Gary Glitter
Gary Glitter in 1974
Background information
Birth name	Paul Francis Gadd
Also known as	Paul Raven Rubber Bucket Paul Monday
Born	(1944-05-08) 8 May 1944 (age 68) Banbury, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom
Origin	London, England, United Kingdom
Genres	Glam rock, rock and roll, pop
Occupations	Musician, singer-songwriter
Years active	1960–2000
Labels	EMI, Bell, Epic, Decca, Arista, Attitude
Associated acts	The Poets, The Glitter Band

Gary Glitter (born Paul Francis Gadd on 8 May 1944)^[1][2] is an English former glam rock singer-songwriter and musician.

Glitter first came to prominence in the glam rock era of the early 1970s. He had a long solo UK chart run during the 1970s, with several hits including "Rock and Roll, Parts One and Two", "I Love You Love Me Love", "I'm the Leader of the Gang (I Am)" and "Hello, Hello, I'm Back Again". Between 1972 and 1995, Glitter had 26 hit singles which spent a total of 180 weeks in the UK Top 100; twelve of those reached the Top 10, with three charting at number 1.^[3] He continued to record in the 1980s and 1990s, with his 1984 song "Another Rock N' Roll Christmas" being one of the Top 30 Christmas hits of all time.^[4] He released seven studio albums, and at least^[specify] 15 greatest hits collections or live albums. In 1998, his recording of "Rock and Roll" was listed as one of the top 1,001 songs in music history.^[5] The mostly instrumental "Rock and Roll, Part 2" has been played as a popular cheering song at American sporting events for several decades.

The late 1990s saw Gary Glitter's long career virtually come to an end and his image become tarnished, following his conviction in 1999 due to possession of child pornography in the United Kingdom.^[6] He was later convicted in Vietnam for committing obscene acts with minors.^[7]

Early life[link]

Paul Francis Gadd was born in Banbury, Oxfordshire. His mother, a cleaner, was unmarried, and initially brought him up with the help of her mother; he never knew his father. He was hard to control and at the age of 10, along with his brother, he was taken into local authority care. Although a Protestant, he was educated at a Roman Catholic school.^[8] He would frequently run away to London, to the clubs that would be the launching ground of his career.^[9]

Career[link]

Early work[link]

By the time he was 16, Glitter was already performing at London clubs. His career grew as he appeared at such venues as the Two I's, in Soho, and the Laconda and Safari Clubs. His repertoire consisted of early rock'n'roll standards and gentle ballads.^[10] He got his first break when film producer Robert Hartford Davis discovered Gadd and financed a recording session for Decca Records. At 18, Gadd recorded his first album;^[9] under the stage name Paul Raven, he released his first single, "Alone in the Night", in January 1960.

A year later, with a new manager, Vic Billings, he signed a new recording contract with Parlophone and worked with producer George Martin, before Martin's association with the Beatles. Martin produced two singles, "Walk on Boy" and "Tower of Strength", but neither sold very well and Raven's recording career reached an impasse. By 1964, while Martin's work with the Beatles was conquering the world, Raven was reduced to playing the warm-up for the British television programme Ready Steady Go!. He did numerous TV commercials and film auditions, and in the course of those activities met arranger-producer Mike Leander who eventually helped revive his career.

Gary Glitter[link]

Raven joined the Mike Leander Show Band in early 1965. Then he was deputised to produce a few recording sessions by such artists as Thane Russell and a Scottish beat group, The Poets. After Leander's group disbanded, Raven formed Boston International with saxophonist John Rossall, and spent the following five years touring the UK and Germany, recording occasionally. By 1970, several singles, including "Musical Man", "Goodbye Seattle" and a version of George Harrison's "Here Comes the Sun", put Raven back into record stores. As the glam movement hit full swing in 1971, Raven took the new name Gary Glitter, which he devised by playing alliteratively with letters of the alphabet, working backwards from Z. Other options included Terry Tinsel, Stanley Sparkle and Vicky Vomit.^[11] The style that would come to define Gary Glitter had taken its basic shape.

The song that at last made Gary Glitter's name and career began as a 15-minute jam, whittled down to a pair of three-minute extracts released as the A and B sides of a single, called "Rock and Roll, Parts One and Two". "Rock and Roll (Part Two)" would prove to be the more popular side in many countries, although it took about six months before it made its full impact, going to number two on the British pop charts and reaching the Top Ten in the United States, one of the few British glam rock records to do so. "Rock and Roll (Part One)" was also a hit: in France it made number one and in the UK both sides were listed together on the charts.

Mainstream success[link]

Rock and Roll was followed by other successes: for the next three years, Glitter, backed by the Glittermen/the Glitter Band on stage, challenged Sweet, Slade and T.Rex for domination of the charts. To reinforce his image, he reportedly owned 30 glitter suits and fifty pairs of silver platform boots. He also released several singles which became British Top 10 hits, with I'm the Leader of the Gang (I Am) being his first single to reach number one in the summer of 1973, and I Love You Love Me Love, its follow-up, his second. Even an atypical ballad, Remember Me This Way, went to number three. He had 11 consecutive Top Ten singles, from 1972's Rock and Roll (Parts One and Two) to Doing Alright With the Boys in the summer of 1975.

