Not Rocky Horror: The 1979 Tim Curry Rock Hit You Forgot About

An actor as well as a formidable singer, Tim Curry was best known for his scene-stealing performances in cult classic movie musicals like "Annie" and "The Rocky Horror Picture Show." Curry also dabbled in recording outside of the confines of narrative screen musicals, landing on the pop chart just once in 1979 with an overlooked rock 'n' roll novelty. Curry, who died at age 80 on August 25, 2026, released three rock albums in his lifetime in the late 1970s and early 1980s when he was at his most effective as a film star. Album No. 2, "Fearless," hit stores in 1979, the decade's best year for new wave music, and Curry tried to get in on the action. 

Unlike on his debut effort, the covers collection "Read My Lips," "Fearless" showcased Curry's songwriting, as he's a credited composer on six of the album's nine tracks. The most prominent of those songs is the A-side closer and commercially issued single "I Do the Rock." It snuck onto the Hot 100 in late 1979, making the beloved Curry just barely a one-hit wonder of the '70s who enjoys respect from younger generations.

Tim Curry assembled an impressive array of collaborators from the rock world to make "Fearless." That included Alice Cooper guitarist Dick Wagner and producer Michael Kamen, who also worked with Pink Floyd and later wrote the most popular song of 1991. As if to prove that Curry really was all about the rock, and maybe remind listeners of his iconic performance as Dr. Frank-N-Furter in 1975's "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," A&M Records issued "I Do the Rock" as the LP's first single. The verbose lyrics of "I Do the Rock" reference poets Edith Sitwell and Gertrude Stein, great minds Albert Einstein and Friedrich Nietzsche, athletes O.J. Simpson and Knute Rockne, and '70s actors John Travolta and Farrah Fawcett. Curry summarily rejects all of their lifestyles in order to "do the only thing that still makes sense" to him: to "do the Rock."

On "I Do the Rock," Curry clearly has a lot of fun and is undeniably charismatic. A background in musicals makes him a commanding presence, and he affects funny voices and accents throughout the song, supported by a crunchy guitar riff, creeping piano, and a whole lot of saxophone. Curry did the kind of rock one could hear on the radio in 1979, and "I Do the Rock" briefly made it to those airwaves. "I Do the Rock" appeared on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart for three weeks in November 1979, peaking at No. 91 before disappearing.