Alice Cooper: "He's Back (The Man Behind the Mask)" Single (1986)

Alice Cooper’s "He's Back (The Man Behind the Mask)" backed with "Billion Dollar Babies (Live)", was released as a 7-inch vinyl single in the UK by MCA Records (catalog number MCA 1123) on October 6, 1986., featured a remixed “live” version of “Billion Dollar Babies” as the B-side. The 12” single (catalog number MCAT 1123) included “Billion Dollar Babies (Recorded Live)” and a haunting live version of “I’m Eighteen,” both originally recorded in the studio for the 1981 Alice Cooper à Paris TV special during the Special Forces era and remixed in 1986 with crowd effects to simulate live performances.

Noted in a 1986 Kerrang! review, the single tied to the Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives soundtrack, boosting Cooper’s glam-metal comeback.

Tracklist (7” Vinyl):

A1. He’s Back (The Man Behind the Mask) – 3:50

B1. Billion Dollar Babies (Recorded Live) – 3:20

Tracklist (12” Vinyl):

A1. He’s Back (The Man Behind the Mask) – 3:50

A2. Billion Dollar Babies (Recorded Live) – 3:20

B1. I’m Eighteen (Recorded Live) – 4:15

Note: The tracklist reflects the standard UK 7” and 12” vinyl releases. The “live” tracks were studio recordings from 1981 with added crowd effects.

The single entered the UK Singles Chart at number 61 on October 18, 1986.

It was the lead single from his 1986 album "Constrictor" and served as the theme song for the movie "Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives."

The song features the iconic "ki-ki-ki ma-ma-ma" sound effect (often misheard as "ch-ch-ch, ha-ha-ha"), a signature of the Friday the 13th series. It celebrates the return of the series' antagonist, Jason Voorhees, who had been killed off in the fourth film, "Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter" (1984), and appeared only in flashbacks and hallucinations in the fifth installment, "Friday the 13th: A New Beginning" (1985).

"He's Back (The Man Behind the Mask)" achieved modest chart success and gained popularity among fans of Cooper's later work and slasher film enthusiasts. It has been praised for "perfectly encapsulating the Friday the 13th films and the era in which they rose to prominence."