Photo courtesy of R Sones

It’s not just us mere mortals who suffer from dental problems which need attention – pop and rock stars also have their share of dental work which needs doing.

Whether you’re a star of the stage or just an ordinary citizen, products are available to help improve the appearance of your teeth – one good example is Invisalign. London dentist Ethicare is one of many practices which can advise and help you fit these discreet teeth-straightening braces.

Below is a list of ten of the most famous sets of teeth in pop music history. Some of these figures provide shining examples of how to look after your teeth, while others had teeth which weren’t quite as magnificent as their musical skills!

1. Freddie Mercury – the Queen singer had a distinctive overbite caused by the presence of four extra teeth which pushed his incisors out.

“I don’t like the way my teeth protrude. Apart from that I’m perfect,” he once said.

2. The Bee Gees – the brothers Gibb bright smiles were as famous as their tight trousers, falsetto voices and movie soundtrack hits.

3. Shane MacGowan – the Pogues front man’s tombstone teeth-look is one best not imitated at home.

4. Liam Gallagher – had two front teeth knocked out in an altercation with some estate agents at a Munich Hotel in 2002. After extensive dental surgery, he introduced a performance of the song Live Forever by saying: “This one is for my teeth.”

5. Amy Winehouse – the Back to Black singer might not have wanted to go to rehab but she has been rumoured to have had dental work done to repair teeth damaged by drug addiction. A few years ago, a

‘friend’ of hers told the Daily Mail: “Her mouth is full of holes and she is desperately worried she is going to lose more.”

6. Keith Richards – the Rolling Stones guitarist fooled journalists into believing he went to Switzerland to have a blood-change operation. In fact, before-and-after photos suggest that he had dental work done instead.

The operation seemed to change his singing voice from a nasal whine to a pleasingly smoky croak. Bandmate Mick Jagger is no stranger to cosmetic surgery: he has one subtle diamond tooth in his mouth, an addition which has not altered his vocal delivery.

7. Kanye West – the American rapper recently opted to have his bottom row of teeth removed and replaced with diamond and gold implants. Explaining his decision, he said: “I guess there’s just certain things that rock stars are supposed to do.”

8. Goldie – the English electronic music artist had his gold teeth long before Kanye West had cosmetic dental surgery. He used to sell gold teeth – also known as grills – in America in the days before he found music fame.

9. The Osmonds – the singing family were famous for hits such as Crazy Horses but their shiny teeth were the result of sensible dental care. Why did their teeth get so commented on? Perhaps because in the 1970s lots of people had bad teeth and dentistry was more primitive.

10. Cliff Richard – a living, walking advertisement for what clean living can do for your teeth. Studies such as a recent one by the Irish Dental Association have suggested a link between harmful habits such as teeth grinding and drug use. The message seems to be: if you want to have teeth which are more Cliff Richard than Keith Richards then try to enjoy life in moderation!

11. Jimi Hendrix – the late great star produced hits such as Hey Joe, Foxy Lady and Fire and could play his guitar with his teeth better than most players could play with their hands.

Apparently, the idea of using his teeth as makeshift plectrums came to him after he saw unsung fellow Seattle musician Butch Snipes perform the same trick on stage.

12. George Formby – the British singer-songwriter and comedian wowed music hall audiences in the 1930s. His toothy buck-toothed grin fitted his cheery personality perfectly, endearing him to his adoring audiences. In pre-war Britain it would have been difficult to correct his buck-toothed appearance with braces but this physical characteristic was an integral part of his stage persona.

13. Johnny Rotten – born John Lydon, the Sex Pistols singer acquired a new stage name partly because of the state of his teeth. But, long before he started starring in adverts for butter, he was accused of selling out by having dental work done.

He responded by claiming the treatment was more medical than cosmetic, telling Q magazine that “brussel sprouts would get stuck in the rotten ones and I’d get food poisoning”.

14. Paul Simonon – catwalk models with gap teeth are all the rage now but Clash bassist Simonon was rocking the look on stage back in the late 70s.

A gap in your front teeth is supposed to be lucky and it certainly never harmed Simonon’s career as his looks made him a style icon for his army of fans.

