the online home of offline nightlife

From the late 60's to the late 90's, countless rockers took stage in lavish clothing, make up and props, pushing the limits of sexuality and what we, as a society, could stomach. This trend has been witnessed across genres, shocking and delighting fans of glam rock and punk, pop and heavy metal with their always unpredictable and counter-cultural behavior. Below is a list of the most notable 20 crossdressing and androgynous rockers of all time:

Marilyn Manson

(source)

Man, woman, or grotesque asexual alien? Marilyn Manson is no stranger to trans gender tendencies, especially when wearing his wearing his famous "Boob Suit," shown above. No one can be sure exactly what Manson was going for with this picture, however if it was to portray a sexless, frail, demonic being with flashy lipstick.....well then, mission accomplished.

Dee Snider

(source)

Dee Snider, the singer for defunct band Twisted Sister, frequently took stage looking like a hideous, unshaven old lady, the kind who kept way too many cats and wandered about the neighborhood in abhorrent make-up showing far too much skin. The band was famous for its hit single "We're not gonna take it," which is exactly what fans should have told them about their "look." At the very least, the lipstick needs to go, and the small man-boobs ought be tucked in.

David Lee Roth

(source)

The famous, skirt-chasing David Lee Roth is no stranger to the feminine get-up. Often donning jewel-laden spandex, sprucing his hair up big and prancing around stage, Roth seemed the type to love the ladies, both for their fashion sense and at times, he may have wanted to be one. Could it be that all the songs about sleeping with women were but a veneer of masculinity which allowed him to wear such flamboyant stage gear? The world may never know.

Boy George

(source)

Regularly clad in feather boas, sequins and ostentatious make up, it didn't get more weird than Boy George. Could you imagine him at a black tie dinner party you were at? Me neither. This man spent more time in front of a mirror than most supermodels, and all to cast the image of a sexually confused 13 year old girl.

Warrant

(source)

Warrant is perhaps most famous for their cock-rock hit single, "Cherry Pie." But after revisiting a photo of this band from yesteryear, it's shocking that these fellas were interested in vagina. Warrant did it up big: big hair, leopard print, frilly shirts, and top hats with pink ribbons. Why? Because it was the 1980s, goddamit.

LA Guns

(source)

Making their big break on the Sunset Strip in the 1980's, LA Guns is best known for giving three of its members away to Guns 'n Roses. Legendary procrastinator-extraordinaire Axl Rose got his start in LA Guns, and the hair band never reached the heights they had planned. Perhaps it had something to do with their belly-shirts, sparkly vests and pedophile sunglasses?

Freddy Mercury

(source)

Rock legend Freddy Mercury didn't hide anything. The man was openly homosexual, which went a long way to explaining some of his on stage antics. Frequently appearing in butt-less chaps or bright pleather pants, Freddy and Queen partook in all kinds of transgender showmanship. Nevertheless, the group remains profoundly influential today, as they were back then. Unfortunately the same can not be said for the next band on the list.

Cinderella

(source)

Cinderella was glam rock gone terribly wrong (although it remains questionable if it was ever really right to begin with). Big frizzy hair, unsightly leopard print tights and rather out-of-shape bodies combined with incredibly cheesy ballad music make Cinderella a band that should have neither been seen nor heard. Don't you feel bad for these guys and their kids every time they see this picture?

Motley Crue

(source)

After looking at this mid -80s photo, who would have thought that the polka-dot wearing, lesbian-lookalike, Tommy Lee would go on to one day bang Baywatch babe Pamela Anderson (on a boat, for our viewing pleasure)? Vince Neil was no better, often appearing with hair so bleached you could clean a toilet with his head, and wearing pearls and lace as white as the cocaine they so loved to consume. Bonus: check out those gloves.

