From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Department of Youth"
Single by Alice Cooper
from the album Welcome to My Nightmare
B-side"Cold Ethyl" (UK)
"Some Folks" (US)
ReleasedFebruary 1975 (UK)
  • August 1975 (US) [1]
Genre Hard rock
Length2:50
Label Atlantic Records 3280
Songwriter(s) Alice Cooper, Dick Wagner, Bob Ezrin
Producer(s) Bob Ezrin
Alice Cooper singles chronology
" Only Women Bleed"
(1975)
"Department of Youth"
(1975)
" Welcome to My Nightmare"
(1975)

"Department of Youth" is a song by rock musician Alice Cooper featured on his Welcome to My Nightmare album. [2] The song peaked at No. 67 on The Billboard Hot 100.

Reception

Creem said the song, "is a second cousin to " School's Out" with a chorus of child-things sounding like Cooper's dead babies resurrected to sing back-up vocals." [3] NME agreed it was, " School's Out" all over again, complete with demented kiddie choir and watered-down Clockwork Orange braggadoccio." [4]

Melody Maker wrote, "This is typical, a heavy metal Marc Bolan. It's gritty and gruesome, but underneath the yells and screaming arrangement, it's really just a simple, catchy pop song. Don't analyse it, just bop as Alice screeches his way up the chart." [5]

Record World said that "the supreme spokesman for angry young men everywhere is even more vital and exciting here." [6]

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1975) Peak
position
Australia ( Kent Music Report) [7] 7
U.S. (Billboard 100) 67

Year-end charts

Chart (1975) Peak
position
Australia ( Kent Music Report) [7] 35


Notable covers

Pretty Boy Floyd covered the song on their album, Porn Stars. [8]

References

  1. ^ "Great Rock Discography". p. 170.
  2. ^ Greg Prato. "Welcome to My Nightmare - Alice Cooper | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  3. ^ Jaan Uhelsxki. "Alice Cooper: Welcome To My Nightmare". Rock's Backpages.(Subscription required.)
  4. ^ Charles Shaar Murray. "Alice Cooper: Welcome To My Nightmare". Rock's Backpages.(Subscription required.)
  5. ^ Colin Irwin. "Singles from Elton John, David Bowie et al". Rock's Backpages.(Subscription required.)
  6. ^ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. August 2, 1975. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-03-09.
  7. ^ a b "National Top 100 Singles for 1975". Kent Music Report. December 29, 1975. Retrieved January 15, 2022 – via Imgur.
  8. ^ "Porn Stars - Pretty Boy Floyd | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. 1999-08-10. Retrieved 2016-10-10.