School's Out

Initial thoughts as I started listening: Great week for short albums, I think this is 4 in a row that are about 35 mins. Love Alice Cooper, you know what you're going to get here. After actually listening: You DO NOT know what you're going to get here. That was a trip, after 2 fairly basic rock tunes to open this album went on a wild trip across musical theatre, blues, jazz, and an orchestral closer. I can see people being put off by this but I really enjoyed it, while it was all over the map there was still a cohesion to it, and the amount of creativity and talent that went in is on display big time.

I wasn't expecting the sounds of this album to be as varied as they are.

A broadway show with guitars and snakes.

School's Out catapulted Alice Cooper into the hard rock stratosphere, largely due to its timeless, all-time classic title track. But while the song became Alice's highest-charting single ever (reaching number seven on the U.S. charts) and recalled the brash, three-and-a-half-minute garage rock of yore, the majority of the album signaled a more complex compositional directional for the band. Unlike Cooper's previous releases (Love It to Death, Killer), which contained several instantly identifiable hard rock classics, School's Out appears to be a concept album, and aside from the aforementioned title track anthem, few of the other tracks have ever popped up in concert. That's not to say they weren't still strong and memorable; while such cuts as "Gutter Cat vs. the Jets," "Street Fight," "My Stars," and "Grande Finale" came off like mini-epics with a slightly progressive edge, Alice Cooper still managed to maintain their raw, unrefined punk edges, regardless. Other highlights included the rowdy "Public Animal #9," the mid-paced "Luney Tune," and the sinister, cabaret-esque "Blue Turk."

'Schools out' might be the hit record but 'Blue Turk' is the piece de resistance on this enjoyable album.

The rockin' title track matches the energy of kids starting their summer. The rest of the album is good, too, but you just can't beat the excitement of the first day out of school.

Very bluesy, awesome album with a different sound every song and high school themes. I love it.

This is some classic rock with a great jazzy element.

Ok, I must be tripping because outside of the title track, this sound less like what I expected Alice Cooper to sound like and closer to an Amon Düül II record in spots. A proggy, psychedelic surprise.

Very surprising. Was not excited to give this a listen as I've grown up with (and every elementary school final day singing) "School's Out" and knowing some more of AC's hits, I did not expect the pleasantly *weird* variety herein. The track "School's Out" needs no review other than everybody knows it, it's silly fun, but honestly nothing like what's to come and the least-interesting song on the album.... ...horn-infested and more than a little creepy "Blue Turk" ...the West Side Story-ish "Gutter Cat vs The Jets" ..."Alma Mater" sounds like it was stolen from a Paul McCartney and Wings session. ..."My Stars" could (or should) have been a deep-cut on Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (and frankly better than some of its throwaway tracks). Alice(the singer - as this was also the name of the band at the time)'s vocals are almost instantly recognizable - for better or worse - but aside from that I would not have been able to identify any of these as an Alice Cooper recording. Preconceived notions shattered. As a collection, the relatively short (37 minutes) length is perfect as it ends before it might get tiring. I almost can't believe I'm saying this but after 3 listens today I would listen to this again. 7/10 4 stars

Not what I expected, Blue Turk was nice.

Consistently unexpected song structures and proficient instrumentation redeem this record that would otherwise come off as a campy, kiddy halloween affair, similar to Alice Cooper's stage act at its most worn out. Plenty of great tongue-in-cheek moments to boot ("Grande Finale", "Alma Mater"). There's lots to like here even if it is sometimes insufferably whacky in a 70s "freak-out" sort of way. This is the type of record you'd hear spinning at an independently owned novelty shop.

Sounds like a concept album for a musical about a rebel in an American High school. Couple of cool songs and School's Out is obviously a classic, but a bit lightweight from someone like Alice Cooper, not what I expected

I've never been a fan of Alice Cooper. I was surprised by some horns and jazz/soul type arrangements, but i have no urge to seek this one out.

Two words. Fuck yeah!

Expected a cheesy glam rock stomper, based on the ludicrous opening title track, but was really surprised to get an album of great blues/soul/funk with some really great tunes and a lot of riffs and sounds that wouldn't be out of place in the 60s or 90s. Drifts towards cheese at points but holds together excellently.

