SHOCK Rock returned to Manchester as the Alice Cooper played his first headline show in the city for five years.

After an eerie announcement and invitation for the massive crowd to "Spend the night with Alice", Alice and his band blasted into Brutal Planet which set the scene for the rest of the night.

This was the very best of Alice Cooper as he performed the cream of his catalogue (however, he omitted to play Elected and Paranoiac Personality was the only track from his latest album).

Lost In America was a particular highlight early on and following a frenetic (but largely unnecessary) guitar solo from Nita Strauss, the master showman sang one of his biggest hits Poison.

Then, during Halo Of Flies, we were treated to the requisite drum solo from Glen Sobel.

Then there were more theatrics as Alice became Frankenstein's monster (Feed My Frankenstein), then following Cold Ethyl (when a doll became a punch-bag), the pace slowed for the ballad Only Women Bleed.

Next he was trapped in a strait-jacket (The Ballad of Dwight Fry) and guillotined (I Love The Dead).

Then the arena erupted as Alice performed some of his greatest songs with his original band (Michael Bruce, Dennis Dunaway and Neal Smith).

I'm Eighteen, Billion Dollar Babies, No More Mr Nice Guy and Muscle Of Love followed in quick succession before the finale which had both present and original bands played the anthemic School's Out to an all-standing (by this time) crowd.

Massive balloons with paper were put to the sword by Alice as he growled his way through his final song.

It's not what you'd expect a 69-year-old bloke to be doing on a Wednesday night in Manchester, but then – not every man is Alice Cooper.

Not only a hard rock concert, but also a piece of theatre.