Glam : A Very '70s Phenomenon

by Mike Gent

Britain in the early ‘70 flared trousers and platform soles were the height of fashion. People were renting increasing numbers of colour television sets on which they could see the rise of glam rock on Top Of The Pops every Thursday night on BBC1. It was the time of the great divide between rock and pop with serious musicians on one side and, in the other camp, glam rockers. Marc Bolan started glam in 1971. Slade and The Sweet seized on it, sporting increasingly flamboyant costumes whilst David Bowie, Roxy Music and Wizzard put different spins on the trend. The Sweet’s songwriters Chinn and Chapman added Suzi Quatro and Mud to their roster in 1973, glam’s annus mirabilis when it dominated the singles chart. The party started to wind down in 1974 as most of the artists discovered that glam was such a strong image that it was difficult to escape. This is the true story of glam, the often misunderstood and misinterpreted movement which defined an era.

251 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 30, 2022