Rock and Roll (Part Two) caught on as a popular sports anthem in North America.^[12] Often used as a goal song or celebration song, fans chanted "Hey!" along with the chorus. In light of Glitter's court convictions (see below), some teams have stopped using the song, though it remains heavily played.

Despite his success in the UK, Glitter never made the same impact in America where, at best, glam rock was seen as a curiosity. Glitter had one more entry on the U.S charts with I Didn't Know I Loved You (Till I Saw You Rock 'n Roll); after that, however, the closest chart success for Glitter was a cover recording of I'm the Leader of the Gang (I Am) by Brownsville Station.

After Doing Alright With the Boys, Glitter won the award for Best Male Artist at the Saturday Scene music awards hosted by LWT. His next release was a cover of the Rivingtons' rhythm and blues classic Papa Oom Mow Mow, but it got no higher than number 38 on the British charts. After subsequent releases stalled in similar fashion, Gary Glitter announced his retirement from music in early 1976. That same year, his first hits package, simply titled Greatest Hits, was released. It entered the UK Top 40 best-seller charts. A similar budget album, entitled I Love You Love Me Love, was issued by Hallmark Entertainment the following year.

Comeback and business interests[link]

In 1976, Glitter faced drug addiction and declining record sales. He took a two year long exile, living in France and Australia, before returning to the UK, and beginning his comeback.

Glitter's career took a downturn towards the end of the 1970s, leading to his first bankruptcy (he went bankrupt a second time over unpaid tax bills in the 1990s). He was said to have begun drinking heavily, even admitting later that he pondered suicide. Under financial pressure, not even a pair of Top 40 hit singles ("It Takes All Night" and "A Little Boogie Woogie in the Back of My Mind") could lift him all the way back. It took the post-punk audience, and some of its artists who still respected Glitter's work, to do that; he had been an influence on post-punk, new wave, britpop and hair metal, as well as early punk rock itself.^[13][14] Around this time, Glitter settled into being a performer with a cult following that continued until his child pornography conviction in the late 1990s. This helped provide the opportunity for Glitter to cut a dance medley of his greatest hits, All That Glitters, which charted in 1981. Within three years, he was playing 80 shows a year at colleges and clubs, and had chart hits "Dance Me Up" (UK No.25) and "Another Rock N' Roll Christmas" (#7).

Glitter's comeback was boosted in the 1980s by various guest spots and collaborations, leading to his becoming a cult figure with students. In 1982, he appeared on the British Electric Foundation album Music of Quality and Distinction Volume One (UK #25) along with fellow pop/rock luminaries Sandie Shaw and Tina Turner. In 1988, the Timelords' "Doctoring the Tardis," a Doctor Who tribute that sampled "Rock and Roll (Part Two)", reached the number one spot. In due course, Glitter re-cut "Rock and Roll" with producer Trevor Horn and also "I'm the Leader of the Gang (I Am)" with Girlschool. In the late 1980s, his hit singles were used to compile the Telstar-released C'mon, C'mon ... It's the Gary Glitter Party Album. In 1989, Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers put a large sample of "Another Rock and Roll Christmas" on their Number 1 UK hit "Let's Party".

In 1991, Glitter opened a restaurant in the West End of London. Glitter's Snack Bar was promoted under the slogan "Leader of the Snack". It was successful at first, but business eventually slowed and the restaurant closed in the late 1990s.

Glitter also launched his own record label in the early 1990s, Attitude Records, after he lost his deal with Virgin Records. Glitter had signed to Virgin after leaving Arista Records in 1984 after twelve years with the label. Attitude records was merged into Machmain Ltd later in the 1990s, a music company owned by Glitter.

Glitter spent the next decade mostly as an in-demand live performer, and his back catalogue of recordings proved durable enough that several compilations sold well. Glitter appeared in several humorous billboard and poster advertisements for British Rail, in one of which he was shown attempting to look younger (and quite clearly failing) in order to obtain a Young Persons Railcard. He also issued a new studio album Leader II in 1991 which sold reasonably well.

He was a surprise hit at the 1994 World Cup concert in Chicago, which was telecast live to forty-six countries. He played the Godfather in a 1996 revival of The Who's Quadrophenia. He also cut a single, a new version of "The House of the Rising Sun". British rock group Oasis used a sample from Glitter's 1973 chart hit, "Hello, Hello, I'm Back Again" on their 1995 multi-million-selling album (What's the Story) Morning Glory?, one of a number of acts that borrowed from his songbook.

"Rock and Roll (Part Two)" by this time was being used heavily as a crowd-rouser at numerous sporting events, and it was featured in the hit films The Full Monty, Happy Gilmore, Meet the Fockers and The Replacements.

Career moves since 2000[link]

In 2002, Snapper records re-promoted The Ultimate Gary Glitter, a two-CD anthology of Glitter's music first issued in 1997, days after his arrest (see below), which covers his commercial breakthrough in 1972 up to that point; again it was moderately successful.

In September 2001 he released a new album, On, that included material written before his 1999 British conviction. That material was to have been part of a project called Lost on Life Street until that album's release was cancelled following his arrest. By December 2004, after releasing a new single, "Control", Glitter was in the news again concerning his behaviour; NGOs had been petitioning the government with their own evidence aimed at arresting Glitter. Glitter moved to Vietnam.

