Glam Rock

by Simon Philo

  “Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me),” Cockney Rebel (February 1975), Single, EMI. UK no. 1 for two weeks.

  “How Does It Feel?,” Slade (February 1975), Single, Polydor. Only reaches UK no. 15 and so represents Slade’s poorest chart return since “Get Down and Get With It.”

  Bolan’s Zip Gun, T. Rex (February 1975), Album, EMI. Fails to chart in the UK.

  “Young Americans,” David Bowie (February 1975), Single, RCA. Brits apparently not as enamored as Americans. Only reaches no. 18 in the UK; but gives Bowie his biggest US hit single (no. 28).

  “Fox on the Run,” Sweet (March 1975), Single, RCA. A self-penned UK no. 2 and a global hit. Vindication?

  “Bye Bye Baby,” Bay City Rollers (March 1975), Single, Bell. As Rollermania peaks in the UK, spends six weeks at no. 1.

  Young Americans, David Bowie (March 1975), Album, RCA. UK no. 2; Billboard Top 10.

  Welcome to My Nightmare, Alice Cooper (March 1975), Album, Warner Bros. Top 20 in the UK and a Top 10 in the US.

  “Oh Boy,” Mud (April 1975), Single, RAK. Two weeks at UK no. 1, proving that the market for classic rock ’n’ roll covers remains buoyant.

  Futurama, Be Bop Deluxe (May 1975), Album, Harvest. Follow-up to Axe Victim, featured the glam-sounding single “Maid in Heaven.” Both single and album failed to chart, despite a band lineup refreshed by the addition of several ex–Cockney Rebels (who had been sacked by the autocratic Harley).

  “Rock and Roll All Nite,” KISS (May 1975), Single, Casablanca. Billboard no. 68.

  “Thanks for the Memory,” Slade (May 1975), Single, Polydor. Last UK Top 10 for six years.

  “Three Steps to Heaven,” Showaddywaddy (May 1975), Single, Bell. Rock ’n’ roll revivalists take this Cochran cover to no. 2 in the UK.

  “Once Bitten, Twice Shy,” Ian Hunter (May 1975), Single, CBS. Instant solo success for ex–Mott the Hoople front man, featuring Mick Ronson on lead guitar. UK no. 14.

  “Fame,” David Bowie (July 1975), Single, RCA. Bowie’s first Billboard no. 1; Top 10 in the UK. Featuring John Lennon on BVs.

  “New York City,” T. Rex (July 1975), Single, EMI. Bolan engineers a modest comeback as the single reaches the UK Top 20.

  “Action,” Sweet (July 1975), Single, RCA. UK Top 20.

  “Get in the Swing,” Sparks (July 1975), Single, Island. Peaks just inside the UK Top 30.

  “Love Is the Drug,” Roxy Music (September 1975), Single, Island. No. 2 in the UK and Roxy’s biggest US hit to date, reaching no. 30 in early 1976.

  Siren, Roxy Music (October 1975), Album, Island. UK no. 3; US no. 50. The success of “Love Is the Drug” in the States cannot significantly help LP sales.

  “Space Oddity,” David Bowie (October 1975), Single, RCA. Rerelease spends two weeks at UK no. 1.

  Alive! KISS (October 1975), Album, Casablanca. US Top 10.

  Face the Music, Electric Light Orchestra (October 1975), Album, Jet.

  “New York Groove,” Hello (October 1975), Single, Bell. One of the more obvious glam/disco mash-ups. UK Top 10.

  “Looks Looks Looks,” Sparks (October 1975), Single, Island. Another Top 30 . . . just.

  “Dreamy Lady,” T. Rex (October 1975), Single, EMI. And Bolan is clinging on too. This single peaks at no. 30 in the UK.

  “Bohemian Rhapsody,” Queen (November 1975), Single, EMI. Would spend a record nine weeks at no. 1 in the UK. Top 10 in the US. An apposite curtain call for the golden age of glam?

  “Golden Years,” David Bowie (November 1975), Single, RCA. A transatlantic Top 10.

