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

Alice Cooper Vincent Damon Furnier (born February 4, 1948), known by his stage name Alice Cooper, is an American rock singer and songwriter whose career spans sixty years. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusion ...

, released in June 1972. Following the success of ''Killer'', the album 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. ''RP ...

'' Top Albums chart, holding the top position for four weeks. The single "

School's Out School's Out may refer to: Film and television * ''School's Out'' (1930 film), a short film in the Our Gang series * ''School's Out'' (1992 film), a Canadian TV movie based on the series ''Degrassi High'' * '' The Substitute 2: 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.

Packaging

The original

album cover An album cover (also referred to as album art) is the front packaging art of a commercially released album, studio album or other audio recordings. The term can refer to: * the printed paperboard covers typically used to package: ** sets of a ...

(designed by

Craig Braun Craig Braun (born June 1, 1939) is an American actor and former graphic designer. Famous for his album covers with Andy Warhol and Tom Wilkes, he and Wilkes won a Grammy in 1974 for ''Tommy'', an award Braun had been nominated for twice previously ...

) 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" in 1970. The band consisted of Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley, Lol Creme and – briefly – Graham Gouldman. In 1972, the band r ...

, released two years earlier. The band members' names appear in the form of

graffiti Graffiti (singular ''graffiti'', or ''graffito'' only in graffiti archeology) is writing or drawings made on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from simple written "monikers" to elabor ...

carved into the desk. The vinyl record inside was wrapped in a pair of

panties Panties are women's form-fitting underpants. Typical components include an elastic waistband, a crotch panel to cover the genitalia (usually lined with absorbent material such as cotton), and a pair of leg openings that, like the waistband, ...

, 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 chain of theme restaurant, theme bar-restaurants, memorabilia shops, casinos, hotels and museums founded in 1971 by Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton in London. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and roll ...

in Las Vegas.

Reception

Ian Chapman has put forward a theory that it was a

concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...

about youth lost when leaving school.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

reviewer Tim Sendra states that "half the joy derived from listening to ''School's Out'' is to marvel at how daringly the band took all the goodwill they had engendered to this point and blew up their just-barely-established template in fascinating, almost reckless ways.

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 ''Love It to Death'' is the third studio album by American rock band Alice Cooper, released on March 9, 1971. It was the band's first commercially successful album and the first album that consolidated the band's aggressive hard-rocking sound, ...

'', ''

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, the secondary antagonist of the 1989 animated film ''All Dogs Go to He ...

'', ''

Billion Dollar Babies ''Billion Dollar Babies'' is the sixth studio album by American rock band Alice Cooper, released on February 27, 1973 The album became the best selling Alice Cooper record at the time of its release, hitting number one on the album charts in the ...

'', or ''

Welcome to My Nightmare ''Welcome to My Nightmare'' is the debut solo and overall eighth studio album by American rock musician Alice Cooper, released on March 11, 1975 by Atlantic Records. A concept album, its songs played in sequence form a journey through the nightm ...

'', 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'' tour. Short instrumental "Street Fight" was never performed until the 1980 ''

Flush the Fashion Flush may refer to: Places * Flush, Kansas, a community in the United States Architecture, construction and manufacturing * Flush cut, a type of cut made with a French flush-cut saw or diagonal pliers * Flush deck, in naval architecture * F ...

'' tour, and was last played on the ''School's Out for Summer '97'' tour, while "My Stars" was a regular part of setlists on the 1973–1974 ''

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 university, private For-profit higher education in the United States, for-profit Christian university in Phoenix, Arizona. The university offers degrees in over 200 areas of study and is administrativel ...

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 guitarist who played lead guitar for the rock band Alice Cooper. In 2003, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine ranked him number 90 on its list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of ...

– 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. He co-wrote some of the band's most notable songs, including "I'm Eighteen" and ...

– 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, Ezri ...

– 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 Boss ...

– 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. Early life Wayne Andre was born November 17, 1931 in Manchester, ConnecticuAndre's father was a saxophonist, a ...

Packaging

Reception

Live performances

Track listing

Personnel

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

Further reading