Bolan’s Zip Gun | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | February 1975 | |||
Recorded | 1974 | |||
Studio | MRI, Hollywood | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 33:42 | |||
Label | T.REX (UK), Ariola (Germany) | |||
Producer | Marc Bolan | |||
T. Rex chronology | ||||
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Singles from Bolan’s Zip Gun | ||||
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Bolan's Zip Gun is the tenth studio album by English rock band T. Rex, released on February 1975 by record label EMI.
Eight of the eleven songs on the album had already been released in the US the previous year on the Light of Love album on Casablanca Records. Zip Gun was a repackage with three extra tracks. [1] However, it was the only T. Rex album that failed to chart in the UK. [1]
Marc Bolan's new partner Gloria Jones and other recent American friends, such as Gloria's brother Richard and backing singer Pat Hall, had helped influence Bolan's music, and he was experimenting with soul inflections.[ citation needed ]
The album was recorded at MRI Studios in Hollywood, United States.[ citation needed ] The album was produced by Marc Bolan.
Although the sound of the album was very stark and the lyrics very simple and direct, Bolan had tried to go beyond the rock format of the previous T. Rex sound and reflect his recent immersion in the US soul scene.[ citation needed ]
Several of the songs had a very futuristic tone, especially "Space Boss", "Think Zinc", and "Golden Belt", Bolan being a great fan of science fiction. The band on this album also featured a twin-drum sound on some tracks, notably "Solid Baby", provided by Davy Lutton and Paul Fenton.[ citation needed ]
Bolan’s Zip Gun was released on February 1975 on the T. Rex label (distributed by EMI). It did not chart in the United Kingdom.
Two singles were released from the album: "Light of Love", which reached No. 22 in the UK Singles Chart, and "Zip Gun Boogie".
In 1994, Edsel Records's released Bolan’s Zip Gun as part of their extensive T. Rex reissue campaign, but cut down on the number of bonus tracks. A companion release, entitled Precious Star (The Alternate Zip Gun), was released in 1995 which contained alternative versions, studio rough mixes, a live version and demos of the main album and bonus tracks. A combined album digipak was released in 2002.
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
Pitchfork | 5.9/10 [3] |
PopMatters | 4/10 [4] |
Upon release, Bolan's Zip Gun was poorly received by critics. [2] In a retrospective review, AllMusic praised the diversity of the material, with tracks like "the delightful knockabout "Precious Star," the unrepentant boogie of "Till Dawn" and the pounding title track" which was a return to the "understated romp he had always excelled at", "Token of My Love" was described as "equally incandescent" for being a playful blues. Reviewer Dave Thompson noted that a sparser sound "emphasized the rhythms, heightened the backing vocals, and left rock convention far behind. "Light of Love," "Golden Belt" and the heavyweight ballad "I Really Love You Babe"" all had "an earthy authenticity". [2]
Pitchfork wrote, "A purposeful return to the looser sound of Electric Warrior , Gun fires blanks. For all its directness, the album is mostly perfunctory, working some of the same sounds and ideas, but the results lack movement and liveliness; Bolan's mojo definitely wasn't working. Worse, he really doesn't sound invested in these songs." However, reviewer Stephen M. Deusner noted that the alternate takes on the second disc of the 2014 reissue were "rougher and rawer" and "vastly improve on these songs, bringing out a charmingly stiff boogie piano on "Precious Star" and the popping bass line on "Light of Love". [3] PopMatters shared a similar opinion saying that "Zip Gun contains enough good moments to preclude classification as a disaster, but just barely." However, reviewer Whitney Strub praised a few tracks saying, ""Light of Love" opens things on a glam-funk note, and "Precious Star" offers irresistibly creamy doo-wop." [4]
All tracks are written by Marc Bolan, except as noted
