Alligator is an album by the American musician Leslie West, released in 1989 on I.R.S. Records. West supported the album by participating in the Guitar Speak and Night of the Guitars tours.
I.R.S. allowed West the freedom to make the album he wanted. Stanley Clarke played bass on "Whiskey" and "All of Me". Johnette Napolitano sang on the cover of Free's "The Stealer". "I Put a Spell on You" is a cover of the Screamin' Jay Hawkins song. The liner notes contain a recipe for alligator chili.
The Province deemed the album "as patchy as any of his solo LPs but it highlights his recent work with a Casio guitar synthesizer and his fluid, crying styleâÂÂa style still rooted in rock and blues that is different from voguish speed merchants." The Chicago Sun-Times called it "an eclectic collection of songs that highlights West's deft electric guitar-playing skills and passion for unusual material."
The Daily Breeze opined that the "'Hall of the Mountain King/Theme from Exodus' medley, one of the album's most painful episodes, sounds like it was accidentally recorded during a rehearsal." The San Diego Union-Tribune noted that "instrumentals 'Waiting for the F Change', 'Whiskey', 'All of Me' and 'Alligator' promise much, but West seems to lose concentration, grow bored or something."
AllMusic wrote that West "plays some hot guitar here, of course, but then not as much as one might like, and he sings a lot here, too, perhaps more than one might like."