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Gary
Glitter (born Paul
Francis Gadd, May 8,
1944 in Banbury,
Oxfordshire) is a rock
and pop singer and
songwriter who came to
prominence in the glam
rock era of the early
1970s. His reputation
was greatly tarnished
and his popularity
quickly declined
following a child
pornography conviction,
although he continued to
record and release new
work until his arrest
and conviction on child
abuse charges in
2005-06. Even today,
whilst many of the UK
tabloids write about his
personal life in a
negative light, he still
retains favourable
credibility among some
music critics. According
to Dave Thompson of All
music guide "Musically,
visually, and
emotionally, he
transcended so many
barriers that even
categorising him as a
rock & roller seems
somehow stingy. He was
so much more than
that."
Glitter
had one of the longest
chart runs of any solo
singer during the 1970s.
His success as a live
performer lasted well
beyond the decade, and
the chant from his hit
"Rock and Roll (Part 2)"
is a perennially popular
stadium anthem at sports
events, particularly in
the United States.
Glitter's 1973 number
one "I'm The Leader Of
The Gang (I Am!)" also
remains one of the
better-known songs of
its era. He continued to
record in the 1980s and
1990s, with his 1984
song "Another Rock and
Roll Christmas" being
one of the Top 30
Christmas hits of all
time. Glitter scored
more than 20 hit singles
in the UK Top 75, and
released more than
twenty albums. In 1998,
his recording of Rock
and Roll (Part 1) was
voted as one of the Top
1001 songs in music
history. Also, in 2004,
a Channel 4 poll of the
50 Greatest Pop Stars of
all time placed Glitter
at #22.
In
1999, Glitter was
convicted of child
pornography offences
classifying him as a sex
offender under UK law.
He went to live in Vung
Tàu in Vietnam in
March 2005 and applied
for permanent resident
status. Gary Glitter is
currently in prison in
Vietnam, convicted for
sexually abusing two
girls of 10 and 11 years
of age, after being
arrested on November 19,
2005.
Websites:
Gary
Glitter
- VH1's Gary Glitter
page.
News:
Gary
Glitter's Child Abuse
Sentence
Cut
08 February
2007
Gary
Glitter Denies Abusing
Girls
04 May 2006
Gary
Glitter Trial
Begins
02 March 2006
Gary
Glitter Trial Date
Announced
21 February
2006
Gary
Glitter Trial Poised For
February
18 January
2006
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