From Bubblegum to Glam

Fall in Ohio means festival time. In fact, you can go to a different festival every weekend and still not have enough time to look at all the craft booths and eat a bunch of french fries and elephant ears.

Last night, Eric and I attended such a festival with both sets of our parents. The featured entertainment was Ohio Express. If you don’t know who I’m talking about, don’t feel bad. Their most famous song is “Yummy, Yummy, Yummy” and, according to the band website, Ohio Express invented the Bubblegum era of pop.

So here we are, listening to the sixties music and my mom says “I wonder if the music you like will be around as long as this stuff?”

I certainly hope so.

From the Glam Metal scene, some bands can still play stadiums (Bon Jovi, Motley Crue, Aerosmith) and some play festivals (Poison, L.A. Guns, Queensryche).

Just the other day, I read that Def Leppard enjoyed the highest grossing concert of all time at the Kentucky State fair. Aerosmith recently played the Los Angeles County fair, commanding close to one million dollars in booking fees.

The Ohio Express didn’t get a million bucks to play on a shoddy stage last night – but were they more in demand a decade ago? I’m not sure.

Did bands like Motley Crue, Def Leppard or Aerosmith even play the fair circuit a few years back? Surely, there was big money to be made if the Crue were asked to play a state fair in, say, 1989.

Vince Neil tours nonstop for two reasons: he likes money and he likes to perform. He’s on the road fall, spring, winter and summer and it’s been that way for years. This must mean there’s a demand for solo Motley, even while the Crue continues to self-destruct.

Perhaps when I’m 40 (by the way, the thought of turning 30 makes me queasy) I’ll go to a free festival and see Vince running around the stage.

Hey, it could happen.

***Do you think Glam Metal will enjoy the same longevity as 60s rock?

Comments

[aXe mAn]

YES! I think glam metal will be around in some way, shape or form for a long time to come.

[Christian Graus]

The real issue here is, no matter what, any band that has had a hit, can almost certainly get a gig *somewhere*. The question is, are Poison ever going to accept a gig that small ? I think that the answer probably is, just like some of the bands of my youth are still together, and many are not, the number that holds it together and still performs in 20 years time ( when *I* will be almost 60 ), will be smaller again, but it will exist.

This music has certainly gone through the same cycle every other music has ( huge/zero/comeback for mostly the nostalgia market ).

[PEPSI SHEEN]

Summa my fave bands kinda managed a shotgun marriage of glam and bubblegum-like Candy, the Raspberries, Beat Angels, Gen X,Sweet, Slade, Suzi Quatro,Redd Kross, Imperial Drag,Earth 18,Fizzy Bangers, purple haired Zeros, etc.etc.

[MICHAEL SERAN]

glad to have found you and this blog! it's long past time that some body got together and a summer large scacale tour of good old fasion bubble gam and glam. sure to be a mega money maker and start some resergence of the era. the ohio expxress, 1910 fruit gum co. etc. i dont know about all your readers,but that sure would make my milleniem! thank you,MICHAEL SERAN