15. Lemmy – the Motorhead front man had ten teeth taken out without anaesthetic when he was just ten: an experience which put him off the dentist for another five years. Over 50 years later, he now sports a set of teeth which are testimony to the skill of Hollywood dentists.

David Bowie / image courtesy of Arthur@NYCArthur.com

A comparison of the dental problems faced by the pop stars David Bowie and Shaun Ryder

Justin Bieber is not the first pop star to have sought treatment to improve the appearance of his teeth.

The news that he has been wearing ‘invisible’ braces to straighten his teeth means that he is following in the footsteps of many stars of the stage who have sought to dazzle their audiences by improving their mega-watt smiles.

Perhaps the likes of David Bowie, Freddie Mercury, Shaun Ryder, Liam Gallagher and Amy Winehouse would have performed with even more confidence had they had access to great modern dental products earlier in their career.

One such product is Invisalign. London, where many pop stars live, has dental surgeries such as the Ethicare practice which can help fit these discreet braces, so there is no excuse for people not to use them!

Below is a look at the struggles two of pop’s most famous singers have had with their teeth.

David Bowie

The British singer is the subject of an unusual YouTube video entitled ‘David Bowie’s teeth’ which charts just how his dental appearance has changed through the years.

Celebrity surgeon Alex Karidis appears in the video, commenting on the state of Bowie’s teeth in his Ziggy Stardust early 1970s incarnation.

Dr Karidis was alarmed by the look of Bowie’s “fang-like incisors” – teeth which were once famously photographed biting into fellow musician Mick Ronson’s guitar.

The surgeon said: “His two front teeth at this time also look quite prominent – ideally this should have been corrected around the age of 12 by braces at a time when his mouth and his head were still growing.”

By 1980 the Serious Moonlight star had serious ambitions to crack America and there is evidence that his teeth had been whitened although there is still misalignment.

The video footage shows that Bowie had recession of the gums, with signs that his chain-smoking habit was leading to further staining.

But there’s a happy ending to this story as by 1995, around the time of his marriage to supermodel Iman, Dr Alex points out that the crookedness between his canines and incisors had disappeared.

This, he believes, is “evidence of good cosmetic surgery” and, most probably, some well-placed crowns.

The PR tricked into talking about Bowie’s teeth

It seems that Dr Karidis isn’t the only person who has taken an active interest in David Bowie’s teeth over the years.

A 2005 article in the Guardian newspaper highlighted how Bowie’s former PR Chris Charlesworth, was approached by a production company which was making an ITV documentary entitled The Changing Face of Celebrity.

Charlesworth happily agreed to an interview after being told they wanted to know more about Bowie’s life and work.

The hour-long interview started off well enough but Charlesworth was soon surprised to be asked when the star had had a “teeth job”.

More questions about his former employer’s teeth were casually dropped in throughout the interview. When the programme aired Charlesworth discovered that the show was really entitled ‘Celebrity Surgery: Who’s Had What Done’ and the only clip of him which was used featured him talking about how smoking had stained Bowie’s teeth!

Shaun Ryder

Happy Mondays singer Shaun Ryder’s heyday came many years after David Bowie first stormed the charts. In the late 80s, Ryder’s vocals graced top 20 hits such as Step On, Hallelujah and Loose Fit.

But after some more hits with the band Black Grape, Ryder’s teeth were starting to have a bit of a loose fit – the result possibly of years of heroin abuse and “some poor dental work” in his early years”.

A solution was offered by a dentist who, in 2004, offered £40,000-worth of free dental treatment in return for Ryder doing promotional work for his surgery.

The singer told Q Magazine: “My old teeth looked like a row of derelict houses or a street that had been bombed in the war. These new teeth are like show-home teeth.”

Ryder’s new look was much admired when he appeared on I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here in which the 48-year-old could be heard telling Brit Ekland: “I had really good teeth until I got into my 30s.”

There is still time for young pop upstarts like Justin Bieber to take good care of their teeth and with new, improved medical treatments on the market, there is no excuse not to have a great dental appearance.