A founding member of the Alice Cooper band, guitarist Glen Buxton was the writer of several of hard rock/heavy metal's most instantly identifiable guitar riffs. Born in Akron, OH, on November 11, 1947, Buxton grew up in Arizona, befriending such high school track stars as Vincent Furnier and Dennis Dunaway, who invited Buxton to join up in a spoof band (the Earwigs) they put together for a school show. After receiving a favorable reception, the group changed its name to the Spiders, before relocating to California (with second guitarist Michael Bruce and eventually, drummer Neal Smith). First playing shows as the Nazz, the quintet changed its name to Alice Cooper, with Furnier taking the band's name as his own. The newly christened group specialized in a highly theatrical and macabre stage show, which took awhile to catch on with rock's audience.