"Roxy Roller" is a song originally recorded by the

glam rock Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was performed by musicians who wore outrageous costumes, makeup, and hairstyles, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists drew on diver ...

band

Sweeney Todd Sweeney Todd is a fictional character who first appeared as the villain of the penny dreadful serial '' The String of Pearls'' (1846–47). The original tale became a feature of 19th-century melodrama and London legend. A barber from Fleet Stre ...

in 1975 with

Nick Gilder Nicholas George Gilder (born 21 December 1951) is a British-Canadian musician who first came to prominence as the frontman for the glam rock band Sweeney Todd. He later had a successful solo career as a singer/songwriter. Biography Born in Lo ...

on vocals. It was written by Jim McCulloch and Nick Gilder. In total, four versions of the song were released in 1976: * the original one at London Records, cat. no. L 2590, released in Canada only, * a solo version recorded by Nick Gilder released at Chrysalis Records in various countries outside Canada in 1976, * a version by Sweeney Todd with newly recorded vocals by new lead singer Clark Perry on London Records, cat. no. 5N-240, released in various countries outside Canada. * a version by Sweeney Todd with newly recorded vocals by new lead singer

Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams (born 5 November 1959) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and photographer. He has been cited as one of the best-selling music artists of all time, and is estimated to have sold between 75 million and mor ...

on London Records, cat. no. 5N-244, released in the U.S. only.

Canadian success story

The original version did chart big in Canada, entering during May 1976: the song spent three consecutive weeks at number one in Canada during June and July 1976. By that time Gilder and McCulloch both had already left the band to pursue a solo career. The song is ranked as the fifth biggest Canadian hit of 1976. "Roxy Roller" won a Juno Award for the band.

USA reception

Because the song was not an immediate success with the American public, Gilder took a chance and recorded a solo version. It was released on Chrysalis Records. However, it faced immediate competition from Sweeney Todd's rush-released re-recorded version on which new singer Clark Perry did lead vocals. Acting on Gilder's behalf, Chrysalis Records demanded that imported copies of the Sweeney Todd original, as well as of the newly recorded version, be withdrawn from the US market. Record stores duly removed both versions from their shelves. However, two re-recorded versions of 'Roxy Roller' did chart on the

Billboard Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streamin ...

. The version with vocals by Clark Perry peaked at #90 (and at #97 in the

Cash Box Top 100 The Cash Box Top 100 Pop Singles (also known as the Cash Box Top 100) was a record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Cash Box'' magazine, which began publication in 1942. As a close competitor to ''Billboard A billb ...

) in late August 1976. A second Sweeney Todd re-recording--with vocals by

--peaked at #99 in mid-September 1976. With four versions of "Roxy Roller" competing for stateside attention, none achieved either a high chart position or great sales, even though this was an era when the glam rock sound was still quite popular.

Chart history

Weekly charts

;Nick Gilder original ;Clark Perry re-record ;Bryan Adams re-record

Year-end charts

;Gilder ;Perry ;Adams

Cover versions

* "Roxy Roller" was covered by

Suzi Quatro Susan Kay Quatro (born June 3, 1950) is an American singer, bass guitarist, songwriter, and actress. In the 1970s, she scored a string of hit singles that found greater success in Europe and Australia than in her homeland, reaching No. 1 in th ...

in 1977. * The song was covered by Jaded Past in 2014. * The song was covered by former Runaways singer Cherie Currie on her Blvds of Splendor album

References

External links

* (Clark Perry vocals) * {{YouTube, VTxHX1k8Yrk, Listen to "Roxy Roller" (Bryan Adams vocals) 1975 songs 1976 singles 1977 singles Bryan Adams songs Nick Gilder songs Songs written by Nick Gilder London Records singles RPM Top Singles number-one singles