In 2005 Remember Me This Way, the documentary filmed at Glitter's career peak in 1973 (and originally released in 1974), was issued for the first time on DVD. Glitter's music itself still had an audience, further demonstrated by three new album releases, although all of them contained past recordings from the vaults, rather than new product. The first two new albums were issued at the same time, The Remixes and Live in Concert (the latter of which was a 1981 recording). These were only for sale on the Internet. A new collection of Glitter's chart hit singles followed, The Best of Gary Glitter.^[15] In 2006 his back catalogue was made available via the Internet from sites such as iTunes and eMusic.

Influence on other musicians[link]

Gary Glitter was very influential on many musicians and genres from the 1970s onwards, especially British punk, post-punk, new wave, gothic rock, Britpop and hair metal.

• Mark E. Smith was a Glitter fan. "I was really into Gary Glitter, and I used to get bad-mouthed for it. It was like 'You've got to be into David Bowie or Yes – Gary Glitter's just tripe'. And I was going 'It's fuckin' great. It's avant-garde... Well, two drummers and all that – it was really percussive. It was the only decent thing around", The Fall frontman said in 1993, speaking to NME.^[16]
• "Glam was fairly good at the time; also it was almost all we had. It could look ridiculous but musically it was often alright. Sometimes when you listen back bits of it sound quite punk. I liked Gary Glitter, Hello, Slade; they were all laying the roots to punk. Some of Bowie and Lou Reed were very good and Bolan of course. I suppose it had a bit of influence, but not a lot." Knox from the Vibrators citing glam rock acts, including Glitter, as an influence on punk.

Personal life[link]

In July 1963, Gadd married Ann Murton. The following year they had a son, also called Paul, and in 1966 a daughter, Sarah. They divorced in 1972.^[17][18] In February 2001, he had another son, Gary Jr, with Yudenia Sosa Martínez, born 1973, with whom he was then living in Cuba.^[19]

Cardiovascular disorder[link]

On 20 January 2008, the News of the World reported that the singer had suffered a severe heart attack. These reports were denied, although it was confirmed that he had been diagnosed with heart problems. "Glitter was admitted to our hospital with acute diarrhoea," said Nguyen Huu Quang, the director of the hospital in Binh Thuan Province, near the prison where the singer was serving out his sentence. "While we were treating him, we found out that he also has a cardiovascular disorder."^[20]

TV mockumentary[link]

In November 2009, the UK's Channel 4 showed a drama (or 'mockumentary') called The Execution of Gary Glitter. Set in an imaginary Britain in which the death sentence has been re-introduced, the drama examines the possible consequences of capital punishment when Glitter is put on trial as a paedophile under imagined Capital Crimes Against Children legislation. The drama was written by Rob Coldstream and starred Hilton McRae as Glitter.^[21]

Legal history[link]

Drink-driving charges[link]

During the 1980s, Glitter was convicted three times for drink driving, one of which led to a 10-year driving ban;^[22] he narrowly escaped a prison term.

Child pornography arrest and conviction[link]

In November 1997, Glitter was arrested after pornographic images of children were discovered on the hard drive of a Toshiba laptop that he had taken to the Bristol Cribbs Causeway branch of PC World for repair. As a result, he was castigated in the media over the allegations. Additionally, his appearance in the Spice Girls' film Spiceworld The Movie was cut. Nevertheless, a truncated edit of the scene, featuring a version of Glitter's "I'm the Leader of the Gang (I Am)", was still included in the film. In the months before his conviction, he thanked audiences for their support at his last show before his trial.

In 1999, Glitter was sentenced to four months' imprisonment and listed as a sex offender in the UK following conviction for downloading thousands of items of child pornography.^[6]

He was also charged with having sex with an underage girl, Alison Brown, around 20 years earlier, when she was 14 years old. She had had a relationship with Glitter for some years.^[8] Glitter was acquitted of this charge. It was later revealed that Brown had sold her story to the News of the World and stood to earn more money from the newspaper should Glitter be convicted.^[23]

Following a rejection by the British public and facing scrutiny from the press following his arrest and conviction, Gary Glitter fled on his yacht to Spain. Upon being discovered there, he set sail again, ultimately travelling to Gibraltar, Cuba, Mexico, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Colombia, Portugal, Brazil, Venezuela, and Thailand, before settling in Cambodia.

South East Asia[link]

Cambodia[link]

Glitter lived in Cambodia until 2002, when he was permanently deported from there to Vietnam,^[24] due to suspected child sexual abuse.^[25]

Vietnam underage sex conviction[link]

From March 2005, Glitter resided in Vũng Tàu, Vietnam. In late 2005, at age 61, Gary Glitter was arrested by Vietnamese authorities and charged with molesting two underaged girls, aged 10 and 11, at his home in Vũng Tàu.^[26] He initially faced possible child rape charges carrying the death penalty, but prosecutors did not find enough evidence for those charges, so Glitter was instead tried for lesser child sexual abuse charges. Early in 2006, he was convicted of committing obscene acts with minors and sentenced to three years imprisonment.^[26] On one of two appeals, in 2007 this was reduced by three months. He was released from prison on 19 August 2008 and returned to London three days later, after being refused entry into Thailand and Hong Kong.

Arrest and trial[link]

Despite having applied for permanent residence in Vietnam, Gary Glitter fled his home on 12 November 2005. Three days later, he was arrested in Ho Chi Minh City while trying to board a flight to Thailand. Six Vietnamese females, aged from 11 to 23, claimed that Glitter had had sex with them; the age of consent in Vietnam is 18.^[27]

After his arrest, Glitter was turned over to provincial police from Ba Ria-Vung Tau and returned to Vung Tau and held on suspicion of having sex with the two under-age girls. Glitter was held in jail throughout the criminal investigation, which was completed on 26 December 2005. The charge of rape was dropped for "lack of evidence" (according to Glitter's lawyer), although the singer admitted that an 11-year-old girl had slept in his bed. Glitter could have faced execution by firing squad if convicted of child rape. After having received compensatory payments from Glitter, the families of the girls appealed to the courts for clemency for him.^[28]

On 2 March 2006 Glitter was tried on charges of committing obscene acts with two girls, aged 10 and 11, facing up to 14 years in prison if convicted. The following day he was found guilty and sentenced to three years in prison. He was also forced to pay compensation of $320 to each girl's family, as well as court fees. Judge Hoang Thanh Tung: "He sexually abused and committed obscene acts with children many times in a disgusting and sick manner."^{[12][28][29][30][31][32]}

The sentence included mandatory deportation at the end of his sentence, and payment of 5 million Vietnamese dong (US$315) to his victims' families.^[33] Glitter continued to deny any wrongdoing, saying he believes he was framed by British tabloid newspapers.^[34] He announced he planned to spend part of his sentence writing an autobiography, which he had already begun during his pre-trial.

Glitter, in his first interview in more than eight years to BBC News in May 2006, denied any wrong-doing and claimed not to have knowingly had sex with anyone under 18. He also said "I know the line [not] to cross". When asked what he thought of adults having sex with children he said "It certainly is a crime ... I would be very angry about that." Christine Beddoe, director of End Child Prostitution, Pornography and Trafficking, criticised Glitter and said he was trying to "minimise what he has done" and added "We must allow children to tell their story and not just have the words of Gadd."^[35]

In his interview, Glitter denied that he was a paedophile. He said that he had hoped that there was even a slim chance he could put his life back on track and have a career after he left prison in England. However, the people around him felt that the media had already made a sensation about the paedophile allegations. He continued to blame the press for his downfall and called them "the worst enemy in the world", alleging 'entrapment' by them by paying local girls in a bar to arrange a photo-scoop. Glitter did not comment about his previous conviction for possession of child pornography several years earlier.^[35]

Appeal[link]

On 15 June 2006, in a closed hearing, the People's Supreme Court of Appeals heard Glitter's appeal for a reduced sentence. The three-judge panel rejected the appeal four weeks later.^{[36][37][38][39]} Although he was calm throughout the 40-minute reading of the verdict, upon leaving the courthouse, he shouted angrily to reporters and denounced Vietnamese justice for not hearing the defence arguments.^[40] On 7 February 2007, it was announced that his sentence had been reduced by three months.^[41] In anticipation of his release, the Philippines barred Glitter from entering that country as of 16 May 2008.^[42]

Release[link]

Glitter's Vietnamese lawyer, Le Thanh Kinh, said that his client intended to return to the UK, although he had also expressed interest in moving to either Hong Kong or Singapore.^[43] In the UK it was reported that he would be placed on the Sex Offenders Register on his return. British Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said he should be given a Foreign Travel Order (FTO) banning him from overseas travel: "We need to control him, and he will be [controlled] once he returns to this country."^[44]

Glitter was released from Thu Duc prison in southern Binh Thuan Province on 19 August 2008. He was escorted under police guard to Tan Son Nhat Airport in Ho Chi Minh City and put on board a flight to London via Bangkok. At Bangkok he claimed that he had tinnitus and a heart condition, and refused to board the flight to London despite the efforts of British police sent to escort him, although they had no jurisdiction to take action. He was refused entry to Thailand and threatened with deportation to the UK.^[45][46][47] On the evening of 20 August, he took a flight to Hong Kong, where he requested medical treatment saying he was suffering a heart attack. The Hong Kong authorities also refused to admit him and he returned to Thailand the next day.^[48]

At least 19 countries, including Cuba, Cambodia, and the Philippines, announced that they would refuse to admit Glitter, and on 21 August the Thai authorities stated that he had agreed to return to the UK.^[49] He arrived back in the UK at Heathrow Airport at 7:10 am on 22 August 2008, where he was met by British police officers.^[50]

On his return to the United Kingdom, Glitter was added to the Sex Offenders Register for life, and stated an intention to appeal against this decision; on 16 January 2009 it was announced that he had abandoned this move.^[51]

Plans after prison release[link]

On 25 June 2008, The Daily Telegraph reported that Gary Glitter planned to record a new album on his prison release. He was quoted as saying "I have an incomplete album that I want to finish. I have been thinking about the plan during my days in jail, I have sung rock'n'roll for 40 years. After jail, I will continue to rock'n'roll."^[52] After his release from prison, Glitter said that he was planning to write a book to prove his innocence.^[53]

Concert tours[link]

This biographical section of an article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (March 2011)

During his long career as a singer, Glitter undertook many tours to various venues around the world. His first tour was of the Middle East, as Paul Raven and the Boston International in 1967. He toured amongst other places, Cyprus, Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Armenia.

In 1973, Glitter undertook a world tour to celebrate his new-found fame. He toured Europe, Scandinavia, Australia, and New Zealand.

He continued to tour until 1976, and his retirement from music, he visited Australia some twenty times, and toured Europe and America several times.

During his comeback period of the 1980s, he did fewer tours, and mainly toured Britain. However he did shows in Ireland, Germany, France, America and Bahrain. During the 1990s, he toured America several times, finally gaining the significant popularity he sought in the 1970s. In 1995, he undertook his last major tour, he visited Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Bangkok and Singapore. It is unclear if he toured Japan or India, but this was an intention. In 1996, he toured with The Who across America. His final tour, entitled "A Night Out With The Boys: Could This Be For The Last Time?" took place in 1997. During his residence in Vietnam, he sang in local bars and clubs in Vung Tau.

Discography[link]

The discography of Gary Glitter displayed below is not complete, and it is a selective overview.

Studio albums[link]

• (1972) Glitter No. 8 UK; No. 2 Australia – Re-issued 2009 on Airmail records AIRAC-1492
• (1973) Touch Me No. 2 UK; No. 2 Australia – Re-issued 2009 on Airmail records AIRAC-1493
• (1975) G. G. – Re-issued 2009 on Airmail records AIRAC-1495
• (1977) Silver Star – Re-issued 2009 on Airmail records AIRAC-1496
• (1984) Boys Will Be Boys
• (1991) Leader 2
• (2001) On

Live albums[link]

• (1974) Remember Me This Way No. 5 UK (live/soundtrack); No. 8 Australia – Re-issued 2009 on Airmail records AIRAC-1494
• (1988) Gary Glitter's Gangshow: The Gang, the Band, the Leader
• (1990) Live and Alive
• (2005) Live in Concert

Compilation albums[link]

• (1976) Greatest Hits No. 33 UK
• (1977) I Love You Love Me Love
• (1979) Always Yours
• (1980) Leader
• (1981) Golden Greats
• (1987) C'mon, C'mon ... It's the Gary Glitter Party Album
• (1992) Many Happy Returns No. 35 UK
• (1995) 20 Greatest Hits
• (1997) The Ultimate Gary Glitter (also known as 25 Years of Hits) No. 112 UK
• (1998) Rock and Roll – Gary Glitters Greatest Hits
• (2003) The Early Years
• (2005) The Remixes
• (2006) The Best of Gary Glitter

Singles[link]

1970s[link]

• (1972) "Rock and Roll (Parts 1 and 2)" No. 2 UK;^[54] No. 7 U.S.;^[55] No. 1 France; No. 1 Australia; No. 4 Ireland; No. 7 Netherlands; No. 4 Germany;^[56] No. 3 Canada; No. 4 Switzerland^[57]
• (1972) "I Didn't Know I Loved You (Til I Saw You Rock 'n' Roll)" No. 4 UK; No. 35 U.S.; No. 5 Ireland; No. 19 Netherlands; No. 12 Germany; No. 3 France
• (1973) "Do You Wanna Touch Me? (Oh Yeah)" No. 2 UK; No. 3 Australia; No. 9 Ireland; No. 4 Netherlands; No. 16 Germany; No. 7 France
• (1973) "Hello, Hello, I'm Back Again" No. 2 UK; No. 6 Australia; No. 2 Ireland; No. 22 Netherlands; No. 10 Germany; No. 8 France
• (1973) "I'm the Leader of the Gang (I Am)" No. 1 UK; No. 2 Australia; No. 2 Ireland; No. 12 Netherlands; No. 6 Germany; No. 9 France; No. 6 Norway
• (1973) "I Love You Love Me Love" No. 1 UK; No. 2 Australia; No. 2 Ireland; No. 10 Netherlands; No. 8 Germany; No. 9 France; No. 4 Norway; No. 6 Austria
• (1974) "Remember Me This Way" No. 3 UK; No. 9 Ireland; No. 50 Germany; No. 31 Australia
• (1974) "Always Yours" No. 1 UK; No. 11 Australia; No. 1 Ireland; No. 14 Germany
• (1974) "Oh Yes! You're Beautiful" No. 2 UK; No. 10 Australia; No. 1 Ireland; No. 28 Germany
• (1975) "Love Like You and Me" No. 10 UK; No. 11 Ireland
• (1975) "Doing Alright with the Boys" No. 6 UK; No. 3 Ireland
• (1975) "Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow" No. 38 UK; No. 20 Ireland; No. 9 France
• (1976) "You Belong to Me" No. 40 UK
• (1977) "It Takes All Night Long" No. 25 UK; No. 19 Netherlands
• (1977) "A Little Boogie Woogie in the Back of Mind" No. 31 UK
• (1977) "I Dare You To Lay One On Me" / "Hooked On Hollywood"
• (1978) "Oh What a Fool I've Been" / "365 Days (Hurry on Home)"
• (1979) "Superhero"

1980s[link]

