Poison (Alice Cooper song)

"Poison" is a song by American musician Alice Cooper. Written by Cooper, producer Desmond Child and guitarist John McCurry, the song was released as a single in July 1989 from Cooper's eighteenth album, Trash. It became one of Cooper's biggest hit singles in the United States, peaking at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100. The power ballad^[6][7] performed even better in the UK by peaking at number two on the UK Singles Chart. "Poison" remains one of Alice Cooper's best known songs. It is ranked by Billboard as the "91st top song of 1989", while Ultimate Classic Rock ranked it as the "7th best Alice Cooper song", commenting "Poison sounds like a typical '80s pop-metal number at times, but Cooper’s intensity brings it to a whole other level."^[8] The song's main riff was written by guitarist John McCurry, who two years earlier had used it for the John Waite track "Encircled".

"Poison"
Single by Alice Cooper
from the album Trash
B-side	"Trash"
Released	July 17, 1989 (1989-07-17)^[1]
Genre	Glam metal^[2]^[3]^[4] hard rock^[5]
Length	4:28
Label	Epic
Songwriter(s)	Alice Cooper Desmond Child John McCurry
Producer(s)	Desmond Child
Alice Cooper singles chronology
"Freedom" (1987) "Poison" (1989) "Bed of Nails" (1989)
Music video
"Poison" on YouTube

Music video

There are two versions of the video to the song, one of which shows Alice Cooper being chained to a bizarre mechanism and singing while a ghostly woman looms over him. The original video had to be censored for showings during the day, due to shots of a topless model. Rana Kennedy plays the roles of both women in the video but the topless scene were shot with a body double.^[9] This is notably visible in the video. The studios in which the video was filmed in spring of 1989 have since been torn down and are now a parking lot in Los Angeles. The video is still often played on MTV Classic's Metal Mayhem.

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1989) Peak position Australia (ARIA)^[10] 3 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)^[11] 22 Canada Top Singles (RPM)^[12] 39 Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)^[13] 9 Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)^[14] 7 Ireland (IRMA)^[15] 3 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)^[16] 10 Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[17] 8 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)^[18] 2 Norway (VG-lista)^[19] 3 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)^[20] 10 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)^[21] 13 UK Singles (OCC)^[22] 2 US Billboard Hot 100^[23] 7 US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)^[24] 15 West Germany (Official German Charts)^[25] 25

Year-end charts Chart (1989) Position Australia (ARIA)^[26] 18 Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)^[27] 67 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)^[28] 94 Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[29] 61 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)^[30] 43 UK Singles (OCC)^[31] 40 US Billboard Hot 100^[32]^[33] 91

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)^[34]	Platinum	70,000^^
Canada (Music Canada)^[35]	Gold	50,000^^
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)^[36]	Gold	45,000
Germany (BVMI)^[37]	Gold	250,000
Sweden (GLF)^[38]	Gold	25,000^^
United Kingdom (BPI)^[39]	Platinum	600,000
United States (RIAA)^[40]	Gold	500,000^^
^^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Cover versions

• The Vandals, 1993^[41]
• Groove Coverage, 2003^[41]
• Husky Rescue, 2007^[41]
• Baracuda, 2008 (sampled in "Where Is The Love", alongside Amaranth by Nightwish)
• Alex Day, 2013^[41]

Film & media usage

• Tango & Cash, 1989^[42]
• The Jackal, 1997^[43]
• End of Days, 1999^[43]
• Peter Pan, 2003^[43]
• Mean Creek, 2004^[43]
• Pineapple Express, 2008^[43]
• A modified version of the song was featured in a February 2011 television ad campaign for the Volkswagen Passat.^[44][45]
• Spartacus Vengeance, 2012^[43]

References

1. "New Singles" (PDF). Music Week. July 15, 1989. p. 41. Retrieved August 6, 2021.
2. "Rock and horror: Alice Cooper on 40 years of beheadings, fake blood -". The Independent. October 30, 2011. Retrieved August 7, 2021.
3. Freedom for Frankenstein: Hits & Pieces 1984-1991 - Alice Cooper | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic, retrieved April 7, 2021
4. "36 Essential '80s Pop Metal Tracks". Stereogum. April 5, 2017. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
5. Pasbani, Robert (February 21, 2021). "KING CRIMSON's Robert Fripp & His Wife, Toyah Wilcox Back With ALICE COOPER "Poison" Cover". Metal Injection. Retrieved June 3, 2021.
6. "Top 10 Power Ballads That Don't Suck". Loudwire.
7. "Alice Cooper: 10 best songs from the shock-rock king". The Independent. March 14, 2019. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
8. "Top 10 Alice Cooper Songs". Ultimate Classic Rock. February 4, 2016. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
9. "Rana Kennedy". www.facebook.com.
10. "Alice Cooper – Poison". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
11. "Alice Cooper – Poison" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
12. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 6623." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
13. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 6, no. 25. September 2, 1989. p. IV. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
14. Nyman, Jake (2005). Suomi soi 4: Suuri suomalainen listakirja (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 951-31-2503-3.
15. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Alice Cooper". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
16. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 42, 1989" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
17. "Alice Cooper – Poison" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
18. "Alice Cooper – Poison". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
19. "Alice Cooper – Poison". VG-lista. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
20. "Alice Cooper – Poison". Singles Top 100. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
21. "Alice Cooper – Poison". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
22. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
23. "Alice Cooper Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
24. "Alice Cooper Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
25. "Offiziellecharts.de – Alice Cooper – Poison". GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
26. "ARIA Top 100 Singles for 1989". ARIA. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
27. "Eurochart Hot 100 1989" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 6, no. 51. December 23, 1989. p. 6. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
28. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1989". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
29. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1989" (in Dutch). MegaCharts. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
30. "End of Year Charts 1989". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
31. "Year-End Charts '89 – Top 100 Singles". Music Week. London, England: Spotlight Publications. March 3, 1990. p. 16.
32. "1989 The Year in Music: Top Pop Singles". Billboard. Vol. 101, no. 51. December 23, 1989. p. Y-22.
33. "Longbored Surfer – 1989". longboredsurfer.com.
34. The ARIA Report. Vol. 10. ARIA. March 18, 1990. p. 4.
35. "Canadian single certifications – Alice Cooper – Poison". Music Canada.
36. "Danish single certifications – Alice Cooper – Poison". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
37. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Alice Cooper; 'Poison')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved December 21, 2022.
38. (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 17, 2011.
39. "British single certifications – Alice Cooper – Poison". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
40. "American single certifications – Alice Cooper – Poison". Recording Industry Association of America.
41. "Covers of Poison by Alice Cooper on WhoSampled". WhoSampled. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
42. "Songs from Tango & Cash". www.sweetsoundtrack.com. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
43. "Poison movie soundtracks". www.lyrics.com. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
44. . Adsoftheworld.com. Mediabistro.com. February 2011. Archived from the original on October 1, 2011. Retrieved March 8, 2011.
45. "Passat". Volkswagen Israel. February 2011. Retrieved March 8, 2011.