VISITING US glam metal legend Alice Cooper was full of comedy and congratulations as he joined Australian rock royalty at the ARIA Hall Of Fame last night.

The singer helped open the Melbourne event with a bit of fun - arriving on stage dressed as a creepy spider.

"The ARIA Hall Of Fame show, how embarrassing, I'm in the wrong theatre," he joked. "To Mental As Anything, Little Pattie, Kev Carmody, The Dingoes and John Paul Young, congratulations on your induction into another Hall Of Fame that I'm not in."

Carmody, who was inducted by Missy Higgins, quipped that he must be the member with the lowest record sales. The pair then teamed up with others, including John Butler, to play From Little Things, Big Things Grow.

Meanwhile, the Mentals had a tense reunion with estranged drummer David Twohill.

Twohill sued the Mentals for unfair dismissal two years ago.

While he did not perform on stage with the original line-up, Twohill was presented with the Hall of Fame award with the rest of the band.

Mentals keyboardist Greedy Smith said the on stage reunion with Twohill was awkward.

"It's an interesting time for all of us,'' Smith says. "The last time we saw him was in court. Hopefully it goes someway towards getting normality. But it's not an uncommon thing in the world of music. We're not alone.''

Former members Reg Mombassa and Peter O'Doherty joined the band for the first time in eight years playing hits Live It Up, The Nips are Getting Bigger and If You Leave Me Can I Come Too.

"We're very fortunate in that radio plays a lot of our music still, to have someone put us in the Hall of Fame as well, it seems like overkill,'' Smith said.

"It certainly makes you reflective. You can't be reflective at 25, but when you pass 50, it's time to look back.''

Divinyls singer Chrissy Amphlett left her home in New York to induct her cousin, '60s popstar Little Pattie.

''She's never been little to me,'' Amphlett said. ''Rather large and luminous.''

Amphlett paid tribute to her cousin's work with war veterans.

Former Australian Idol star Lisa Mitchell performed a haunting version of Pattie's 1963 hit He's My Blonde Haired Real Gone Stompie Wompie Surfer Boy.

''It was an honour to meet her and put my stamp on that song,'' Mitchell said.

Also inducted were '70s rock band the Dingoes, fronted by Broderick Smith, who performed their hit Way Out West.

Indigenous songwriter Kev Carmody was also ushered into the Hall of Fame.

"I accepted this for the Koori culture, the community and the family,'' Carmody said. "It's a recognition of the input we've had on music. My songs came from what my grandmother, my mother, father, aunty and uncles told me. I'm just a conduit of stories.''

Carmody performed with fans Paul Kelly, Dan Kelly, Missy Higgins and John Butler.

Higgins also inducted Carmody.

"I couldn't imagine someone I respect more and that deserves it more than Kev,'' Higgins said. "It's a completely gushy speech because I absolutely love him.''

Popular inductee John Paul Young closed the performance with a trio of his biggest hits - I Hate the Music, Yesterday's Hero and the iconic Love is in the Air.

"I thought I'd get three years out of this. 37 years is pretty good. People were calling me a veteran and washed up in 1981, only a few years after Love is in the Air. But how could you retire from this business?''

The ARIA Hall of Fame airs on VH1 on Friday at 8.30pm and Channel 9 on Saturday at 2pm.

- with The Daily Telegraph