Marc Bolan was an English singer-songwriter, musician, guitarist, and poet. He was best known as the lead singer of the glam rock band T. Rex. Bolan was one of the first pioneers of the glam rock movement of the 1970s. He died at age 29 in a car accident in September 1977. Born in East London, England, he started playing music at the age of 9, while embracing the Mod scene. Bolan and drummer Steve Peregrin Took formed Tyrannosaurus Rex, a psychedelic folk-rock acoustic band, which played Bolan's songs. Tyrannosaurus Rex met with some success, releasing three albums and four singles. Their highlight was playing at the first Hyde Park free concert in 1968.
Bolan and the drummer from his first band, John's Children, went on to create T.Rex. While the band had many hits in Britain, "Bang a Gong (Get It On)" was its only major hit in the United States.
Bolan married his girlfriend, June Child (a former secretary to the manager of another of his heroes, Syd Barrett), who was influential in raising her new husband's profile in the music business. Becoming more adventurous musically, Marc bought a modified vintage Gibson Les Paul guitar (featured on the cover of the album T. Rex), and then wrote and recorded his first hit "Ride a White Swan", the single that changed Bolan's career which was inspired in part by Mungo Jerry's success with "In the Summertime", moving Bolan away from predominantly acoustic numbers to a more electric sound.
At this time he also shortened the group's name to T. Rex.
The ’Bopping Imp’ as we used to call him in his acoustic days, becomes the ’Electric Warrior’.
Marc Bolan playing with T.Rex in Copenhagen, Denmark in March 1973
Marc Bolan onstage with T.Rex at the Santa Monica Civic Centre, LA in 1974
Marc Bolan of English glam rock group T-Rex, holding Mike Putland's Nikon camera on the tour bus during a four-date British tour, June 1972
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Colour image of Pink Floyd performing during their British Winter tour in 1974
Cat was renowned for his playing in the extreme high register. He claimed that he developed his screaming high notes to impress the girls.
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Here are the very latest prints we have added to our collection. We hope you love them as much as we do.
Stunning collection of limited edition prints of David Bowie created by award-winning photographer Markus Klinko.
Jill Furmanovsky is one of the greatest ever rock & roll photographers with a huge archive of iconic shots of the world's best music artists
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