artists. The CD attracted the attention of Alice Cooperstown, who approached Beck with the idea of combining their holiday efforts.

The 9th annual "Christmas Pudding" concert, to be held on December 18th at Phoenix's Dodge Theater, also brings the new Christmas compilation A Taste of Christmas Pudding, which continues the tradition of showcasing local artists. The disc includes tracks from Runaway Phoenix (featuring Cooper's son Dash), Prehistoric Steamroller (featuring former Badlands bassist Greg Chaisson), and legendary noise/industrialists Lustmord. Also appearing on the disc is No One Left Behind, who last year won the "Proof is in the Pudding" contest to earn themselves a slot on the show. The same honor will go to this year's winner, who will find themselves sharing the stage with the likes of Warrant, Lita Ford, Dee Snider, and of course, Cooper himself.

Sounds like a great disc, a great show, and most importantly, a great cause. If word of this spreads around, it might just destroy the stigma of Cooper as an evil man, given the Christian roots of the organizations. Of course, most of us know that Alice Cooper is a character played by avid golfer Vincent Furnier. All Phoenix needs now is a little snow.

For more information on the cause and the show, visit http://www.srfrock.org/. As for the album, it's only available locally, at all Zia Records stores (http://www.ziarecords.com/). Maybe you make the drive?

http://www.srfrock.org/
http://www.ziarecords.com/
www.soundvisionrecording.com
www.myspace.com/soundvisionrecording