This was actually pretty great! I thought of him as like an 80s artist, maybe for the makeup look etc, but this came out in 72 and is pretty classic rock oriented. Couple great songs and has a West Side Story twinge

-An incredible album -"School's Out" is in the uppermost echelon of songs that I just expect everyone to know/have heard. It's also a banger. Incredible opening riff, iconic and relatable lyrics, and the hilarious "We can't even think of a word that rhymes" lyric. -The rest of the album is super cool as well, with great instrumentals to back intriguing mini-story lyrics.

LP

This is the first album on here that I haven't listened to before to earn a five. I enjoyed everything about it!

Solid album. If I were a teen in the 70s, I would've gone nuts over his music. What an interesting collection of songs, and I especially like the inclusion of brass instruments - I was just thinking about horns in rock songs & how they often add that extra kick. Metal heads & goths owe a lot to Alice. He's the Godfather of the macabre.

Alice Cooper au début des années 70, c'est un des meilleurs Rock qu'on aura jamais. On ne peut pas en dire autant d'Alice Cooper dans les années 80. Prefs: TOUT Moins pref: RIEN

I've always been a big fan of Alice and, of course, heard the title track of this album many, many times. Oddly enough I have never listened to this album in its entirety. Many of the tracks are superior to the title track. While I do not like it quite as much as, "Love It to Death", it is still solid. I can hear the Ezrin and Zappa influences here. 5 stars.

Just a solid rock album even after School's Out

5/5. Hard rockin rager man 😎🤘

Much like the great Vincent Furnier, I also often spontaneously break into show tunes mid-way through street fights. If I may make a comparison that I assure you, dear reader, will hurt me more than yourself, I think a good point of comparison to Alice Cooper in their early years as a band is KISS. Both were known for their shocking makeup, theatrical live shows, and heavy Rock sound. And Alice Cooper pull it off so much more effectively. KISS, outside of their look, were always just another run-of-the-mill 70’s Hard Rock group. There was some Blues influence on some of the slower tracks, and some of the poppier ones could be considered Glam-adjacent but the only thing that could be considered actually interesting about their music and performances was all due to the makeup and the pyrotechnics. Alice Cooper got to the theatricality first. And they did it while also making music that was strange and experimental without sacrificing any of it’s Proto-Punk edge. School’s Out, their fifth album, is the project where their theatrical nature first came to the forefront of their sound. Their third album Love It To Death had refined their early sound into a classic Hard Rock rasp, and following album Killer had introduced a more Glam and Experimental edge with a horn section and multi-part suites. School’s Out sticks with these innovations and dials them up to 11. There are more horns, more keyboards, more nods to Musical Theatre. It’s an ambitious project that, like the excellent Blue Turk, often feels like it’s about to fall apart into a ramshackle mess, but is always somehow kept together. I think the key to the musics stickativeness is also the key to my preference to the band over KISS. Listen to the musical and vocal run in the second half of My Stars verse. It’s a fairly sophisticated musical phrase. When I showed it to my brother, he suggested it sounded a bit like a flamenco run. And yet it’s held together in a Hard Rock context by Alice Cooper himself, and the sheer attitude with which he sings the damn thing. Attitude. That’s all it is. But attitude is so important in Rock, and if your personality is gonna be that of a group of Detroit street kids who try and shock with snakes, fake executions and quotations from Rodgers and Hammerstein, you’d better be secure in your convictions. I really love the self awareness that this album has. It’s all a bit silly, and over the top. But as a semi-concept album about high school losers and jokers, that makes perfect sense. We’re all a bit silly and over the top in school, trying to make an impression, trying to make the best of our time of relative freedom before bing ground up by the capitalist work system. I’ve always assumed that Alma Mater was an answering machine message sent to the narrator’s high school buddied before he left for college or work in the big city, and his realisation that despite having thought of his time as that of a ‘lifer in the state penitentiary’ he’s actually gotten out. And he’s likely never gonna see these people ever again. But at least they’ll always have the memories… they’re never gonna forget each other… right… right?

This might be my most pleasant surprise so far. Absolutely fantastic.

West Side Story jumpscare - good throughout, 1st track legendary

I'll admit, I'm surprised this one got into the book over the previous 2 Alice Cooper band albums (Love It To Death and Killer). This isn't to say it's a bad album, far from it, I just find it weaker overall when compared to those two albums. School's Out the song is a classic though and should be heralded as a classic.

This was completely different from what I expected, and almost like Stray Cats for a second. Good thing I love Stray Cats.

