''School's Out'' is the fifth studio album by American rock band

Alice Cooper Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guillot ...

, released in 1972. Following on from the success of ''Killer'', ''School's Out'' reached No. 2 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart and No. 1 on the Canadian ''

RPM 100 ''RPM'' ( and later ) was a Canadian music-industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. ''R ...

'' Top Albums chart, holding the top position for four weeks. The single " School's Out" reached No. 7 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, No. 3 on the Canadian ''RPM'' Top Singles Chart and went to No. 1 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

Packaging

The original album cover (designed by Craig Braun) had the sleeve opening in the manner of a wooden school desk, similar to '' Thinks: School Stinks'', by

Hotlegs Hotlegs (very briefly Doctor Father) was a short-lived English band best known for their hit single "Neanderthal Man (song), Neanderthal Man" in 1970. The band consisted of Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley, Lol Creme and – briefly – Graham Gouldm ...

, released two years earlier. The vinyl record inside was wrapped in a pair of

panties Panties (in American English; also called pants, undies, or knickers in British English) are a form of women's underwear. Panties can be form-fitting or loose. Typical components include an elastic waistband, a crotch panel to cover the genit ...

, though this was later discontinued as the paper panties were found to be flammable. The desk photographed for the album cover is on display in the

Hard Rock Cafe Hard Rock Cafe, Inc. is a British-based multinational chain of theme restaurants, memorabilia shops, casinos and museums founded in 1971 by Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton in London. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and r ...

in Las Vegas.

Reception

Ian Chapman has put forward a theory that it was a concept album about youth lost when leaving school.

Live performances

Although the title track remains the most-performed song in Alice Cooper’s live shows, in accordance with the conceptual nature of ''School’s Out'', the album has overall a smaller representation in his live setlist than '' Love It to Death'', ''

Killer A killer is someone or something that kills, such as a murderer or a serial killer. Killer may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters * Killer (''Home and Away''), a character from ''Home and Away'' * Killer Kane, ...

'', ''

Billion Dollar Babies ''Billion Dollar Babies'' is the sixth studio album by American rock band Alice Cooper, released on February 25, 1973, by Warner Bros. Records. The album became the best selling Alice Cooper record at the time of its release, hit number one on t ...

'', or '' Welcome to My Nightmare'', accounting for only 6.8 percent of the songs Cooper has played live. “Gutter Cat Vs. The Jets” and “Public Animal #9” were the only other ''School’s Out'' songs played on the supporting ''School’s Out For Summer ‘72'' tour, but neither became a permanent part of setlist and “Gutter Cat” was last performed in 2004 on the ''

Eyes of Alice Cooper ''The Eyes of Alice Cooper'', released in 2003, is the sixteenth solo album by American rock musician Alice Cooper. With this album, Cooper returned to his earlier hard rock sound, in the vein of '' The Last Temptation'', and left the heavy ind ...

'' tour. Short instrumental “Street Fight” was never performed until the 1980 ''

Flush the Fashion ''Flush the Fashion'' is the fifth solo studio album by American singer Alice Cooper, released on April 28, 1980 by Warner Bros. Records. It was recorded at Cherokee Studios in Los Angeles with producer Roy Thomas Baker, known for his work with Q ...

'' tour, and was last played on the ''School’s Out for Summer ‘97'' tour, whilst “My Stars” was a regular part of setlists on the 1973-74 ''

Tour'' but never played again until 2019 when it became a regular on the '' Ol' Black Eyes Is Back Tour''. “Blue Turk”, “Alma Mater” and “Grand Finale” have never been performed live, and “Luney Tune” only once, during the ''Psychodrama Tour'' at

Grand Canyon University Grand Canyon University (GCU) is a private for-profit Christian university in Phoenix, Arizona. Based on student enrollment, Grand Canyon University was the largest Christian university in the world in 2018, with 20,000 attending students on c ...

on May 9, 2009 with Cooper tribute band Halo of Flies.

Track listing

Personnel

Alice Cooper band *

– vocals *

Glen Buxton Glen Edward Buxton (November 10, 1947 – October 19, 1997) was an American musician, best known as the lead guitarist for the rock band Alice Cooper. In 2003, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine ranked him number 90 on its list of the "100 Greatest Guita ...

– lead guitar * Michael Bruce – rhythm guitar, keyboards, backing vocals *

Dennis Dunaway Dennis Dunaway (born December 9, 1946, in Cottage Grove, Oregon) is an American musician, best known as the original bass guitarist for the rock band Alice Cooper (1962–1975, 1999, 2010, 2011, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021). He co-wrote some of the ...

– bass guitar, backing vocals * Neal Smith – drums, backing vocals Additional musicians *

Bob Ezrin Robert Alan Ezrin (born March 25, 1949) is a Canadian music producer and keyboardist, best known for his work with Lou Reed, Alice Cooper, Aerosmith, Kiss, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Peter Gabriel, Andrea Bocelli and Phish. As of 2010, Ezrin's car ...

– keyboards *

Dick Wagner 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. He also fronted his own Michigan-based bands, the Frost and the Bo ...

– guitar *

Wayne Andre Wayne Andre (November 17, 1931 – August 26, 2003) was an American jazz trombonist, best known for his work as a session musician. Andre's father was a saxophonist, and he took private music lessons from age 15. He played with Charlie Spivak in ...

– trombone on "Blue Turk"

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control Alice Cooper albums 1972 albums Albums produced by Bob Ezrin Albums recorded at Record Plant (New York City) Concept albums Warner Records albums