  A Night at the Opera, Queen (December 1975), Album, EMI. No. 1 in UK; no. 4 in US.

  “Both Ends Burning,” Roxy Music (December 1975), Single, Island. UK no. 25; DNC in the US.

  1976–Present, “Who Can I Be Now?”

  “The Lies in Your Eyes,” Sweet (January 1976), Single, RCA. Peaks at just no. 35 in the UK, as the game would appear to be almost up for Sweet, if not glam-pop . . .

  “Forever and Ever,” Slik (January 1976), Single, Bell. Originally recorded by Kenny, spends a single week at UK no. 1 in February.

  Station to Station, David Bowie (January 1976), Album, RCA. UK no. 5; but even more successful in the US, where it reaches no. 3 on Billboard and so becomes Bowie’s biggest seller thus far.

  “Let’s Call It Quits,” Slade (February 1976), Single, Polydor. Limps to UK no. 11. Enough said. (Although, by now, Slade had decamped to the States in a concerted effort to crack the only market that had resisted the band’s charms.)

  The Runaways, the Runaways (June 1976), Album, Mercury. Single “Cherry Bomb” was a no. 1 hit in Japan.

  “I Love to Boogie,” T. Rex (July 1976), Single, EMI. Still game, Bolan hits the UK Top 10.

  “Laser Love,” T. Rex (September 1976), Single, EMI . . . but cannot sustain any chart momentum, as this single misses the Top 40.

  “Under the Moon of Love,” Showaddywaddy (October 1976), Single, Bell. UK no. 1 for the rock ’n’ roll pastichers.

  A New World Record, Electric Light Orchestra (November 1976), Album, Jet.

  Low, David Bowie (January 1977), Album, RCA. A UK no. 2; Top 20 in the US.

  “Sound and Vision,” David Bowie (February 1977), Single, RCA. A UK no. 3; but only reaches no. 69 on Billboard.

  “Tie Your Mother Down,” Queen (March 1977), Single, EMI. Still glamming it up, the opening track from A Day at the Races was a minor hit on both sides of the Atlantic.

  The Idiot, Iggy Pop (March 1977), Album, RCA.

  Lust for Life, Iggy Pop (September 1977), Album, RCA.

  Heroes, David Bowie (October 1977), Album, RCA.

  “Heroes,” David Bowie (October 1977), Single, RCA. “Challenging” single still manages to reach the UK Top 30. Features King Crimson’s Robert Fripp on lead guitar.

  Out of the Blue, Electric Light Orchestra (November 1977), Album, Jet.

  News of the World, Queen (November 1977), Album, EMI.

  Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols, the Sex Pistols (November 1977), Album, Virgin. UK no. 1.

  “White Punks on Dope,” the Tubes (November 1977), Single, A&M. Vertiginous stacked heels, wigs, makeup, and outrageous theatrics made KISS look positively staid.

  “Love Is Like Oxygen,” Sweet (January 1978), Single, RCA. Sweet are back in the UK Top 10.

  Van Halen, Van Halen (February 1978), Album, Warner Bros. And lo! Glam-metal is born.

  Plastic Letters, Blondie (February 1978), Album, Chrysalis.

  “Ready Steady Go,” Generation X (March 1978), Single, Chrysalis. As this track demonstrates, the Billy Idol–fronted glam-punk outfit was always more playful and so less committed to UK punk’s rather humorless “year zero” agenda.

  Adolescent Sex, Japan (April 1978), Album, Arista. Japan managed to “telescope” a glam journey into just four short years, as the band morphed from the New York Dolls wannabes they appear to be—and often sound—on this album into cool, electro-pop stylists under the heavy influence of Bowie and Roxy in the early ’80s.

  Some Girls, the Rolling Stones (June 1978), Album, Rolling Stones. Real curate’s egg of an LP—mixes glam, punk, and disco—sometimes on the same track in the case of “Shattered.”

  C’est Chic, Chic (August 1978), Album. UK no. 2; US no. 4. Nile Rodgers cites Roxy Music as a major influence. And of course, disco and glam have much in common.

