“ Rock and Roll (Part 2 ) ,” along with a string of other hits, brought Mr. Gadd to stardom in the 1970s. The song, which was written with Mike Leander, peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States in 1972.

A represen tative for Snapper Music, which is based in England, said that the company had owned the master rights to his music since 1997, adding that “he is not entitled to, nor have we paid, any royalties” to him.

In the United States, the songwriting itself is owned by Universal Music Publishing Group and BMG, according to The Los Angeles Times. Universal represents Mr. Gadd and BMG represents Mr. Leander, who died in 1996.

“Gary Glitter’s publishing interest in the copyright of his songs is owned by U.M.P.G. and other parties, therefore U.M.P.G. does not pay him any royalties or other considerations,” Universal told The Los Angeles Times in a statement.

Universal did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Mr. Gadd was convicted in England in 2015 of sexually abusing three young girls on one count of attempted rape, four counts of indecent assault and one count of sexual intercourse with a girl under the age of 13 from 1977 to 1980. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison, according to The Independent.