Alice Cooper’s School’s Out – The Story Behind The Sleeve

The cover of Alice Cooper’s fifth studio album, released in 1972, was a work of inspiration by Craig Braun, also the creator of The Rolling Stones’ Sticky Fingers zipper sleeve. The sleeve opens out like the wooden school desk depicted in its main image, which was shot by New York photographer Robert Otter.

Inside the original version, the record was wrapped in a pair of white, pink, yellow or blue paper panties. The image of the band looking strung out around a trashcan on the inside of the cover was shot by fashion photographer Roger Prigent.

Today, the desk used in the shoot is displayed in the Hard Rock Cafe in Las Vegas, while the original panties pressings were recalled. Original copies, with panties intact, sell for £150-200. School’s Out reached No. 2 in the US Billboard 200 chart, with the title track claiming the top spot in the UK Singles Chart.