I thought I'd enjoy that. Did not expect it to be a 5-star though

Rain is falling down my cheek Searching for the sea Tomorrow, like the rain I'll be back home again I watch, the bus As it pulls out of view Someday like that bus I will be leaving too But you know It breaks my heart To leave you Camelback My high school And now, alone Crying in my beer Cause old friends said goodbye I guess I'll be leaving too Yeah, this is absolutely a great album and worth the listen and then some. 5/5

Wow, Alice Cooper is way more innovative than I thought!

Amazing album! Way more prog than I thought it be. Go Cooper!

I had no idea it was so cinematic and had such groovy attitude. I know his deal, and I know his hits, but this was like a complete rock opera almost and was just a total blast. So pleasantly surprised by all the blues and jazz influences, too. Completely silly but also amazing. Wild to think he was 24 but it was like his third or fourth album already.

I already love Alice Cooper!!!

Grandioso descubrimiento. Cuanto talento, sonidos novedosos, una garra super llamativa. Es potente sin caer en ser desagradable ni estruendoso. Muchísimo ritmo, con variación de instrumentos, por época tuvo que ser bastante innovador en su momento. Muchas de las piezas quedan para mi lista personal, puesto que me ha encantado. Muy recomendable

I like his music and songs very much! This album is brilliant! School's Out song is a masterpiece! It is one of my favorite by Alice Cooper! Alice Cooper forever!

It's bloomin ace. In the book, it's described as overproduced, but Alice Cooper is all about artifice, it's exactly the right amount of produced. It gives no time to concepts like genre, opening with the punky hard rock of Schools out, then ambling through FM rock, jazz, musicals and nostalgic balladry and doing it all well! Underrated classic.

Unexpected! Almost like listening to a musical

Listened all day!! There was some favourtism bias for a few songs due to nostalgia and childhood, but ones I didn't know before quickly became everyday favourites that I'll be listening to forma long time 💜

One of my favourite albums from my early teens. Good hard driving rock and roll!

One rocking album. Hadn't heard before. Loved it.

Das ist wahrlich ein frisches, unbekümmertes, spielfreudiges und niveauvoll arrangiertes Album. Es macht richtig Spaß dieses Album zu hören. Kein Lückenfüller. Sehr auffällig ist das kleine Meisterwerk aus "West Side Story" in einer Hardrock-jazzigen Version: "Gutter Cat vs. the Jets" / "Street Fight". Hammer. Alice Cooper habe ich bisher unterschätzt und bin jetzt ganz begeistert.

I used to listen to the track School’s Out sooo much growing up but never listened to the album. Hopefully the rest is as good as the track. If you played Gutter Cat Vs. The Jets to me blind I would’ve guessed it’s a Les Claypool song. Sick ass baseline and weird af. Love this song. Blue Turk doesn’t have nearly enough Donald Faison but still a sick jazzy one. Great tune. Kept thinking how My Stars would be sweet to listen to live. Gonna try to dig one up on YouTube after this run. Grande Finale was just that. Crazy sounds! Reminded me of Pink Floyd a bit. Love a good concept album. Was leaning towards a 4 but that last song and the fact it’s a concept album sealed the deal for me. 5 stars great output, Alice.

Much more varied than I expected

never listened to alice cooper before except from his big hits like poison, no more mr nice guy and the title track schools out. man this album was so much not what i expected, it was awesome. elements of jazz rock. loved it

I think I'd say that this is a perfect glam rock with an edge type of album

Love this. Hello Detroit.

cool

Alice Cooper returns to high school! This is an straight ahead rocker that hints at his theatrical style to come Enjoyed reliving this one. Had this one in the original vinyl package

I gave the last Alice Cooper album I was given a warm review because, fun. Obviously I'm familiar with the title track of this album but I'm going into it thinking "do we need more than one Alice Cooper album on this list"? Indeed we do! I guess I'd consider this to be a concept album? It is surely a weird wonderful ride. Five stars. Five very fun stars.

fuck yeah alice cooper

Quite the unexpected journey but I loved every second and genre change.

