ALICE COOPER Was 'Unbelievably Shocked' By CHRIS CORNELL's Suicide

In a brand new interview with Meltdown Of Detroit's WRIF radio station, legendary rocker Alice Cooper was asked for his opinion on the passing of LINKIN PARK singer Chester Bennington, just two months after the suicide of SOUNDGARDEN frontman Chris Cornell.

"I worked with Chris Cornell, I wrote a couple of songs with Chris for 'The Last Temptation' album," Alice said (hear audio below). "And I just went, 'This guy has got the whole package.' I'd never seen anybody that had the package as much as he did, when it comes to just talent, guitar playing, singing, songwriting, charisma… the whole thing. So I was unbelievably shocked by that one. I didn't get that one. I didn't understand that one at all. A suicide on that level, I went, 'Why?' I'm like everybody else, going, 'Why?' And then Chester Bennington, same thing. Chester is one of those guys I played golf with… well, I was teaching him golf. And we talked about music the whole time. And he was in two bands at the same time — LINKIN PARK and I think [STONE TEMPLE PILOTS] he was in. [He had] great kids, great family, no financial problems and then all of a sudden he's dead. And you go, 'Why? What is going on?' I don't get it at all. I really don't get it. I've never had any kind of depression, so I can't speak for that. I don't think it was drugs, I don't think it was any of that. I think it was just a matter of maybe clinical depression."

Adding that "you couldn't find two people with more potential than those two guys," Cooper said that "it was kind of the same thing with Scott Weiland," referring to the former STONE TEMPLE PILOTS singer who died in December 2015 of an accidental drug overdose. "That guy had the whole package also, and yet decided that heroin was more important than that. But these guys, I don't really think their thing was a drug problem. I think it was more of a physical problem. I think it had something to do with clinical depression."

After Cornell died two months ago, Bennington wrote a letter thanking him for inspiring him and hoping he would find peace in "the next life."

Chester died on July 20, which would have been Cornell's 53rd birthday.

The two singers bonded when they toured together nearly a decade ago.

Cooper's new album, "Paranormal", was released on July 28 via earMUSIC. The disc features two songs written and recorded with the original members of the ALICE COOPER band and also has guest appearances by ZZ TOP guitarist Billy Gibbons, U2 drummer Larry Mullen and Roger Glover of DEEP PURPLE.