Glam Rock (October 27, 1973) – News & Reviews Round-Up
This October 27, 1973 music-page round-up captures several names connected with the British glam and rock scene, with David Bowie, T. Rex, Roxy Music and the Osmonds appearing alongside live reviews and contemporary music news. The strongest stories concern Bowie’s forthcoming “1984” project and T. Rex’s planned move into the American trucking business.
Date: October 27, 1973
Country: United Kingdom
DAVID BOWIE – “BOWIE 1984 A.D.”
The largest news story on the page appears under the dramatic headline:
“BOWIE 1984 A.D.”
The report discusses David Bowie’s planned musical project based around George Orwell’s 1984.
The article explains that Bowie had decided to create a musical based on Orwell’s novel and was intending to write both the music and lyrics.
The feature gives Bowie particularly strong visual prominence, with the “BOWIE 1984 A.D.” headline dominating the centre of the page.
T. REX – “TRUCKIN’ BOLAN”
Marc Bolan and T. Rex feature in a separate news item headed:
“Truckin’ Bolan”
The article reports that T. REX were entering the trucking business in America.
According to the clipping, T. Rex were taking delivery of a fleet of vehicles intended to transport equipment for American touring.
The short item reflects the continuing expansion of T. Rex’s touring operation beyond Britain during 1973.
ROXY MUSIC
Roxy Music appear within the “Live Music Reviews” section at the upper-right of the page.
The inclusion of Roxy Music further broadens the glam and art-rock representation within the issue, placing the group alongside other reviewed performers.
The supplied image is not sufficiently large to reproduce the complete Roxy Music review accurately, so no detailed claims from the review itself have been added.
OSMONDS
A smaller boxed item asks:
“Osmond welcome the Fonz?”
The story concerns the Osmonds and forms part of the page’s mixture of short pop-news reports.
ROLLING STONES
Another prominent news item carries the headline:
“War declared as Stones hit Berlin”
The piece concerns the Rolling Stones and their appearance in Berlin.
A photograph beneath the news columns shows activity connected with the Stones, accompanied by a caption beginning:
“Riot police and barbed wire...”
LIVE MUSIC REVIEWS
The page contains a dedicated “Live Music Reviews” section.
Artists visibly identified include:
Roxy Music
Genesis
Four Tops / Detroit Spinners
This gives the page a broader scope beyond glam rock, combining contemporary rock, progressive music and soul within the same coverage.
OTHER ITEMS
Additional material visible on the page includes:
“Stones to block BBC”
and:
“Tim Hardin returns”
A large advertisement for Jermaine Jackson’s “The Bigger You Love (The Harder You Fall)” occupies much of the lower-right portion of the page.
CONTEXT AND NOTES
For the Glam Rock Chronicle, the page is particularly useful because David Bowie, Marc Bolan/T. Rex and Roxy Music all appear within the same contemporary music-news layout.
Rather than treating one performer as the sole subject, the page captures the broader musical landscape surrounding glam rock in October 1973.
The Bowie story is given the strongest editorial prominence through the large “BOWIE 1984 A.D.” headline, while T. Rex receive their own “Truckin’ Bolan” news item and Roxy Music appear in the live-review section.
FEATURE HIGHLIGHTS
Event: Contemporary music news and reviews round-up
Date: October 27, 1973
Era: 1973 Glam Rock period
Featured Glam/Rock Artists: David Bowie, T. Rex, Roxy Music
Additional Coverage: Rolling Stones, Osmonds, Genesis, Four Tops, Detroit Spinners, Tim Hardin, Jermaine Jackson
WHAT THE PAGE SHOWS
• David Bowie prominently featured under “BOWIE 1984 A.D.”
• Bowie’s proposed project based around George Orwell’s 1984
• T. Rex featured in the “Truckin’ Bolan” news item
• Roxy Music appearing in the Live Music Reviews section
• Rolling Stones coverage under “War declared as Stones hit Berlin”
• An Osmonds news item
• Live coverage also featuring Genesis, Four Tops and Detroit Spinners
• A large Jermaine Jackson single advertisement
• A broad snapshot of British popular music coverage during October 1973
All magazine scans, photographs, and original text excerpts referenced in this entry remain the property of their respective copyright holders. This Chronicle entry is a transformative, non-commercial archival summary created for historical documentation and educational reference. No ownership of the original material is claimed or implied.
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