T-Rex

[simonkeeping]

So I've been thinking that this has been needed for a long time. Over the 10 years T-Rex have been a staple in my listening routine. I remember vividly the moment I heard '20th Century Boy' on a Levis advert in 1990, at the time most of my friends thought it was too old skool to get into, I however had other ideas. T-Rex are their best are like sticking your hands into a plug socket and having pure electricity run through your veins. Exactly what rock and roll should be.

Sonicly, for me those first 3 T-Rex Lps are perfect. I was presently suprised to hear the Spaceman dropping 'Jewel' into his ATP DJ set last year. It actually got me wondering if that harsh guitar noise which littered the last LP was influenced by that track. I find it incredible the way Bolan weaves those massive pop hooks in the rock tracks which crawl under your skin and keep you coming back for more. No matter how much you hear those songs they never seem to age - they never get tired! The urgency and at times seemingly nonchalant delivery belies the skill and craft involved in those songs - They are like mini symphonies. The little bends in the strings to match the voice which Visconti added in. Just genius! The production makes them sound massive too, uncluttered so they are still focused but without the bells and whistles (literally) of a Spector produced record. And that guitar sound! come on!

I know Iggy was a big fan of T-Rex when 'Raw power' was being written and recorded and I think you can hear that. That immediacy, those crisp high notes in the lead guitar work and the big, energy filled production and a fair bit of acoustic guitar in the mix. Both born out of the blues too, Imagine Bolan singing gimme danger, I think it would sound pretty cool.

I know later on he got a little too much into the drink and drugs but I think after his child was born he seemed to get back some of the magic. 'Calling All destroyers' for example is a fantastic song. He also championed punk on his tennybopper TV show which is pretty cool too (check it out on youtube). Rather than fear it he embraced it and got involved.

Any love out there in internet land for T-Rex?

[BzaInSpace]

Abso-fucking-lutely.

Simon - great post. Like you I first heard him through that Levi's ad in school - it sounded wild and exciting and unlike anything else I'd ever heard.

Turned out my dad had a few of his hit singles in battered 7" inch format.

I'm a massive fan of 'Ride a White Swan' which I believe was his first hit with that awesome Visconti sound.

I vividly recall blasting that out with a mini-speaker and MP3 player the day after I got married, with most of those nearest and dearest to me on a stunning, sun-beaten beach on the coast of Lake Garda...

Just incredible. One of those perfect random moments where everything coalesces into a high and happy reality - and the music made it 1000 times better.

I'd never heard that track 'Jewel' prior to that amazing ATP set that Jason did last year (I hope everyone hear has heard it - massive thanks again to FMSpaceman & Jeffrey for getting that one down!): what a guitar sound.

Bolan doing 'Gimme Danger'?

Now yer talkin...

[simonkeeping]

Abso-fucking-lutely.

Like you I first heard him through that Levi's ad in school - it sounded wild and exciting and unlike anything else I'd ever heard.

Turned out my dad had a few of his hit singles in battered 7" inch format.

I'm a massive fan of 'Ride a White Swan' which I believe was his first hit with that awesome Visconti sound.

I vividly recall blasting that out with a mini-speaker and MP3 player the day after I got married, with most of those nearest and dearest to me on a stunning, sun-beaten beach on the coast of Lake Garda...

Just incredible. One of those perfect random moments where everything coalesces into a high and happy reality - and the music made it 1000 times better.

Those memories when certain song is linked to a really incredible moment really are special. Great story man!

[BROKENHEART]

Now i'm afraid i am going to have to show my age ! . My first ever live gig was T.Rex at (as it was then) the Empire Pool at Wembley London back in march 1972 (good job i kept the ticket stubb) . There were two gigs that day, one at 17.30 and one at about 19.30. I managed to get a ticket to the early show which was handy for travelling reasons.
The gigs were just after Bolan had turned to his "Electric" era. I was a huge fan but only managed to see them once more later that year at christmas at the Sundown Brixton.
John Peel played a big part in the success of Tyrannosaurus Rex,not just championing them but driving them and their equipment to gigs etc. I would love to have seen Tyrannosaurus Rex live,but the time was just before i really got into music.
There is some weird and wonderful stuff on the early albums ( My people were fair- - -, Prophets,Seers and Sages, Unicorn and
A Beard of Stars ).
I stopped buying the T.Rex albums after The Slider as in my opinion Marc Bolan had started to lose the plot a bit.
T.Rex,s music has stood the test of time and that era in my life is one of my fondest memories of music listening.
Get It On !

[simonkeeping]

Now i'm afraid i am going to have to show my age ! . My first ever live gig was T.Rex at (as it was then) the Empire Pool at Wembley London back in march 1972 (good job i kept the ticket stubb) . There were two gigs that day, one at 17.30 and one at about 19.30. I managed to get a ticket to the early show which was handy for travelling reasons.
The gigs were just after Bolan had turned to his "Electric" era. I was a huge fan but only managed to see them once more later that year at christmas at the Sundown Brixton.
John Peel played a big part in the success of Tyrannosaurus Rex,not just championing them but driving them and their equipment to gigs etc. I would love to have seen Tyrannosaurus Rex live,but the time was just before i really got into music.
There is some weird and wonderful stuff on the early albums ( My people were fair- - -, Prophets,Seers and Sages, Unicorn and
A Beard of Stars ).
I stopped buying the T.Rex albums after The Slider as in my opinion Marc Bolan had started to lose the plot a bit.
T.Rex,s music has stood the test of time and that era in my life is one of my fondest memories of music listening.
Get It On !

That's a great post! What a first gig too? Whoa, incredible. I know what you mean about him losing it a bit after Slider. Great to know that his music still has that magic spark for you too.

[bbbhenko]

Great thread! I first heard T. Rex on one of my father's mixtapes (this must have been in the late eighties...), Get It On was the track. From there I bought some Greatest Hits collection and then I went on to indulge myself by picking up all the T. Rex albums one after the other. I think there is beauty in all of them. I recall "Bolan's Zip Gun" being written off as the lamest one everywhere that I searched for more in-depth info, but that one is also superb ("Till Dawn" and "Girl In A Thunderbolt Suit" will always remain personal favorites). My brother went on to pick up the early Tyrranosaurus Rex albums but I never quite followed (except for the first T. Rex album which is somewhere in between). There is something very special about Bolan's voice/singing/moaning and those wonderful electric guitars, I will never get tired of that

[semisynthetic]

Another of my favorite musicians; there are still many "odds and ends" of various recordings on the list of what I would like to obtain; but it is all so very good for one reason or another. When I saw this thread, it brought back so many happy memories of Weekend Listening Time; so many of my friends were DJs or in bands themselves, and no matter how very different their tastes and the type of music they may PLAY were, whether on air or on stage, when at home, or the Weekend Listening Times, there was always T. Rex represented. There is so much wonderful music out there that I have yet to obtain, and knowing "no one can have it all", I have continue trying to find singles and LPs that have eluded me.

A great Musician and Great memories of times past.

[Muscles]

https://youtu.be/CgCNm6eNLAw

Just watched this doc on him.
Never knew much bout him.
I loved him. His sound. His riffs.
I remember getting TANX and thinking no way
He's finished.
Shame he is gone. An authentic voice.