• (1980) Gary Glitter EP No. 57 UK
• (1980) "When I'm On, I'm On"
• (1980) "What Your Mama Don't See" No. 23 UK Independent Chart
• (1981) "All That Glitters" No. 48 UK
• (1981) "And Then She Kissed Me" No. 39 UK
• (1982) "Dedicated Man" (Australia only)
• (1982) "Ball Of Confusion/Suspicious Minds"
• (1984) "Dance Me Up" No. 25 UK; No. 25 Ireland
• (1984) "Shout Shout Shout"
• (1984) "Another Rock n' Roll Christmas" No. 7 UK; No. 14 Ireland
• (1985) "Love Comes" No. 91 UK (charted for 3 weeks)
• (1985) "Rock'N'Roll/ Oh No, Im not just a Pretty Face No. 31 UK Independent Chart
• (1985) "Mega Star Disc"
• (1987) "Rock & Roll Part 3" No. 107 UK
• (1987) "Gary Glitter & Girlschool – I'm the Leader of the Gang" No. 12 Australia
• (1988) "Frontiers of Style"
• (1989) "Mega Glitter Rock A Live – Be Bop A Lula/Rock'n'Roll Pt.1/"

1990s[link]

• (1990) "Red Hot (Reputation)" No. 87 UK (charted for 1 month)
• (1991) "Ready to Rock"
• (1992) "And The Leader Rocks On" (medley mix) No. 58 UK
• (1992) "Through the Years" No. 49 UK
• (1995) "Hello, Hello I'm Back Again (Again!)" No. 50 UK
• (1996) "House of the Rising Sun" No. 15 NZ; No. 81 UK

2000s[link]

• (2001) "You" mail order only (recorded 1996-97, included on "On" studio album)
• (2004) "Control" mail order only (recorded 1996-97, outtake from "Lost On Life Street" sessions)
• (2005) "Field of Dreams" mail order only (recorded 1996-97, outtake from "Lost On Life Street" sessions)

Covers/samples[link]

• (1974) "I'm the Leader of the Gang" by Brownsville Station No. 48 U.S.
• (1980) Holiday 80 EP by The Human League (includes cover of "Rock and Roll" as part of a medley with Iggy Pop's "Nightclubbing")
• (1982) "Rock N' Roll Part 2" covered by hardcore punk band D.I.
• (1983) "I Didn't Know I Loved You (Til I Saw You Rock 'n' Roll)" by Rock Goddess
• (1983) "I Didn't Know I Loved You (Til I Saw You Rock 'n' Roll)" by Planet Patrol R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Chart No. 62 U.S.
• (1984) "Do You Wanna Touch Me" by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts No. 20 U.S.
• (1987) "A Little Boogie Woogie (In the Back of My Mind)" Shakin' Stevens UK No. 12
• (1988) "KLF – Doctorin' the Tardis" by The Timelords Featuring Gary Glitter No. 1 UK (features samples of "Rock and Roll (Parts 1 and 2)")
• (1989) "Let's Party" Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers UK No. 1 (features a sample of Glitter's "Another Rock 'N Roll Christmas")
• (1989) "Rock N' Roll" by the Undertones, cover of Rock N' Roll (Part 1), The Peel Sessions Album (Undertones)
• (1993) "I'm the Leader of the Gang" Hulk Hogan with Green Jelly UK No. 25
• (1995) "Hello" by Oasis (uses elements of and quotes the chorus of "Hello, Hello, I'm Back Again")

See also[link]

• List of number-one singles from the 1970s (UK)

Further reading[link]

• Glitter, Gary Leader: The Autobiography of Gary Glitter (Ebury Press, 1991). ISBN 0-85223-977-7.

Notes[link]

External links[link]

• The Ganghouse Gary Glitter Facebook fan page
• Profile: Gary Glitter BBC News
• Gary Glitter at the Internet Movie Database
• I am the Leader of the Gary Glitter Gang, actually … by John Battles

City of Gary
—  City  —
Downtown Gary
Official seal of City of Gary Seal
Nickname(s): City in Motion, City of the Century, GI, Magic City of Steel, The Steel City, The G
Motto: We Are Doing Great Things
Location of Gary in Lake County (left, shaded in red), and within the state of Indiana, U.S.
Coordinates: 41°35′44″N 87°20′43″W / 41.59556°N 87.34528°W / 41.59556; -87.34528Coordinates: 41°35′44″N 87°20′43″W / 41.59556°N 87.34528°W / 41.59556; -87.34528[1]
Country	United States
State	Indiana
County	Lake
Founded	July 14, 1906
Government
• Type	Council-Strong Mayor
• Mayor	Karen Freeman-Wilson (D)
Area
• Total	57.18 sq mi (148.1 km2)
• Land	49.86 sq mi (129.1 km2)
• Water	7.31 sq mi (18.9 km2)
Elevation[1]	607 ft (185 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	80,294
• Density	1,598.5/sq mi (617.2/km2)
Time zone	CST (UTC–6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC–5)
ZIP codes	46401-46411
Area code(s)	219
FIPS code	18-27000[2]
GNIS feature ID	2394863[1]
Website	http://www.gary.in.us/

Gary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The city is in the southeastern portion of the Chicago metropolitan area and is 25 miles from downtown Chicago. The population is 80,294 at the 2010 census, making it the seventh-largest city in the state. It borders Lake Michigan and is known for its large steel mills and as the birthplace of the Jacksons singing family. Gary is adjacent to the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore.

