Album · 55 years old this year
Killer
Killer is the fourth studio album by Alice Cooper, then a band rather than a solo act, and it came out in November 1971 on Warner Bros. Records. It followed Love It to Death earlier that year and arrived just ahead of School's Out, so it sits right in the burst of records that carried the group from cult curiosity towards the mainstream.
The album reached No. 21 on the Billboard 200, and two singles made the Hot 100: "Under My Wheels" at No. 49 and "Be My Lover" at No. 59. Its mix of hard rock with touches of acid rock and glam makes it a good place to hear the band's sound between its rougher early records and the bigger productions that followed. Start with those two singles, then stay for the rest.
Killer: tracklist, credits and charts
8 tracks · 36:55Tracklist
- 1Under My WheelsBruce, Dunaway, Ezrin2:52
- 2Be My LoverMichael Bruce3:21
- 3Halo of FliesBruce, Buxton, Cooper, Dunaway, Smith8:22
- 4DesperadoMichael Bruce and Alice Cooper3:30
- 5You Drive Me NervousBruce, Cooper, Ezrin2:28
- 6Yeah, Yeah, YeahMichael Bruce and Alice Cooper3:39
- 7Dead BabiesBruce, Buxton, Cooper, Dunaway, Smith5:45
- 8KillerMichael Bruce and Dennis Dunaway6:58
- Produced by
- Bob Ezrin
- Executive producer
- Jack Richardson
- Recorded at
- RCA Studios (Chicago)
- Recorded
- 1971
- Engineered by
- Brian Christian
- Labels
- Warner Bros. Records, Warner Bros.
- Length
- 36:55
Line-up
- Michael Bruce · guitar, keyboard
- Glen Buxton · guitar
- Rick Derringer · guitar · guest
- Dennis Dunaway · bass guitar
- Bob Ezrin · keyboard
- Neal Smith · drums (drum set)
- Alice Cooper · lead vocals
Singles
- “Under My Wheels” · December 1971
- “Be My Lover” · February 1972
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 · 1971–1972 | 21 |
| UK Albums Chart · 1971–1972 | 27 |
| Canadian Albums (RPM) · 1971–1972 | 11 |
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) · 1971–1972 | 22 |
| Scottish Albums · 2023 | 22 |
| Swiss Albums · 2023 | 82 |
| Belgian Albums (Wallonia) · 2023 | 113 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| United States · 1986 | Platinum |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
64.9
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
2.2k
ListenBrainz listeners
63k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
8.0k
Deezer fans (all editions)
Released the same week
Also released on 9 November
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More from Alice Cooper
Full discography →
Pretties for You
1969
Easy Action
1970
Love It to Death
1971
School’s Out
1972
Woman From Tokyo
1973
School Days: The Early Recordings
1973
Billion Dollar Babies
1973
Muscle of Love
1973
School’s Out
1974
Alice Cooper’s Greatest Hits
1974
The Beast of Alice Cooper
1989
Why Don't You Love Me
1998
The Essentials
2002
Don’t Blow Your Mind: The Mascot Sessions
2024
The Revenge of Alice Cooper
2025
The best of 1971
All of 1971 →![[Led Zeppelin IV] by Led Zeppelin, album cover](/img/2e61da88-39e9-3473-81d2-c964cb394952/300)
[Led Zeppelin IV]
Led Zeppelin · 1971
Sticky Fingers
The Rolling Stones · 1971
Hunky Dory
David Bowie · 1971
Meddle
Pink Floyd · 1971
Satisfacción
The Rolling Stones · 1971
You Better Move On / Poison Ivy / By Bye Johnny / Money
The Rolling Stones · 1971
Jumpin' Jack Flash
The Rolling Stones · 1971
Street Fighting Man
The Rolling Stones · 1971
If You Need Me / Empty Heart / Confessin’ the Blues / Around and Around
The Rolling Stones · 1971
Azucar Morena
The Rolling Stones · 1971
Who’s Next
The Who · 1971
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones · 1971
More on Warner Bros. Records
The label →
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Linkin Park · 2003
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Blood Sugar Sex Magik
Red Hot Chili Peppers · 1991
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By the Way
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One More Light
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Stadium Arcadium
Red Hot Chili Peppers · 2006
Rumours
Fleetwood Mac · 1977
A Thousand Suns
Linkin Park · 2010
The Hunting Party
Linkin Park · 2014
One Hot Minute
Red Hot Chili Peppers · 1995
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia 1971-11-09 vs 1971-11-27 (wikidata)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | November 1971 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 9 November 1971 | |
| Wikidata | 27 November 1971 | |
| US release | November 1971 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 1971 | earliest UK or European date |
18 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | XE | Warner Records | 075992725521 | other |
| — | US | Warner Bros. Records | other | |
| 1971 | GB | Warner Bros. Records | other | |
| November 1971 | US | Warner Bros. Records | original | |
| December 1971 | AU | Warner Bros. Records | other | |
| 1989 | XE | Warner Bros. Records | 075992725521 | other |
| 1989 | CA | Warner Bros. Records | 075992725521 | other |
| September 1989 | XE | Warner Bros. Records | 075992725521 | other |
| 25 June 1990 | JP | Warner Bros. Records | 4988014734899 | other |
| October 1990 | US | Warner Bros. Records | 075992725521 | other |
| 8 February 2005 | XW | Warner Bros. Records | 081227858568 | other |
| 1 September 2009 | US | Audio Fidelity | 780014204822 | other |
| 21 December 2011 | JP | Warner Bros. Records | 4943674112647 | other |
| 2012 | XE | Warner Bros. Records | 081227971670 | other |
| 20 July 2018 | US | Rhino | 603497864546 | other |
| 2020 | XE | Warner Records | 081227971670 | other |
| 9 June 2023 | — | Rhino | 0603497830640 | remaster |
| 9 June 2023 | XW | Rhino | 603497841011 | remaster |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · native: native 3600x3600, downscaled to 3000
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 3600×3600 | native: native 3600x3600, downscaled to 3000 |
| deezer | 1800×1800 | native |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |