School's Out

At long last with this and the Killer reissue, long time fans get some well overdue further deluxe issues of classic Alice Cooper Group albums. Let's hope Love it to Death and Muscle of Love follow soon as die-hard fans have been waiting long enough for what are still, with Welcome to my Nightmare and it's follow up 2, the cream of the crop of Alice Cooper's back catalogue. The vinyl reissue is a must have for fans of the original group as not only does it have the open up desk and while not the same as on the original, has reinstated the paper knickers but goes even further by opening up like a book to have further thick pages to house the text and photos but more of that later.As others have said it is an excellent remaster of the original album making it the definitive version, as while all the Bob Ezrin Cooper Group productions were very well produced in the first place, Schools Out was probably the one that always needed a remaster job as it always seemed both muddier and over trebly in its original release format compared to the others.The second and third vinyl and second cd version house the bonus tracks. What we get is an excellent for its age live 1972 Killer concert one of the last ones before the Schools Out tour proper itself and marks the transition between the two tours with a very long extended in the middle version of Schools Out itself, being the only change from the Killer set replacing Under my Wheels that was recorded six weeks earlier and is included on the Killer deluxe edition. That earlier concert has a short instrumental take of Schools Out as part of the encore. Both the live sets are great examples of Glen Buxton at his fiery best with his unique stinging guitar and before substance abuse finally caught up with him and made him a passenger with little input on the last two Cooper Group albums and tours. The only question is now will we ever get a cleaned up Schools Out tour live official release, Hollywood Bowl and Toronto being two known recordings, even if on the former, Alice himself is extremely inebriated. They are the only AC Group tour where they play Public Animal number 9 and the extended Gutter Cat verses the Jets tracks live. We are now very well served by live Killer shows with three in total if you include St Louis from the Old School multi cd set. What I do appreciate is that both on this and the Killer deluxe the studio demos and outtakes do not reproduce any of the tracks from the Life and Crimes of Alice Cooper and the Old School multi disc sets. I am glad they have included the single version of Schools Out so you can compare the different mixes and at long last the edit of the b side Gutter Cat which is quite different in places with Dennis Dunaway's bass intro loud and clear from the first note rather then how it is faded in on the album version. Also the West Side story instrumental theme in the middle has a radically different mix on what sounds like an organ not being half as trebly or hysterical sounding as the album version and of course as it is an edit without the second half of the album version the shout at the end of the full album version ends the single version while the l.p. version goes into the Jets part of the song. Well worth finally having in digital form, as is the demo version of Elected which clearly still has at this early stage some of the origins of the Pretties for you track 'Reflected'and as far as I know has never been available even on bootleg. It is a fascinating listen in much the same way as 'Respect for the Sleepers' was as the early version of 'Muscle of Love' A real gem. Agree with those that say the single denser mix version of Elected should also have been included as times wise it was recorded very soon after the album. Alma Mater has some different lyrics but all in all what is included makes it and the Killer deluxe an essential purchase. Buy the cds for easy playability and if you can stretch financially both the vinyl deluxe releases, as they are things of great beauty that will amass in value with all the extras and deluxe packaging they come with and are already getting scarce. Why four stars and not five? I would have ditched the Creem editor fan pieces for more outtake photos from the album cover sessions and live period photos. The fan piece could still have been accommodated as part of a booklet in both, whileBand photos, especially colour ones would have enhanced even further the packaging. Schools Out is better in that respect as we get a couple of period outtakes and individual group member live shots while Killer only gives us two outtake from the hanging photo session while we know there are various greatcolour outtakes from the Killer album cover session, best of which adorned the very first edition of Michael Bruce's and Dennis Dunaway's autobiographies.

Have to be honest i have always had an uneasy relationship with this album,The Glorious title track not withtanding the rest of this disc never really resonated with me,certainly 'Public Enemy #9' and 'Blue Turk' are interesting but the rest ,well played but just dont stick with me.The original album would be a 3 star album for me.Disc 1 : The original album with an excellent remaster,the musician ship outstanding but i still feel the same about the material.I have to say listening to the album for the first time in many a year,i realise how much the 'single ' version of 'Schools Out' has seeped into my consciousness,the full album version sounds like im hearing it for the first time,all the differences amplified,like meeting a long lost friend.Disc 2 : Another rough and ready live gig from 1972,essentially the same set list,slightly different running order to the live disc on the 'KILLER ' Deluxe release with only 'Under My Wheels' replaced with 'Schools Out' . Its another fabulous energised performance.The bonus tracks,not quite as good as the 'KILLER' release,we get the 'Single versions of 'Schools Out' and 'Gutter Cat',the former is the one most have heard and is certainly the bands signature tune while the former seems a fairly pointless exercise. The 2 outakes/alternative version are interesting,'Alma Mater not much different while 'Elected' is a reworking of 'Reflected' which first appeared on 'Easy Action' from 1970 and would be fully realised on 'Billion Dollar Babies'.This release comes in lovely digipak with excellent booklet/liner notes,its unfortunate,in my opinion that it was sandwiched between the classic KILLER and ,the arguably best Alice cooper band album BILLION DOLLAR BABIES,it kinda gets lost plus the material on the 2 aforementioned albums is way better. Still this edition is worth 4 stars.

brilliant

Classic album from AC nicely presented.

This edition, along with Killer, is long overdue. The original album still feels like the soundtrack for a stage show with a second side of less essential filler. The first side is still a great listen, and the playing and arrangements are a triumph.The bonus disc is essential for the AC fan: the single version of Schools Out is still glorious. The concert is the Killer show with Schools Out as a closing, extended piece still work in progress. There's some fluffs but it's rock-and-roll in the raw, dynamic and great fun.Killer is the stronger overall album and it's great that has had the upgrade treatment. Now can we hope for 'Love It to Death?'Great stuff...4 stars but if I could give another half, I would. Killer is a straight 5. Both are fun, well packaged and worth owning.