History[link]

Early history[link]

The city was founded in 1906 by the United States Steel Corporation as the home for its new plant. The city was named after the lawyer and founding chairman of U.S. Steel, Elbert Henry Gary.

Gary's fortunes have risen and fallen with those of the steel industry. The growth of the steel industry brought prosperity to the community. Broadway Avenue was known as a commercial center for the region. Department stores and architecturally significant movie houses were built in the downtown area and the Glen Park neighborhood.

In the 1960s, like many other American urban centers reliant on one particular industry, Gary entered a spiral of decline. Gary's decline was brought on by the growing overseas competitiveness in the steel industry, which had caused U.S. Steel to lay off many workers from the Gary area. As the city declined, crime increased.

Rapid racial change occurred in Gary during the late 20th century. These population changes resulted in political change which reflected the racial demographics of Gary. Gary had one of the nation's first African-American mayors, Richard G. Hatcher, and hosted the ground-breaking 1972 National Black Political Convention.

In the 1960s through 1980s, surrounding suburban localities such as Merrillville and Crown Point experienced rapid growth including new homes and shopping districts. Due to white flight, economic distress, and skyrocketing crime, many middle-class and affluent residents moved to other cities in the metro area such as Chicago and surrounding areas in Lake and Porter counties in Indiana.

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Gary had the highest percentage of African Americans of U.S. cities with a population of 100,000 or more, 84% (as of the 2000 U.S. census). This no longer applies to Gary since the population of the city has now fallen well below 100,000 residents.

U.S. Steel continues to be a major steel producer, but with only a fraction of its former level of employment. While Gary has failed to reestablish a manufacturing base since its population peak, two casinos opened along the Gary lakeshore in the 1990s although this has been aggravated by the state closing of Cline Avenue, an important access to the area. Today, Gary faces the difficulties of a rust belt former steel town turned urban dumping ground, including unemployment, decaying infrastructure, low literacy and educational attainment levels.

Recent history[link]

2006[link]

Three-term Democratic mayor Scott King resigned from office in March 2006, citing a desire to return to private law practice.^[3] Then-deputy mayor and former Calumet Township trustee Dozier T. Allen Jr. became acting mayor pending a formal election by local Democratic party officials. On April 4, 2006, local officials chose former Lake County commissioner and King rival Rudolph Clay to fill the remaining 21 months of King's term.

The Gary Chicago International Airport (IATA code: GYY) secured nearly $100 million in grants and private donations. The Federal Aviation Administration approved GYY's master plan which includes the expansion of runways, land acquisition for a larger terminal, an integrated transportation center, and provision for a third runway. The first part of the plan requires that the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway line, which runs at the end of the runway, be relocated.

Dallas-based HomeVestors of America released its "Top 10 Markets for Real Estate Investing" list on December 9, 2006. Gary earned the number one position on this list, which represents activity of investors who purchase homes below market and then sell.^[4]

After celebrating its centennial anniversary in 2006, the city of Gary presented several examples of progress and economic rebound, after years of economic depression. Many buildings that have been left vacant for years are now finally slated for demolition and development.^[5] Many new homes were built through the HOPE VI grant from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

2007[link]

Gary was rated the 17th most dangerous city in the United States according to Morgan Quitno's 2007 analysis of crime rates (City Crime Rankings, 14th Edition), down from 10th highest in the 2006 edition. The city recorded 51 homicides in 2006, a 13.5 percent decrease from the previous year.

2008[link]

Forbes Magazine listed Gary 39th on their Top 100 Best Cities for Jobs in 2008. The ranking was up from 89th in 2006 and 84th in 2007.^[6]

In March 2008 the Chief of Police, Deputy Chief and a police sergeant were all indicted by the federal court for violating the civil rights of a Gary resident.^[7]

2011[link]

Property tax limitations implemented for the entire state of Indiana have left Gary in a financially difficult situation.^[8] The city is one of the few in the US that uses cash based accounting, a system usually limited to use in very small businesses and not municipalities with budgets greater than $80 million.^[9] Gary currently is under temporary reprieve from full implementation of the state tax caps, an implementation that is scheduled to be applied to Gary in 2012. At that point Gary's property tax revenue of approximately $60 million is projected to be cut to approximately $30 million. The budget changes necessary at that point are widely viewed to be devastating.^[10] Due to its cash accounting system, there is difficulty determining what Gary's one-time liabilities are. In late 2009, they are at least $34 million in debts and unpaid judgments by the city to various parties in addition to the upcoming projected structural deficit due to mandatory tax caps.

