47 years ago this month, “School’s Out” by Alice Cooper was #1 in the UK charts. It was followed by “You Wear it Well” (Rod Stewart) and “Mama Weer All Crazee Now” (Slade). You will not find many better three-in-a-row sequences of chart-toppers. If you can think of one, leave a comment below.

Recently, “School’s Out” was played on BBC Radio 2 while we were in the car. The children are familiar with the song, from our 2-CD compilation “The Best Glam Rock Album in the World … Ever!” among other things. It has accompanied many car journeys, but not for a while. I advised them to listen out for the second verse, which follows the guitar solo. It’s one of my favourites from any chart-topping single.

The first verse rhymes throughout, near enough: “Well we’ve got no choice / All the girls and boys / Making all that noise / ‘cause they’ve found new toys”. The second verse does not, and even refers to the fact in its last line: “Well we’ve got no class / And we’ve got no principles [or should that be principals?] / And we’ve got no innocence / We can’t even think of a word that rhymes!” I have never tired of that final line, and probably never will. You can enjoy the whole song for yourself here. It’s the classic “Top of the Pops” studio appearance from the time, which was also my first experience of hearing the song.