Hurricane Years (Hey Stoopid, 1991)

NOTE: To start things off, we expected to cover some new material this week. However, Hurricane Ian has redirected our attention to another oldie but goodie. As we prepared for the storm, this one appeared on our “Hurricane Playlist” more than once. Enjoy!

The success of the 1989 LP, Trash, was incredible. The song “Poison” instantly became a modern-day classick and introduced Alice to a new generation of Rockers. However, the record wasn’t quite an Alice Cooper album, at least not from Alice’s perspective.

Enter the follow-up LP to Trash. Hey Stoopid is arguably a much heavier album, filled with Alice’s attitude, grit, and a list of all-star guest guitarists like Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Slash, Vinnie Moore, and Mick Mars.

“Without the Desmond (Child) influence, (Hey Stoopid) is a heavier album. This time I really wanted it to be an Alice record. Trash did great, selling three million copies, and I’ve got nothing against it.

…but I think it got a little overbearingly Desmond on some of the songs, I’ll be honest with you – I didn’t catch it until some time after the album was done.” – Alice Cooper

Hey Stoopid may be one of Alice’s most underrated albums. It seems this period was a love/hate moment for many of his fans. With the commercial success of Trash and Desmond Child’s influence on that record, many critics and fans wondered if Alice had sold out, but with the release of Hey Stoopid, it quickly became evident; he did not.

“Hurricane Years” is the eighth track on the Hey Stoopid LP. It’s an excellent description of those times when life is out of control – a cyclone or whirlwind of uncertainty or angst. While the subject may be spiritually lost as well, they don’t necessarily have to be.

I’ve been thru major destruction
I’ve seen thru terrorist’ eyes
Sometimes I feel no emotion
Sometimes I break down and cry
I need to walk on a wire
I need a layer of skin
I need a preacher breathing fire
To burn away my sins

I got a ticket to nowhere
I got no respect for the law
I got no use ’cause it’s all abuse
It’s the business end of the saw

In The Hurricane Years
We’re living in the hurricane years
In the hurricane years

Do you remember your “Hurricane Years?” Are you still in them? Did you find them gone, only to come back again? Interestingly, Alice included the lines, “I need a preacher breathing fire, To burn away my sins.” It’s as if he’s declaring his transformation process – his acceptance of Christ and return to church.

Check out those lyrics one more time. There is also a call for change within the song’s verses – a redirection request. Have you been there, are you there now – teeter-tottering back and forth between thoughts, emotions, and events? Life isn’t easy, it’s not perfect, but there is always something to be learned or gained from experience.

Another point to consider, the song also states, “we’re living in the hurricane years” – society and a plurality of people are part of this narrative. It is evident that not only the person (or subject of the song) has to change, but humanity does as well; there’s a yearning for a global “fire” that “burns away (our) sins.”

The “Hurricane Years” can be defined in several different ways. For some, they may be more extreme than others. It could be financial struggles, substance abuse, emotional trauma, spiritual doubt, and so on. It may also be a combination of factors. Whatever it is, there is HOPE and a promise for a better tomorrow (Isaiah 41:10).

Looking at the song through the lens of God’s Word, we’ve often talked about what a roller coaster the book of Psalms is. One minute the author(s) are rejoicing in praise, then the next, they are on their knees crying out in pain for deliverance.

However, one thing remains constant and is repeated multiple times throughout the Psalms – “The Lord is our rock, strength, fortress, and deliverer.”

Here are a few examples:

MOSES:

“We are consumed by your anger
and terrified by your indignation.
8 You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your presence.
9 All our days pass away under your wrath;
we finish our years with a moan.
10 Our days may come to seventy years,
or eighty, if our strength endures;
yet the best of them are but trouble and sorrow,
for they quickly pass, and we fly away.
11 If only we knew the power of your anger!
Your wrath is as great as the fear that is your due.
12 Teach us to number our days,
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” – Psalm 90: 7-12

DAVID:

“Hear me, Lord, my plea is just;
listen to my cry.
Hear my prayer—
it does not rise from deceitful lips.
2 Let my vindication come from you;
may your eyes see what is right.” – Psalm 17:1-2

“I love you, Lord, my strength.

2 The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer;
my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” – Psalm 18:1-2

SONS OF KORAH (Temple Assistants)

“As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, my God.
2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?
3 My tears have been my food
day and night,
while people say to me all day long,
“Where is your God?” – Psalm 42:1-3

“God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.” – Psalm 46:1-3

SOLOMON:

Long may he live!
May gold from Sheba be given him.
May people ever pray for him
and bless him all day long.
16 May grain abound throughout the land;
on the tops of the hills may it sway.
May the crops flourish like Lebanon
and thrive like the grass of the field.
17 May his name endure forever;
may it continue as long as the sun.

Then all nations will be blessed through him,
and they will call him blessed.

18 Praise be to the Lord God, the God of Israel,
who alone does marvelous deeds.
19 Praise be to his glorious name forever;
may the whole earth be filled with his glory.
Amen and Amen. – Psalm 72:15-19

We see different perspectives and scenarios in the above-listed verses.

• Moses had witnessed God deliver His people out of Egypt then wandered with them in the wilderness.
• David had defeated Goliath, was delivered from the clutches of Saul and was anointed King.
• The Sons of Korah had witnessed their ancestors removed from the earth for their disobedience.
• Solomon placed his leadership skills, abilities, and thought process in God’s hands.

These authors learned to place God in the center of their lives and during any ordeal they faced. During their “Hurricane Years,” they learned how to weather the storm. Then, they used those experiences to subsequently endure future storms.

In past posts, we’ve discussed life as being a journey through multiple storms. Those storms comprise three phases: 1) the calm before the storm, 2) the storm, and 3) the aftermath.

In all three phases, we must learn to seek God. He will prepare us for what’s to come (Isaiah 40:3), carry us through the storm (Isaiah 43:2), and heal us –restoring our strength (Isaiah 53:5).

Click image to see full-size.

“And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. 24 And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by thewaves; but he was asleep. 25 And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” 26 And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. 27 And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and the sea obey him?” – Matthew 8:23-27

Perhaps the best literal and figurative lesson is found in the above-listed verses from the book of Matthew. At this point, the disciples had witnessed many miracles; they knew who Christ was and had seen him in action. However, even with Christ physically present (although asleep), they panicked amid the storm.

Much like the disciples, many of us have experienced miracles and blessings in our lives. We’ve seen and felt the power of God firsthand, yet for some reason, there are moments of doubt where we may struggle.

Before facing any storm or hurdle in life, we must genuinely learn and remember who our Heavenly Father (our Creator) is. We must understand that He has the power to control both the storms of nature and the storms within our souls. Like the disciples, we can rely on Christ to help us. All we must do is ask and have faith that He will deliver us.

Wrapping up this week’s post, what phase of the storm are you currently in – The calm before, in the midst of one, or dealing with the aftermath? As we navigate through whatever struggles or decisions we must make, we must know He is waiting for us to rely on Him – to ask for His help.

Scripture provides us with multiple examples of men and women relying on God and finding refuge in His presence – in His arms. Let us learn to seek Him when the winds seek to move us. Let us not be shaken but instead solidified in our faith as we overcome and endure those “Hurricane Years” and the subsequent storms life has to offer.

In conclusion, I’ve mentioned before that I try to be subjective and not show favoritism towards specific periods of Alice Cooper’s career. However, the Hey Stoopid LP, with songs like “Hurricane Years,” “Wind-Up Toy,” “Might As Well Be On Mars,” “Snakebite,” and the title track, has become one of my favorites.

With the success of the Trash LP and Alice’s appearance in the “Wayne’s World” movie (featuring the song “Feed My Frankenstein”), Alice found a way to endearingly introduce himself to the next generation of Rockers. It was a special time.

Alice also found ways to express his faith, and what fans at the time did not know was that Steven, Cooper’s beloved character, would soon re-emerge to face a new ordeal.

In time, The Last Temptation LP would place Steven in a tangled web of trials, temptations, and tribulation while also answering any questions one might have about the faith of Alice Cooper. Like many of those that have come before, he survived his “Hurricane Years” and lived to talk about them (while also sharing what and who brought him through).

That’s it for this week, be well and catch you next Friday.

Until then, keep Walkin’ in Faith and Rockin’ with Alice!