Alice Cooper's Christmas Pudding rocked Phoenix with Slash, Ace Frehley and Rob Halford

Alice Cooper promised it was "really gonna be a rock and roll one this year" going into the 16th annual Christmas Pudding show to benefit his Rock Teen Center.

And long before the star had welcomed Slash on stage to tear it up on "I'm Eighteen" and "School's Out," bringing his headlining set to an electrifying climax, Saturday had more than lived up to the promise.

This year's Pudding played more to the heavy side of Cooper's Rolodex than usual, from Ace Frehley of Kiss to Rob Halford of Judas Priest, who brought his own guitarist, Richie Faulkner, and like Cooper, was joined by Slash and Megadeth bassist David Ellefson (rocking a Make America Punk Again T-shirt).

It wasn't all headbanging, though, inside the historic Celebrity Theatre.

Cooper likes it to be a variety show, and it was.

The night began with 16-year-old Proof is in the Pudding prodigy Conrad Varela leading the Rock Teen Center's percussion ensemble, the Solid Rock Bucket Brigade, in the stunning display of guitar heroics that was his rendition of "Joy to the World."

Then, Alice and Sheryl Cooper came out with their family and learned on stage that they were due to have another grandchild, an announcement that spoke to the family-type environment that the Coopers have managed to nurture at these annual events.

The Solid Rock Dancers, directed by Hodgie Jo, were joined by Footklan in an entertaining tribute to the music of the disco era, dancing their way through such highlights as 'You Should Be Dancing," "That's the Way (I Like It)," "I Will Survive" and "Shake Your Groove Thing."

Frehley led the guys in Sixwire in a raucous set of Kiss songs. "In the '70s, I wrote a drinking song," he said. "Eleven years ago, I got sober, but everybody still wants to hear this song."

The song, of course, was "Cold Gin," which rocked. But before he played, Frehley told fans not to drink and drive, adding, "I don't wanna hear you ended up in a tree tonight, OK?"

The man knows how to introduce a song. "I got electrocuted in 1978 in Florida," he said before bringing his set to a close with another Kiss classic. "It inspired me to write this song. It's called 'Shock Me.'"

Frehley's guitar work was brilliant throughout but the "Shock Me" outro was especially inspired, slipping in the "Day Tripper" and "Secret Agent Man," an indulgence the guitarist shrugged off with a very Frehley-esque "Just havin' a little fun."

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