  Parallel Lines, Blondie (September 1978), Album, Chrysalis. Global, multiplatinum breakthrough LP is produced by UK glam-pop auteur Mike Chapman.

  “Trash,” Roxy Music (February 1979), Single, Polydor. Roxy Mark II return with UK no. 40 “hit.”

  Manifesto, Roxy Music (March 1979), Album, Polydor. UK no. 7; Billboard no. 21. Most successful US LP to this point.

  “Boys Keep Swinging,” David Bowie (April 1979), Single, RCA. UK Top 10; DNC in the US. Stateside failure is unsurprising, given the track’s ubercampness. That glam was still in his dressing-up box can be literally seen in the promo video fe
aturing a cross-dressing Bowie.

  “Dance Away,” Roxy Music (April 1979), Single, Polydor. UK no. 2; US no. 44. From the “US” side of the LP.

  “Life in Tokyo,” Japan (May 1979), Single, Arista. A Giorgio Moroder remix would see the track chart a few years later.

  Lodger, David Bowie (May 1979), Album, RCA. UK no. 4. US no. 20.

  Replicas, Tubeway Army (June 1979), Album, Beggars Banquet. Features the UK no. 1 single “Are Friends Electric?” Gary Numan’s biggest influence—and idol—was David Bowie. It showed.

  Risque, Chic (July 1979), Album. UK Top 30; US Top Five.

  “DJ,” David Bowie (July 1979), Single, RCA. Sneaks inside the UK Top 30.

  “Angel Eyes,” Roxy Music (August 1979), Single, Polydor. Remixed in New York by Bob Clearmountain and boosted by a “disco” twelve-inch version, reaches no. 4 in the UK.

  The Pleasure Principle, Gary Numan (September 1979), Album, Beggars Banquet.

  No. 1 in Heaven, Sparks (September 1979), Album, Virgin. A Moroder makeover for glam duo’s “second coming,” which spawned two big UK hit singles—“Beat the Clock” and “No. 1 Song in Heaven.”

  Quiet Life, Japan (January 1980), Album, Arista.

  “Games without Frontiers,” Peter Gabriel (February 1980), Single, Charisma. UK no. 4; US no. 48. Visuals + electronica = glam for the ’80s.

  “Holiday ’80,” Human League (April 1980), Single, Virgin. This EP featured covers of Gary Glitter’s “Rock and Roll” and Iggy Pop’s “Nightclubbing.”

  Flesh + Blood, Roxy Music (May 1980), Album, Polydor. UK no. 1; US no. 35.

  “Over You,” Roxy Music (May 1980), Single, Polydor. UK Top Five; but only no. 80 in America.

  “Oh Yeah,” Roxy Music (July 1980), Single, Polydor. Another UK Top Five.

  “Ashes to Ashes,” David Bowie (August 1980), Single, RCA. UK no. 1. Bowie’s reinvention as a New Romantic? Nope. It’s evolution. Ch-ch-ch-changes.

  Scary Monsters, David Bowie (September1980), Album, RCA. UK no. 1; US no. 12.

  Empires and Dance, Simple Minds (September 1980), Album, Arista.

  Gentleman Take Polaroids, Japan (October 1980), Album, Virgin. UK no. 45.

  “Telegram Sam,” Bauhaus (October 1980), Single, Beggars Banquet. Early single from goth band is a reverential, if swagger-free, cover of classic T. Rex track. DNC.

  Kings of the Wild Frontier, Adam and the Ants (November 1980), Album, CBS. UK no. 1; US no. 41. Stuart Goddard’s raiding of the dressing-up box—pirate, highwayman, Native American, etc.—had been encouraged by ex-Pistols manager Malcolm McLaren and would meet with little resistance from a self-confessed glam fan.

  “To Cut a Long Story Short,” Spandau Ballet (November 1980), Single, Reformation. UK no. 5.

  “Same Old Scene,” Roxy Music (November 1980), Single, Polydor. A UK no. 12 and the sonic template for New Romantics like Duran Duran.

  “We’ll Bring the House Down,” Slade (January 1981), Single, Polydor. The comeback is on with this UK Top 10.

