Mentioned in dispatches by 70sobsessed irony merchant Luke Haines on his magnificent Off My Rocker At The Art School Bop, The Glitter Band’s guilt-by-association seems to have been absolved. Haines alleges, in song, not only that “Gary Glitter is a bad, bad man” for “sullying the reputation of The Glitter Band”, but also that “Goodbye My Love is a hell of a record, they made it by themselves, the Leader was not present”.
Said song, a No 2 hit in 1975 and a shamelessly melodramatic tearjerker worthy of the Shangri- Las, is the centrepiece of this, their second LP. The demo version, one of seven bonus tracks, is even better, thanks to a hilariously camp stewardess-PA-announcement-inthe- departure-lounge section. By the band’s own admission in the sleevenotes, half the tracks are filler, but still have a naff kind of clodhopping charm: a little Beach Boys here, a Who riff there and a clear doo wop influence elsewhere, all underpinned with that Mike Leander beat. The only other standout song is Pictures Of You, the subject of which is a one-hitwonder actress sadly past her prime. The band still won’t reveal her identity.
