We continue our look back at the music of 50 years ago….
As many of you already discerned by the title of this piece…we are reviewing the concept LP “Schools Out” from Alice Cooper which came out in June 1972. An album dealing with juvenile deliquents thumbing their nose at school, adult authority & society in general…what’s more rock & roll than that?
It climbed to #2 on the charts and the title track with it’s awesome intro, ruled the radio in the early part of that summer.
This band was always more than just a gut-bucket rock band. These guys could play. Glen Buxton and Mike Bruce trade power chords and licks…and break out their jazz chops on ‘Blue Turk”. Neal Smith pounds the skins like a demon and Dennis Dunleavy drives the bass bus.
Speaking of “Blue Turk”…who expects a trombone to roll all over an Alice Cooper song. Especially a song that’s reportedly about necrophelia. Leave it to Alice to dress up disgusting behavior in a nice musical dress. Winking at the establishment the whole time.
Luney Tune, My Stars and Public Animal #9 kick ass too.
This album is almost prog-rock, but will always make its way back to it’s punk flavored roots(years before the punks cop his attitude)…no matter how many West Side Story snippets they play. Imagine Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim getting a royalty check in the mail from Alice Cooper. The thought makes me smile.
Alma Mater is another giggle-inducing tune. I would imagine his classmates would find it hard to forget Vincent Furnier. He wrote in his yearbook he wanted to sell a million records. Wonder how the rest of his classmates did?