  Journey to Glory, Spandau Ballet (March 1981), Album, Reformation. UK Top Five.

  Duran Duran, Duran Duran (June 1981), Album, EMI. UK no. 3; US no. 10 in ’82. “Some New Romantic looking for the TV sound”—echoes of “All the Young Dudes.”

  Sons and Fascination. Simple Minds (September 1981), Album, Virgin.

  Speak and Spell, Depeche Mode (October 1981), Album, Mute. Bowie and Roxy kids on the rise.

  Dare, Human League (October 1981), Album, Virgin. UK no. 1; US no. 3 in spring 1982. Witness the high-glam campery of “Don’t You Want Me.”

  Tin Drum, Japan (November 1981), Album, Virgin. UK no. 12.

  “Under Pressure,” Queen and David Bowie (November 1981), Single, EMI. UK no. 1.

  Prince Charming, Adam and the Ants (November 1981), Album, CBS. UK no. 2; US no. 94. Could the promo video for the title track featuring faded ’50s Brit starlet Diana Dors as a panto Fairy Godmother be any more glam?

  Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, Soft Cell (December 1981), Album, Some Bizarre.

  “The Model,” Kraftwerk (December 1981), Single, EMI. On its rerelease, a UK no. 1 in February 1982.

  “Go Wild in the Country,” Bow Wow Wow (January 1982), Single, RCA. UK no. 7, cowritten by former Sex Pistols and New York Dolls manager Malcolm McLaren.

  “I Love Rock ’n’ Roll,” Joan Jett and the Blackhearts (April 1982), Single, Epic. UK no. 4; US no. 1. Ex-Runaway Jett also covered Gary Glitter’s “Do You Want to Touch Me?,” which became a Top 30 US hit in the same year.

  “More Than This,” Roxy Music (April 1982), Single, Polydor. UK no. 6.

  Avalon, Roxy Music (May 1982), Album, Polydor. UK no. 1; US no. 51.

  Rio, Duran Duran (May 1982), Album, EMI. UK no. 2; US no. 6.

  Sulk, the Associates (May 1982), Album, Associates. UK no. 10, and three big hit singles.

  “Avalon,” Roxy Music (June 1982), Single, Polydor. UK Top 20; DNC in the US.

  The Lexicon of Love, ABC (July 1982), Album, Neutron. UK no. 1. Peerless New (Glam) Pop.

  A Broken Frame, Depeche Mode (September 1982), Album, Mute.

  A New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84), Simple Minds (September 1982), Album, Virgin. UK no. 3; US no. 61.

  “Ziggy Stardust,” Bauhaus (September 1982), Single, Beggars Banquet. Yet another glam cover. This time a reverential reworking of a Bowie track that reaches no. 15 and so gives the goth rockers their biggest hit.

  “White Wedding,” Billy Idol (October 1982), Single, Chrysalis. A US Top 40 hit in 1983 and a UK Top 10 in 1985. As noted earlier, not so much as a reinvention for Idol as glam refresh.

  Pyromania, Def Leppard (March 1983), Album, Vertigo. UK no. 18; US no. 2. Pioneers of the New Wave of British heavy metal, Def Leppard is drenched in glam—particularly its rockier variant (Queen, Mott the Hoople, Slade, Ronson, even late Sweet). Here exhibit A would be the single “Photograph.”

  “Cum On Feel the Noize,” Quiet Riot (March 1983), Single, Columbia. US no. 5 that helps make the album Metal Health Billboard’s first heavy metal no. 1.

  “Let’s Dance,” David Bowie (March 1983), Single, EMI. Nile Rodgers–produced UK no. 1.

  “She’s in Parties,” Bauhaus (April 1983), Single, Beggar’s Banquet. Goth rockers’ original material supplies a glam narrative that ticks all the topic boxes.

  Construction Time Again, Depeche Mode (August 1983), Album, Mute.

  Beauty Stab, ABC (November 1983), Album, Neutron. Commercial misstep for purveyors of blue-eyed New Pop, who try their hand at glammy rock. UK no. 12.

