Richard Allen Wagner (December 14, 1942 – July 30, 2014) was an American rock guitarist, songwriter and author best known for his work with Alice Cooper, Lou Reed, and Kiss.

His first band, called the Bossmen, was a favorite in the Detroit area and scored radio play with the Wagner-penned composition "Baby Boy", "You're the Girl for Me" and others.

Wagner formed his next band, the Frost, with Donny Hartman, Bobby Rigg and Gordy Garris, in the late 1960s and built up a substantial following in the Michigan area.

Soon after, Wagner and Hunter were joined by Prakash John, Pentti "Whitey" Glan and Ray Colcord for Reed's Rock 'n' Roll Animal Tour.

The band toured internationally with Reed, culminating in the album Rock 'n' Roll Animal (1974), recorded live at the New York Academy of Music in December 1973.

Producer Bob Ezrin brought both Wagner and Steve Hunter into the studio to play guitar on the early Alice Cooper albums.

Wagner continued to play lead guitar (sometimes uncredited) on every Alice Cooper band album that followed, through the break-up of the original group.

[2] As one of Ezrin's hired guns throughout much of the 1970s and 1980s, Wagner continued to lend his playing (and in some cases, songwriting) talents to albums including Peter Gabriel's self-titled solo debut (1977), Air Supply, Aerosmith's Get Your Wings (1974; Wagner played the guitar solos on "Same Old Song and Dance" and "Train Kept A-Rollin'", the latter with Steve Hunter),[3] Hall & Oates' Along the Red Ledge (1978), Kiss's Revenge (1992), and Burton Cummings' Dream of a Child (1978).

Wagner produced and co-wrote songs for Mark Farner's solo debut and a pair of albums for the star of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Tim Curry, and more.

Since its initial release in 1975 "Only Women Bleed" has been covered by more than 30 artists, including Tina Turner, Etta James, Guns N' Roses, Lita Ford, Carmen McRae and Tori Amos.

At the behest of producer Bob Ezrin, Wagner flew to Toronto and recorded guitar on seven tracks of the Air Supply studio album that included this song.

In 2011, Wagner was diagnosed with normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH), a type of dementia which affects, among other things, fine motor skills and gait.

In late 2011, after successful surgery at Barrow Neurological Hospital in Phoenix, Arizona, Wagner was able to make a significant recovery, regaining almost all of the dexterity which had been lost over the course of the disorder's progression.

The record was then mixed in Phoenix by Otto D'Agnolo at Chaton Studios, and mastered by Wagner's longtime friend and collaborator, Gil Markle.

The Mugshots - "a majestic Euro-American combination of classic rock and dark stories"[12] in the musician's words - are known to be the only band to have recorded a cover version of "Pass the Gun Around", written by Wagner back in 1983 for Alice Cooper's eighth solo studio album DaDa.

In 2013 and 2014, after suffering more than six years of extreme health adversities: two heart attacks, a stroke, a paralyzed left arm, a diagnosis of hydrocephalus (NPH) two brain surgeries, a pacemaker and more, Wagner's guitar playing facilities had returned, and he fully resumed performing, touring with the Dick Wagner Band, writing songs and producing music.

Leading up to his death, Wagner's projects included producing and writing for Danish rock star, Maryann Cotton, in a concept album and TV project reminiscent of Wagner's shock rock history, a featuring in the forthcoming third solo album of the Italian rocker Chris Catena, entitled Return of the Freak.

[13] In November 2013, Wagner released his song and video tribute, "If I Had the Time (I Could Change the World)", on various digital download sites to raise money for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

Wagner gathered more than 50 musicians to record at Sunset Sound Recorders in Los Angeles, including Mark Farner on lead vocals; Danny Seraphine on drums; Leland Sklar; Fred Mandel on piano; Elliot Easton; Jennifer Batten; Merrilee Rush; and Trini Lopez and Laurie Beebe Lewis on lead vocals.

In November 2011 Wagner, along with Detroit musicians Ray Goodman, Dennis Burr, Prakash John, Jim McCarty, Johnny Bee Badanjek, Jimmie Bones, Ty Stone, Robert Wagner, Muruga and Pat Lewis, recorded Motor City Music at Harmonie Park Studios in Detroit in support of Franciscan friar Brother Al Mascia's "Bicycle Ministry."

Mascia pedals a bicycle cart around the streets of downtown Detroit, delivering hot drinks, food and warm clothing to the homeless.

Footage from her performance, featuring Wagner on guitar, was interspersed with researched data on abuse among a variety of age groups and cultures, along with empowering photos of women from around the world.