Wake the Dead

Album: Along Came A Spider (2008)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Cooper co-wrote this track with Heavy Metal icon Ozzy Osbourne and musician/producer Danny Saber, whose former bands include Black Grape and Agent Provocateur. Ozzy also played the harmonica, and Saber handled all the guitar parts, including the Beatlesque bass line. He also played keyboards on the track and co-produced the album with Greg Hampton.
  • Along Came a Spider is a concept album that tells the story of a sophisticated serial killer known as Spider, who cocoons his victims in a silk web. In a 2007 interview with The Sydney Morning Herald, the shock-rock legend discussed how the album's concept came about: "I hadn't written a concept for about four albums and, all of a sudden, it started taking off, this personality," he said. "I started realizing that this guy Spider was a serial killer, but very slick and elegant."
  • The lyrics on this song touch on the album's theme of an urbane, spiderlike serial killer: "How many more will cross my path? How many more must die? I never wonder where they come from. I never wonder, why."
  • Along Came a Spider was Cooper's highest-charting album since Hey Stoopid in 1991. It climbed to #53 on the US Billboard 200 album charts and peaked at #31 on the UK album charts. The collection also performed well in other parts of the world, breaking the Top 40 in several countries. Slash makes a guest appearance on the album, contributing some blistering solos on the track "Vengeance is Mine."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Rickie Lee Jones

Rickie Lee JonesSongwriter Interviews

Rickie Lee Jones on songwriting, social media, and how she's handling Trump.

Amy Lee of Evanescence

Amy Lee of EvanescenceSongwriter Interviews

The Evanescence frontwoman on the songs that have shifted meaning and her foray into kids' music.

Dick Wagner (Alice Cooper/Lou Reed)

Dick Wagner (Alice Cooper/Lou Reed)Songwriter Interviews

The co-writer/guitarist on many Alice Cooper hits, Dick was also Lou Reed's axeman on the Rock n' Roll Animal album.

Amanda Palmer

Amanda PalmerSongwriter Interviews

Call us crazy, but we like it when an artist comes around who doesn't mesh with the status quo.

He Hit Me (And It Felt Like A Kiss): A History Of Abuse Pop

He Hit Me (And It Felt Like A Kiss): A History Of Abuse PopSong Writing

Songs that seem to glorify violence against women are often misinterpreted - but not always.

Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath, Heaven And Hell

Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath, Heaven And HellSongwriter Interviews

Guitarist Tony Iommi on the "Iron Man" riff, the definitive Black Sabbath song, and how Ozzy and Dio compared as songwriters.