David Bowie

(source)

David Bowie brought glam rock to soaring heights and often pushed the limits of sexuality. This was probably due to his bisexual orientation -- ask Mick Jagger about that one. Appearing in wild outfits and shocking viewers as part of his image, Bowie was known for having flagrant affairs with both men and women. Bowie also starred in the movie Labyrinth, where he wore spandex so tight that it looked like he was smuggling walnuts.

KISS

(source)

In perhaps the most successful marketing studnt of all time, KISS represented androgynous rock for the masses. Taking stage in tight studded leather and gender transcendent make up, KISS 's popularity quickly spread like the inflammatory symptom of an STD. Lead singer Gene Simmons claims to have had sex with 4,600 women, and with his band and him wearing outfits that look like they were lying around after the filming of some sick dungeon porno, who can really doubt him.

Bret Michaels

(source)

As the lead singer/skin flutist for the 80's hair metal band Poison, Bret Michaels comes off a pretty boy prick trying to be "rock and roll." His popular VH1 reality series "Rock of Love" is little more than an excuse for the ex-rock star to score with older, skanky chicks, ride motorcycles and plug his new solo album, pathetically titled, "Rock My World."

New York Dolls

(source)

The New York Dolls always seemed like the sort of guys who go backstage, lock out the groupies and cover each other in whipped cream. The band is still together, though these days they do not appear as sexually confused as before. Their latest album "Cuz I Sez So" was released this month and features a slightly more mature band. Its hard to say exactly what made these guys think that big gold high heels, blouses and make up made them look manly, but we suspect more than a few husbands have secretly put on their wive's clothing to a New York Doll's record.

ABBA

(source)

Captain fairy to the rescue! Though ABBA did have two female band members, the men of the group looked confused as shit. Big feathers, capes and shiny sequins made it difficult for male audience members to tell who the chicks in the band were. After a few beers, the line becomes to blurry to distinguish, and hell even if you do slip up, at least they're Swedish - at least they are pretty.

Quiet Riot

(source)

What was it about the 1980's that made skin-tight, striped sleeveless shirts so in fashion? Future guitar legend Randy Rhodes got his start in the band Quiet Riot before moving on to play for Ozzy, and by the looks of things it was a change for the better. Riot's biggest hit single was, "Bang Your Head (Metal Health)," an unabashed anthem of beer drinking and shredding gnar gnar on the axe Its too bad these guys didn't look as good as they sounded. The old lady style had been done to death by this point.

Gary Glitter

(source)

Doesn't this guy just look like a child molester? In fact, he is! Glam rock superstar Gary Glitter (the kind of name you warn your children to avoid) currently has a $1,000,000 bounty on his head if he ever leaves the UK. After serving a revoltingly short two months in prison for the molestation of two 11 year old girls, it seems that gangs of Spain have vowed to murder him to protect their children if he ever crosses their border.

Alvin Stardust

(source)

What happens when you repress homosexuality, pick out your own stage outfits, and don't have anyone there to tell you that you look like a perverted and disturbed B-list wrestler? Well, you wind up with this: Alvin Stardust, the high heel dancing pop sensation gained his fame in the 1970's where wild pleather outfits and big hair was considered alright for straight guys to wear. Alvin continues to make music today, however we are lucky enough that in his old age he does not still wear this get-up.

Michael Jackson

(source)

You were probably thinking that we were going to leave him off this list, huh?

Iggy Pop

(source)

Known for donning make up and dumping glitter all over himself on stage, Iggy Pop pushed all gender stereotypes aside and behaved only as he saw fit. Like Bowie, Pop was known for having sex with anything that that looked appealing through his drug-altered vision.

Slade

(source)

Where did these guys come from? Could there be a more mismatched looking group? David Hill looks like a nun with huge mirrors all over him, Neville Holder looks like the Mad Hatter, and then you've got James Lea looking like he just came from a mariachi practice. With their biggest hit single being "Cum On Feel The Noise," Slade disappeared into the realm of obscurity without the world taking much notice.

Tags: lists, rock and roll, celebrity