Marc Bolan
Singer/songwriter/guitarist Marc Bolan was one of the major glam rock figures of the early '70s, especially in England. After releasing his debut solo single, "The Wizard," and its follow-ups, "The Third Degree" and "Hippy Gumbo," on Decca Records in the U.K. in 1965-1966, he joined the band John's Children in 1967. The same year, he and percussionist Steve Peregine Took formed Tyrannosaurus Rex, an acoustic duo. They made three albums, My People Were Fair and Had Sky in Their Hair but Now They're Content to Wear Stars on Their Brows (1968), Prophets, Seers and Sages, the Angels of the Ages (1968), and Unicorn (1969), then split, with Bolan retaining the band name and teaming up with Mickey Finn on the electric Beard of Stars (1970).
By the end of 1970, with the name abbreviated to T. Rex, Bolan and Finn scored a U.K. hit with "Ride a White Swan," the first of ten straight Top Ten hits, and the album T. Rex. Adding bass player Steve Curry and drummer Bill Fifield, T. Rex expanded into a full-fledged rock & roll band, and scored a number one hit with "Hot Love" and another with "Get It On." (Under the title "Bang a Gong (Get It On)," the song became T. Rex's only substantial U.S. hit, making the Top Ten in 1972.) This was followed by the landmark album Electric Warrior (1971), which topped the U.K. charts and included the single "Jeepster." Then came "Telegram Sam," T. Rex's third U.K. number one. "Metal Guru" became T. Rex's fourth number one in May 1972. (During this period, with T.Rextasy hitting Britain, numerous reissues also charted.) The next new T. Rex album, The Slider, became a Top Ten hit in July 1972. T. Rex's seventh straight Top Ten single, "Children of the Revolution," peaked in the charts in September, followed by "Solid Gold Easy Action" in December. In March 1973 came "Twentieth Century Boy," the ninth T. Rex Top Ten single, and the Top Ten album Tanx. In June, "The Groover" became the band's tenth and final Top Ten single.
In August, Bolan tested the waters for using his own name on records, issuing the non-charting "Blackjack" single credited to Marc Bolan with Big Carrot, but then he retreated to the T. Rex rubric, though the original group was fragmenting. Bolan and T. Rex's commercial and critical fortunes declined afterwards, as they released Zinc Alloy and the Hidden Riders of Tomorrow (1974), Bolan's Zip Gun (1975), Futuristic Dragon (1976), and Dandy in the Underworld (1977). Bolan died in an automobile accident in 1977, and his work has been reissued frequently in the U.K.
© William Ruhlmann /TiVo
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Discography
49 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Sunken Rags (Glastonbury Fayre Home Demo)
Alternative & Indie - Released by Edsel on 24 Jun 2022
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Home Demos, Vol. 5
Rock - Released by Easy Action on 15 Mar 2019
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Zinc Alloy & The Hidden Riders of Tomorrow (The Visconti Master) (2012 Remaster)
Rock - Released by Edsel on 26 May 2014
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
The Beginning of Doves (Deluxe Expanded Edition)
Rock - Released by Castle Communications on 1 Jan 1974
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Wimbledon Theatre (Live)
Rock - Released by Easy Action on 12 Jul 2024
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Marc Bolan & Trex (The Acoustic and Live Collection)
Rock - Released by Wespo on 1 May 2009
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
The T.Rex Wax Co. Singles A's & B's 1972-77
Rock - Released by DEMON on 29 Apr 2002
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
The Classics Live (Live)
Rock - Released by Wild Waters on 25 Sep 2019
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
The Collection
Pop - Released by UMC (Universal Music Catalogue) on 26 Oct 2015
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Love And Death
Rock - Released by Cherry Red Records on 1 Jan 1966
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Unchained: Unreleased Recordings 1972 - 1977
Rock - Released by Edsel on 24 Jan 2010
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Shadowhead (A Collection of Session Takes, Working and Master Versions and Mixes)
Alternative & Indie - Released by Edsel on 1 Jan 2001
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Zinc Alloy And The Hidden Riders Of Tomorrow
Rock - Released by Edsel on 1 Mar 1974
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Born to Boogie - The Concerts (Live at Wembley 1972)
Hard Rock - Released by Edsel on 10 Jun 2016
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Born to Boogie (Original Soundtrack)
Hard Rock - Released by Edsel on 10 Jun 2016
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Beyond The Risin' Sun
Rock - Released by Cherry Red Records on 28 Jun 2010
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Spaceball: The American Radio Sessions
Rock - Released by Easy Action on 1 Jan 1997
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
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Electronic Musik
Alternative & Indie - Released by Easy Action on 22 Nov 2019
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo