Only Women Bleed

"Only Women Bleed" is a song written by Alice Cooper and Dick Wagner. It is a ballad about a woman in an abusive marriage. The song is often mistakenly presumed to be about menstruation, and that has limited its play on radio and in other public forums. As a single by Cooper, it was released as just "Only Women".

"Only Women Bleed"
Single by Alice Cooper
from the album Welcome to My Nightmare
B-side"Cold Ethyl"
ReleasedApril 1975
GenreSoft rock
Length5:50 (Album Version)
LabelAtlantic Records
Songwriter(s)Alice Cooper, Dick Wagner
Producer(s)Bob Ezrin
Alice Cooper singles chronology
"Muscle of Love"
(1974)		 "Only Women Bleed"
(1975)		 "Department of Youth"
(1975)

It is one of Cooper's biggest hits, reaching number 1 on the Canadian RPM national singles chart[1] and number 12 on the US Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in 1975. It is from his album Welcome to My Nightmare. It was the first of several ballad releases by Cooper that reached the top 20 of the Hot 100 singles chart.

Prior to the release of Welcome to My Nightmare in the US, a shortened version of the song was released as a single and was alternatively titled "Only Women" by Atlantic Records due to protests by feminist groups.[2] The album version of the song features more orchestral movements than the single, and also runs longer than the 45 at 5:49.

According to co-writer Dick Wagner, the song's musical riff and vocal melody were developed several years earlier during his tenure with the late-60s Michigan-based band the Frost, but Wagner had never liked his lyrics and the song was never recorded. He played the riff for Cooper, and the two developed new lyrics for the eventual Welcome to My Nightmare recording.[3]

Chart performance

Julie Covington version

Julie Covington covered the song on her eponymous 1978 album. It reached #12 on the UK charts when it was released as a single.

Lita Ford version

Lita Ford covered the song and it appears on her The Best of Lita Ford compilation from 1992.

Other covers

Other covers include Ike and Tina Turner, Etta James, Guns 'N' Roses, Glenn Hughes and Paul Gilbert.

References
  1. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2012-10-20. Retrieved 2013-05-13.
  2. Weber, Barry. "Only Women Bleed - Alice Cooper : Listen, Appearances, Song Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 2013-05-13.
  3. "Interview with Guitarist Dick Wagner 2010-10-17 : Outsight Radio Hours : Free Download & Streaming : Internet Archive". Internet Archive. Retrieved November 27, 2014.
  4. "RPM - Library and Archives Canada | RPM - Bibliothèque et Archives Canada". collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2016-08-01. Retrieved 2016-04-30.
  5. Cash Box Top 100 Singles, June 28, 1975
  6. "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". collectionscanada.gc.ca.
  7. Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
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