Se sintio muy theatrical y el jets song!!! 😭😭😭😭 peed my panties right there. y en grand finale

5 stars

sounded pretty fun on the first listen but I wanted to give it a second one just to be sure and it was really so much better once I was adjusted to it such a fun, weird, experimental album I get why a lot of people don’t care for it, but I thought it sounded really neat 9/10

that opening guitar riff is seared into my brain. it's one of the most iconic openings in all of music history! it's bangin', it's recognizable, it's lively. the riff was created by glen buxton, and it must be one of the most well known song intros. fun fact: the opening riff music notes are engraved on buxton's grave in clarion, iowa. truth be told, because "school's out" is such a classic and mind-blowing song, it overshadow rest of album. but with alice cooper as my favorite artist, i've listened to this album hundreds of times and i have such a soft spot for the rest of the album. the lyrics! alice cooper is one of my favorite songwriters, and too often i don't think he or the group gets their due. these lyrics are witty and enjoyable. some of it is dark in typical alice fashion. who doesn't enjoy the lyrics from "school's out"? this lyric from "blue turk" is actually one of my favorite lyrics ever: "tastes like roses on your breath/but graveyards on your soul." considering that the alice cooper group met in high school and this album is the group's second to last before their dissolution, this album reads like a tribute to their respective high schools in a musical format. so many of these songs are about school or reference cheating math tests. a song's title is even straight up "alma mater." i'm not sure if anyone could deny this is indeed a concept album. it isn't as tight as cooper's later solo albums but could possibly be the alice cooper group's most concept-y album. bob ezrin, notable producer of pink floyd, was definitely a contributor. "gutter cats vs. the jets" uses west side story (which uses the school theme as well), and of course the melody returns at the end of "grand finale." the final song of the album is even an instrumental!

Loved it

Very bluesy, awesome album with a different sound every song and high school themes. I love it.

I never listened to the whole album. Of course I knew the song School's Out. I thought it was timeless. An unsuccessful attempt to get my nephew excited about it, especially when he was in the right situation, proved me wrong. But now, I've listened to the album in its entirety. It wasn't what I expected, it was better. A really great album with interesting influences from different musical genres. It was a lot of fun. The album is worth listening to again. 5/5

This album is so much more quirky than I imagined. I really liked it!!

I made an "ew" face when this came up and now that I've listened I think my face should apologize. I loved it! These kind of rock-n-roll theatrics are totally my thing. I kind of wish I hadn't been looking at the lyrics because there was a very nice musical theater surprise awaiting me in the song Gutter Cat vs. (no spoilers). In addition to that one, I loved the jazzy Blue Turk, the epic My Stars, and the White-Album-esque Alma Mater. This was great unexpected fun. (But p.s. it's kind of cruel to assign School's Out homework to a college professor one week before the start of the school year.)

Based on the only two songs of theirs played on the radio, my impression was that Alice Cooper's music was just light-hearted and a bit silly. Now I see why they are considered one of the greats, and I will no longer be missing out!

I was led to believe (as a child of the 70s) that Alice Cooper was just too scary, and I'm a little upset to find that this album I've never listened to is magnificent and full of humor and musical variety. Even just the packaging with its model desk cover and panties album sleeve is celebration-worthy. Mind you, the title track has been a favorite of mine for years, and I should have suspected that the band was more fun than I thought (the lyric "We can't even think of a word that rhymes" has always made me laugh). Today I learned that "Alice Cooper" was the name of the band at this time as well as the persona of the lead singer. When a song about an alley cat segued into the "Jet Song," then went into the jazzy, meow-filled "Street Fight" my mind was blown. This album is taking me to incredible places. I don't even know how to begin describing "Public Animal #9" but I love it sooo much. "Alma Mater" is a wonderful closing to the school story. And then it's possible that "Grande Finale" is my favorite album closer of all time. Pow!!!

I went into this extremely familiar with the title track but never heard any of the rest of this album. “Schools Out” is such a classic that it makes me wonder why I’ve never heard of anything else on this album. Stir together guitar rock of the 70s and a generous helping of Broadway. Add bits of jazz and blues. Fold in marching band music and a trombone solo. Add generous helpings West Side Story. Blend. Bake into a deliciously wild and eclectic album. A genuine and wonderful surprise. I love it!

damn. banger

Fantastic

Surprisingly enjoyable!

awesome album. Never would have appreciate the range

This was an unexpected one for me. I always thought Alice Cooper was a cookie cutter hard rocker from the 70s and didn’t really dive too deep into his works, but this album showed a lot of range and soul. The last two tracks of the album sealed it for me.

it's an album I'm very familiar with so this will be a bit wordy. This was the Last Alice Cooper album that I really liked all the way through. I was 16 when this album came out and the previous album, Killer, was even better. The early albums had some great guitars, bass and drums. Schools Out - classic, big hit Looney Tune - There's a guitar part in this song that sounds very much like "ooh that smell" by Lynyrd Skynyrd which was released years later. Gutter Cat- love the bass intro and the overall musicality of the song and doing the west side story stuff was pretty clever. My Stars is a cool song, piano part is cool. Blue Turk is a really different but great song. Alma Mater - I still play the first seven chords to the song when I'm trying to tune my guitar. Overall I think it's a great album With a lot of catchy hooks.