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Light of Love" | 3:16 |
2. | "Solid Baby" | 2:37 |
3. | "Precious Star" | 2:53 |
4. | "Token of My Love" | 3:40 |
5. | "Space Boss" | 2:49 |
6. | "Think Zinc" | 3:25 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Till Dawn" | 3:02 |
2. | "Girl in the Thunderbolt Suit" | 2:20 |
3. | "I Really Love You Babe" | 3:33 |
4. | "Golden Belt" | 2:41 |
5. | "Zip Gun Boogie" | 3:26 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
12. | "Do You Wanna Dance?" | Bobby Freeman | 2:13 |
13. | "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" (sung by Gloria Jones) | Steve Cropper, Otis Redding | 2:20 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Light of Love" | 2:22 |
2. | "Solid Baby" | 2:29 |
3. | "Precious Star" | 2:45 |
4. | "Token of My Love" | 3:40 |
5. | "Space Boss" | 3:17 |
6. | "Think Zinc" | 3:23 |
7. | "Till Dawn" | 4:54 |
8. | "Girl in the Thunderbolt Suit" | 2:42 |
9. | "I Really Love You Babe (Precision Debating)" | 3:06 |
10. | "Golden Belt" | 3:28 |
11. | "Zip Gun Boogie (Live)" | 9:11 |
12. | "Do You Wanna Dance?" | 2:15 |
13. | "Dock of the Bay" | 2:22 |
14. | "Solid Baby" | 6:06 |
15. | "Till Dawn (Marc's Guide)" | 4:44 |
16. | "Till Dawn" | 4:29 |
17. | "Till Dawn" | 4:03 |
18. | "Girl in the Thunderbolt Suit (Blue Jean Bop)" | 2:39 |
19. | "Dishing Fish Wop (Golden Belt)" | 3:17 |
Chart (1975) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australia (Kent Music Report) [5] | 89 |
Marc Bolan was an English guitarist, singer-songwriter and poet. He was a pioneer of the glam rock movement in the early 1970s with his band T. Rex. Bolan strongly influenced artists of many genres, including glam rock, punk, post-punk, new wave, indie rock, Britpop and alternative rock. He was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020 as a member of T. Rex.
Gloria Richetta Jones is an American singer and songwriter who first found success in the United Kingdom, being recognized there as "The Queen of Northern Soul". She recorded the 1965 hit song "Tainted Love" and has worked in multiple genres as a Motown songwriter and recording artist, backing vocalist, and as a performer in musicals such as Hair. In the 1970s, she was a keyboardist and vocalist in Marc Bolan's glam rock band T. Rex. She and Bolan were also in a committed romantic relationship and had a son together.
The Slider is the seventh studio album by English rock band T. Rex, and the third since abbreviating their name from Tyrannosaurus Rex. It was released on 21 July 1972 by record labels EMI and Reprise. Two number-one singles, "Telegram Sam" and "Metal Guru", were released to promote the album. Issued at the height of the band's popularity, The Slider received acclaim from critics, and reached number 4 in the UK charts and number 17 in the US.
Futuristic Dragon is the eleventh studio album by English rock band T. Rex, released worldwide on 30 January 1976 by EMI Records bar North America. The album was preceded by two successful singles that went into the UK chart, "New York City" and "Dreamy Lady". The album saw Marc Bolan continuing to experiment, blending rock with soul music and disco elements on certain tracks.
A Beard of Stars is the fourth studio album by English psychedelic folk band Tyrannosaurus Rex, and their last before changing their name to T. Rex. It was released in March 1970 by record label Regal Zonophone.
Unicorn is the third studio album by English psychedelic folk band Tyrannosaurus Rex. It was released on 16 May 1969 by record labels Regal Zonophone and Blue Thumb, and was the last Tyrannosaurus Rex album to feature Steve Peregrin Took.
Prophets, Seers & Sages: The Angels of the Ages is the second studio album by English psychedelic folk band Tyrannosaurus Rex. It was released on 1 November 1968 by record label Regal Zonophone.
T. Rex is a 1970 album by Marc Bolan's band T. Rex, the first under that name and the fifth since their debut as Tyrannosaurus Rex in 1968. It was released on 18 December by record labels Fly and Reprise. The album continued the shift begun by its predecessor from the band's previous folk style to a minimal rock sound, with an even balance of electric and acoustic material.