In April 2011, 75 year-old mayor Rudy Clay announced that he would be suspending his campaign for re-election, owing to ongoing treatments for prostate cancer. After exiting from the race, Clay endorsed rival Karen Freeman-Wilson, who won the Democratic mayoral primary in May.^[11]

On November 8, 2011, Freeman-Wilson won election to the office of mayor of Gary with 87 percent of the vote. Her term began January 2012; she is the city's first female mayor.^[12]

Neighborhoods[link]

West[link]

Ambridge Mann is located on Gary's near west side along 5th Avenue. Ambridge was developed for workers at the nearby steel plant in the 1910s and 1920s, and is named after the American Bridge Works, which was a subsidiary of U.S. Steel. The neighborhood is home to a huge stock of prairie style and art deco homes. The Gary Masonic Temple is located in the neighborhood along with the Ambassador Apartment building. Located just south of Interstate 90, the neighborhood can be seen while passing Buchanan Street.

Lake County, Indiana Superior Court Building

Brunswick is located on Gary's far west side. The neighborhood is located just south of Interstate 90 and can be seen from the expressway. The Brunswick area includes the Tri-City Plaza shopping center on West 5th Avenue (U.S. 20). The area is south of the Gary Chicago International Airport.

Gary Centennial Landmark

Downtown Gary was developed in the 1920s and houses several pieces of impressive architecture, including several structures designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. A 6,000-seat minor league baseball stadium for the Gary SouthShore RailCats, U.S. Steel Yard, was constructed in 2002, along with contiguous commercial space. A significant number of older structures have been demolished in recent years, but a number of abandoned buildings remain in the downtown area, including historic structures like Union Station and City Methodist Church. A large area of the downtown neighborhood (including City Methodist) was devastated by fire on October 12, 1997.^[13][14] Interstate 90 divides downtown Gary from the United States Steel Plant.

Tolleston is one of Gary's oldest neighborhoods, predating much of the rest of the city. It was plated out by George Tolle in 1857, when the railroads came to the area. The area is to the west of Midtown and south of Ambridge Mann. Tarrytown is a subdivision located in Tolleston between Whitcomb Street and Clark Road.

South[link]

Black Oak is located on the far southwest side of Gary, in the vicinity of the Burr Street exit to the Borman Expressway. It was annexed in the 1970s. Prior to that, Black Oak was an unincorporated area informally associated with Hammond, and the area has Hammond telephone numbers. The community was convinced (after three previously failed attempts) by Mayor Hatcher that its residents would benefit from better services, provided by the city, than those provided by the county. It is the only majority-white neighborhood in Gary.

Glen Park is located on Gary's far south side, and is made up mostly of mid-twentieth century houses. Glen Park is divided from the remainder of the city by the Borman Expressway. The northern portion of Glen Park is home to Gary's Gleason Park Golf Course and the campus of Indiana University Northwest. The far western portion of Glen Park is home to the Village Shopping Center. Glen Park includes the 37th Avenue corridor at Broadway.

Midtown is located to the south of Downtown Gary, along Broadway. This was, traditionally, the original "black" neighborhood in the pre-1960s days of segregation.

Old Miller School, District #8

North and East[link]

Aetna is located on Gary's far east side along the Dunes Highway. Aetna predates the city of Gary. It was a company town founded in 1881 by the Aetna Powder Works, an explosives company, which closed with the end of World War I. The Town of Aetna was annexed in 1928 around the same time Gary annexed the Town of Miller. A building boom happened shortly afterward in the late 1920s and early 1930s making Aetna home to an impressive collection of art deco architecture. The rest of the community was built throughout the 1950s after the Korean War in a series of phases. On its south and east, Aetna borders the undeveloped floodplain of the Little Calumet River.

Miller Beach, also known through the years as Miller Station or just simply as Miller, is on Gary's far east side. Incorporated as an independent town in 1907, Miller was annexed by the city of Gary in 1918. Miller developed around the old stagecoach stop and train station known, as early as the 1840s, as Miller's Junction. The Miller Beach area has remained somewhat separated from the rest of Gary both culturally and geographically. Miller Beach continues to be racially and economically diverse, and attracts investor interest due to the many year-round and summer homes within walking distance of Marquette Park and Lake Michigan. Prices for lakefront property are affordable compared with Illinois suburban communities. Lake Street provides shopping and dining options for Miller Beach visitors and residents. East Edge, a development of 28 upscale condominium, townhome, and single-family homes, began construction in 2007 at the eastern edge of Miller Beach along County Line Road, one block south of Lake Michigan.^[15]

Lake Street Beach in Miller

Lake County Superior Court House and US Steel Gary Works

Geography and climate[link]

Geography[link]

The city sits on the southern end of the former lake bed of the prehistoric Lake Chicago, and the current Lake Michigan. Most of the city's soil nearly one foot below the surface is pure sand. The sand beneath Gary, and on its beaches, is of such high quality that in years past it was mined for the manufacture of glass. Gary has many statues of Elbert H. Gary in the city. It also has a lot of historical sites to visit.

According to the 2010 census, the city has a total area of 57.18 square miles (148.1 km²), of which 49.86 square miles (129.1 km²) (or 87.20%) is land and 7.31 square miles (18.9 km²) (or 12.78%) is water.^[16]

Gary is "T" shaped, with its northern border on Lake Michigan. At the Northwesternmost section Gary borders Hammond and East Chicago. Miller Beach, its easternmost neighborhood, borders Lake Station and Portage. Gary's southernmost section borders Griffith, Hobart, Merrillville, and unincorporated Ross.^{[citation needed]} Gary is about 40 miles (64 km) from the Chicago Loop.^[17]