Not at all what I expected from Alice cooper

Whether it was last day before: Xmas break, spring or fall break, or was last day of school... This album was rocked by everyone going to their cars. Not and was most students singing, there was teachers singing and it was the most nonchalant good bye but yet everyone felt equally included

Nice one! Inspiring Jazz Rock

There's more than meets the eye. I associated Cooper very much with metal and shockrock, maar this totally different. Pleasent surprise!

Vet inte alls vad jag ska ge den här skivan men kommer dra till med en fyra bara för att jag blev så förvånad? Aldrig lyssnat på Alice Cooper bortom hitsen, vem visste att de var ett jazzband??

Veel beter dan ik had verwacht. Mooi en gevarieerd plaatje. Ga ik zeker vaker draaien.

förvånandsvärt bra? me likey

Enjoyable!

Surprisingly fun and creative, wasn't expecting to enjoy this.

Lo escuché un par de veces y perdió mi atención. Lo volví a escuchar a conciencia y mi primera impresión fue que no combinaban las canciones, en especial Gutter Cat porque parece más de... de... musical? Entonces cambió mi perspectiva. El disco es como un musical, un disco concepto aunque creo que no desarrolla como tal una historia sino que captura diferentes momentos de chicos que acabaron la preparatoria y que, según vemos en la canciones, no tuvieron los mejores desenlaces. Aunque quizá sea obvio esto, el darme cuenta me permitió quitarme esta expectativa de lo que "debería estar escuchando" y verdaderamente disfruté este disco. Dejando la alineación clásica de una banda de rock, las canciones incluyen metales y sintetizadores para crear una obra maestra. La primera canción, que es la más conocida y que da nombre al disco, nos encamina en una dirección engañosa de música sencilla y riffs pegajosos pero el resto del disco no es así. Las diferentes escenas que retrata cada canción están muy bien construidas, letras que no son obvias aunque con atención no son difíciles de descifrar y arreglos musicales extraordinarios. Al revisar las letras sí me pude formar la imagen que creo que buscaban expresar. Tracks: My Stars, Luney Tune, Public Animal #9

'School's Out' è una delle mie canzoni preferite, quindi questo album parte almeno da 4* Purtroppo perde un po' di mordente, ho trovato bella 'Gutter Cat vs. the Jets'

I only knew the title track and the reputation of Alice Cooper as a shock rocker but this was completely unexpected. A wide variety of music that was completely unexpected.

Far Bluesier than I thought and much better than expected too!

Buena conjunción de banda de rock, encabezada por el carismático Alice Cooper. Rock sin estridencias y con buenos ritmos.

Gotta love some classic Alice Cooper

So weird and so over the top. Alice Cooper was totally somewhere else with his music. I liked it a lot.

None of the songs bested the title track, but it was still a pretty good album. Not as good as billion dollar babies but still good. Very eclectic production

Solid

Man I love classic rock. Full of energy and way ahead of it’s time considering it came out in 1972. Alice cooper is sick. Favourite track - school’s out

Segunda audição confirma a verdadeira aula de hard rock

Alice & his band were still trying to find their sound at this point but really hit a sweet spot with the title track and a few others. Their music was always more interesting with visual accompaniment but at the same time, what an exciting journey

Overall good, I'm not really a stadium rock fan but it's a good album! I could have done without the loud hissing at the end of My Stars, and the sexual undertones of Gutter Cat vs. The Jets, both minor things though.

4/9 Dude just makes great fucking albums. Standout Tracks: Gutter Cat vs. The Jets, Blue Turk, My Stars

I liked it - it had a lot of interesting aspects of musical songs.

De la seva primera época daurada, és el disc amb menys hits instantanis. Fora del tema titular, la resta són 'album songs', però això no les fa menors. Tot el contrari, és un dels discos d'Alice Cooper on més es pot tornar a descobrir nous matissos, des dels aires jazzístics de 'Blue Turk' al rock punyent de 'Gutter Cat vs the Jets', passant pel dramatisme d''Alma Mater'

Schoooooooooooooooooool's Out for eveeer

Decent enough album (3-4star)

Rock de Alice Cooper. Un megahit.