Tanx is a 1973 album by rock band T. Rex, the eighth since their debut as Tyrannosaurus Rex in 1968, and the fourth under the moniker T. Rex. It was released on 16 March by record label EMI. Tanx was a musical departure from previous works: still containing tracks in the vein of The Slider, singer and songwriter Marc Bolan showed his interest for soul music, funk and gospel. Female backing singers appeared on a few tracks. New instruments such as mellotron were used, played by producer Tony Visconti, allowing the T. Rex sound to evolve.
My People Were Fair and Had Sky in Their Hair... But Now They're Content to Wear Stars on Their Brows is the debut album by psychedelic folk band Tyrannosaurus Rex. The release of the album was planned for early May but delayed until 5 July 1968 by record label Regal Zonophone.
"Children of the Revolution" is a song by T. Rex, written by Marc Bolan. It was a UK No. 2 hit single in September 1972. The song broke their sequence of four official single releases all reaching No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart. It did not receive a regular album release.
Paul Fenton is an English drummer, best known for his work with T. Rex. After leaving Christie, he started playing drums for T. Rex in 1973, after being recommended to Marc Bolan by his producer Tony Visconti. He also toured briefly with Marc Bolan & T. Rex in 1974, and played additional drums with Davy Lutton on the songs "Solid Baby", "Funky London Childhood", and "Visions of Domino".
Dandy in the Underworld is the twelfth studio album by English rock band T. Rex. It was released on 11 March 1977 by record label EMI. It reached No. 26 in the UK charts, the band's highest-charting album since 1974's Zinc Alloy. The leading single "I Love to Boogie" had been a hit single in the UK the previous year, peaking at number 13 in the singles chart.
Zinc Alloy and the Hidden Riders of Tomorrow is an album by English rock band T. Rex, the ninth since Tyrannosaurus Rex's debut LP. It was released in March 1974 on the T.Rex record label, distributed by EMI. It was the first and only album to be released under the moniker "Marc Bolan & T. Rex".
Light of Love is a US-only album released by British rock band T. Rex in 1974. It is composed of 3 tracks previously released in the UK on the album Zinc Alloy and the Hidden Riders of Tomorrow, together with 8 songs recorded in the Spring of 1974 at Music Recorders Inc. Studios in Hollywood which would later appear on the album Bolan's Zip Gun. The album was engineered by Gary Ulmer and, in the absence of Tony Visconti, was produced by Marc Bolan himself. The album marked the first time that a T. Rex album had been produced without Tony Visconti and also marked Bolan's debut in this role. "Till Dawn", was re-recorded for Bolan's Zip Gun with Bolan at the controls.
T. Rex were an English rock band, formed in 1967 by singer-songwriter and guitarist Marc Bolan, who was their leader, frontman and only consistent member. Though initially associated with the psychedelic folk genre, Bolan began to change the band's style towards electric rock in 1969, and shortened their name to T. Rex the following year. This development culminated in 1970 with their first hit single "Ride a White Swan", and the group soon became pioneers of the glam rock movement.
"Zip Gun Boogie" is a 1974 single, originally credited in the UK as a solo single by Marc Bolan of the British glam rock band T. Rex. In other territories, the single was credited to "T. Rex" or "Marc Bolan and T. Rex"; almost all reissues of the track credit it solely to T. Rex. The track and its B-side feature on the 1975 T. Rex album Bolan's Zip Gun.
"The Groover" is a 1973 single by the British glam rock band T. Rex. Neither the track nor its B-side are taken from an album. However, they are often added as bonus material on re-releases of the 1973 album Tanx or the 1974 album, Zinc Alloy and the Hidden Riders of Tomorrow.
Billy Super Duper is the thirteenth and final studio album by English glam rock band T. Rex and Marc Bolan's second posthumous album release. Released in 1982 by record label Marc on Wax, it was the first LP of entirely new and unheard material released after Marc Bolan's death in 1977 as the previous posthumous release, You Scare Me to Death consisted of augmented versions of demos first released in 1974. Billy Super Duper consists of studio outtakes and home demos recorded by the band between 1972 and 1977, with arrangements produced by John and Shan Bramley. The album was intended to "complete" the demos and bring them up to date with contemporary music.
Peter Leslie "Dino" Dines was a British keyboard player, best known for his work as a member of T-Rex. Dines was also a member of Apostolic Intervention and the Keef Hartley Band.