“I have so many years of touring behind me, and during that time there have been plenty of ups and downs,” says Alice Cooper guitarist and solo shred star Nita Strauss. “No matter who you are, things can go wrong at any gig. Your gear goes down, weather doesn’t cooperate, all kinds of things. All you can do is try to play through it.
“Fortunately, if you have a good core group of people around you, problems can be sorted out and the show will go off as planned. If you do it right, the audience will never know there was an issue in the first place.”
Before rejoining Alice Cooper for a spring and summer trek that will hit arenas and festivals in the States and Europe, Strauss is finishing her own theater tour of the U.S. We asked her to pick the best and worst gigs in her long career as an electric guitar player. Here’s what she told us.
THE BEST
“There have been so many highlights — Rock in Rio, Wacken Open Air. But if I were to name my standout favorite, it would be Alice Cooper and Mötley Crüe at the Hollywood Bowl in 2014.
“It was my first Alice Cooper tour, and I had been in the band for only a few weeks. I saw that the Hollywood Bowl was on the itinerary, and I was psyched. Already I had a lot of history with the venue. It was like my hometown amphitheater. I grew up seeing children’s shows there, and when I got older I saw bands like Aerosmith and Van Halen there.
“Funnily enough, my mother saw Alice Cooper at the Hollywood Bowl in the ‘70s, so the thought of her coming to see me playing with Alice at that same venue was mind-boggling. I was thrilled to get my parents a box for the show.
“I wanted to savor every moment of the gig that I could. I walked around before soundcheck and took everything in. It was an incredible feeling to think that I was going to add my own little footnote to the Hollywood Bowl’s history.
“The soundcheck itself was surreal. That line from the movie Rock Star went through my head: ‘If you work hard enough and you want it bad enough, dreams come true.’ I remember standing on that stage and looking out at the lawn. I could see the very seats I once sat in for so many legendary shows. I thought to myself, Okay, now it’s my turn. Let’s do this!
“Before the show, the band does a little huddle. Everybody gets a chance to say anything they want. I got a chance to tell everybody how I grew up seeing shows at the Bowl and what it meant to me to add my little chapter to venue’s story.
“What’s funny is, as pumped as I was to play, I was in kind of a meditative state during the show. As soon as the intro track started, I was in another place where I connected with my instrument, the other band members and the audience. The sound was incredible, and the view was gorgeous. It was one of those shows you dream about, and while it’s happening, you’re thinking, ‘Can this be real?’
“After the show, there were so many friends and family members to see. It was so nice to share the moment of elation with my parents. Not to be braggy, but the Alice band is really good. We always deliver, but when the pressure is on — you know, if it’s Madison Square Garden or the Hollywood Bowl — we seem to take it to the next level. I can proudly say that we gave it our all that night. For me, it was a big item on my bucket list checked off.”
You can see Strauss performing “Eighteen” with Alice at that Hollywood Bowl gig below.
THE WORST
“I was fortunate to have played the worst gig of my life early on. When I was 12 or 13, I joined my first band, ODA. I have no idea what the initials stood for, but I guess they meant something. I was still in middle school, and everybody else in the band was in high school. There was this tiny metal club in San Fernando called the Cobalt Café that held Battle of the Bands nights. We decided that we wanted to enter, but you had to sell 10 tickets for $10 each to get onstage.
“We didn’t have a big circle of friends, so we sold a grand total of four tickets to the drummer’s girlfriend and someone’s brother. After that, we were stuck. Who’s got 60 bucks? Well, my dad came to the rescue. He was a touring musician and he knew the deal, so he came to the soundcheck and bought our last six tickets so we could get on stage and play.
“We were so excited — a real show in front of real people! It was going to be amazing. We only knew three songs — two originals and a cover of Metallica’s ‘For Whom the Bell Tolls.’
“We came out and started rocking, and for some reason, almost everybody in the club walked out — including one of the other bands and the judges! My dad stuck around, and the four other people who bought our tickets were there. But that was about it.
“Looking back on it now, I can say it was the crappiest gig I’ve ever played, but at the time, I was elated. I was so fully immersed and happy in that moment to be onstage, wearing my boots and playing in front of a few people. The whole band was pumped. We didn’t care that everybody left. We didn’t even care that the judges left.
“I don’t know who won, or if they announced a winner. We were just like, ‘Yeah, we’re doing it! No matter the obstacles, no matter what happens, we’re out here kicking ass!’ Of course, we didn’t really kick any ass, but in our minds, in that moment, we kicked ass.
“My dad was awesome about the whole thing. He said I was great and that I shouldn’t let the lack of people bother me. Both of my parents were incredibly supportive, but they didn’t bullshit me or sugarcoat anything. If I played well, they would tell me, but they were always honest. That’s so important, especially when you’re young and you’re learning.”
Strauss also learned the importance of performing in front of people and included it among her top tips for guitarists when she spoke with Guitar Player in February 2023. “It can be daunting at first, but I think you just have to jump in,” she told us. You’ll see that the water is fine.”
It’s certainly worked out fine for Strauss, who recently revealed that she’s earned a fan in Steve Vai, who was one of her big guitar inspirations. “When I was 13 years old, I saw Steve Vai in Crossroads. He was so cool and charismatic,” she recalls. “At the time, I had a guitar, but I hadn’t fallen in love with it yet. I remember watching Steve Vai and thinking, Why didn’t anybody tell me that you could do that with a guitar? That is so cool!”
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