  “My Oh My,” Slade (November 1983), Single, Polydor. An anthemic sing-along that gives Slade its biggest UK hit since late ’74. UK no. 2.

  1984, Van Halen (January 1984), Album, Warner Bros. UK no. 15; US no. 2. Glam-metal perfection.

  Sparkle in the Rain, Simple Minds (February 1984), Album, Virgin. UK no. 1; US no. 64.

  “Run Run Away,” Slade (February 1984), Single, Polydor. More UK Top 10 success.

  Purple Rain, Prince and the Revolution (July 1984), Album, Warner Bros. That epic title track! Elsewhere, eclectic but undeniably glam fueled.

  “Up around the Bend,” Hanoi Rocks (July 1984), Single, CBS. Finnish glam-metal. Minor UK hit cover of CCR classic.

  Some Great Reward, Depeche Mode (September 1984), Album, Mute.

  “Get It On,” Power Station (March 1985), Single, EMI. Glam fans Duran Duran’s Andy and John Taylor combine forces with Robert Palmer and ex-Chic drummer Tony Thompson. Top 10 in the US; Top 30 in the UK.

  Around the World in a Day, Prince and the Revolution (April 1985), Album, Warner Bros.

  Theatre of Pain, Mötley Crüe (July 1985), Album, Elektra. UK no. 35; US no. 6.

  “Love Missile F1-11,” Sigue Sigue Sputnik (March 1986), Single, Parlophone. Much-hyped electro-glam debut from band led by ex–Generation X guitarist Tony James. UK no. 3.

  Look What the Cat Dragged In, Poison (July 1986), Album, Capitol. DNC in UK; US no. 3. Glam-metal is no
w surely peaking?

  Music for the Masses, Depeche Mode (September 1987), Album, Mute.

  Open Up and Say . . . Ahh!, Poison (May 1988), Album, Capitol. UK no. 23; US no. 2.

  Violator, Depeche Mode (March 1990), Album, Mute. Features the glam-stomp of “Personal Jesus.”

  “Motorcycle Emptiness,” Manic Street Preachers (May 1992), Single, Columbia. UK no. 17. Channel glam staples like cross-dressing and androgyny.

  Songs of Faith and Devotion, Depeche Mode (March 1993), Album, Mute.

  Suede, Suede (April 1993), Album, Sony. UK no. 1; DNC in US. Bowie and Ronson flavors and flourishes make this debut arguably more old-school glam than new-school Brit-pop.

  Definitely Maybe, Oasis (August 1994), Album, Creation. UK no. 1; US no. 58.

  MTV Unplugged in New York, Nirvana (November 1994), Album, Geffen. Includes a cover of Bowie’s “The Man Who Sold the World.”

  I Should Co Co, Supergrass (May 1995), Album, Parlophone.

  Different Class, Pulp (October 1995), Album, Island.

  (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?, Oasis (October 1995), Album, Creation. UK no. 1; US no. 4.

  “In the Meantime,” Spacehog (May 1996), Single, Sire. UK no. 29. Bowie circa ’73. US hit too.

  Three EP, Mansun (September 1996), Extended Play, Parlophone. UK no. 19. Glam-prog in the mid-’70s bebop deluxe vein.

  “Tainted Love,” Marilyn Manson (March 2002), Single, Interscope. UK no. 5.

  Permission to Land, Darkness (July 2003), Album, Atlantic. Queen tribute act? Ironic? Whatever. Everyone’s having fun and being entertained. Undeniably glam. UK no. 1.

  “Personal Jesus,” Marilyn Manson (October 2004), Single, Interscope.

  “Poker Face,” Lady Gaga (late 2008/early 2009), Single, Interscope. UK and US no. 1.

  Index

  A

  ABC, 1

  Adam and the Ants songs “Dog Eat Dog”, 1

  “Prince Charming”, 1

  “Stand and Deliver”, 1

  “Young Parisians”, 1.1-1.2

  Aerosmith, 1

  Alice Cooper songs “Eighteen”, 1

  “School’s Out”, 1