Unicorn (Tyrannosaurus Rex album)

Last updated

Unicorn
Unicorn(Album).jpg
Studio album by
Released16 May 1969 (1969-05-16)
Recorded5 November 1968 – 2 February 1969
Studio Trident, London
Genre Psychedelic folk
Length39:46
Label Regal Zonophone
Producer Tony Visconti
Tyrannosaurus Rex chronology
Prophets, Seers & Sages: The Angels of the Ages
(1968)
Unicorn
(1969)
A Beard of Stars
(1970)

Unicorn is the third studio album by English psychedelic folk (later glam rock) band Tyrannosaurus Rex (later known as T. 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.

Contents

Content and music

Unicorn featured Marc Bolan on vocals, guitar, harmonium, lip organ and phonofiddle and Took on percussion (bongos, African talking drum, drum kit, pixiephone, gong), bass, guitar and piano, with the piano on "Catblack" played by producer Visconti. The duo overdubbed dozens of instruments aiming for an all-acoustic "wall of sound" approach different from the first two Tyrannosaurus Rex albums. The back cover depicted Bolan and Took surrounded by books that were relevant to the subject matter of the songs. These books included the work of William Blake as well as photographs of the Cottingley Fairies, a famous case of two children's photographs of alleged fairies taken near their Yorkshire home.

In between the final two songs on the album, "The Misty Coast of Albany" and "Romany Soup", John Peel (an early supporter of the band) recited a short story written by Bolan. Non-LP single "Pewter Suitor" was also recorded at the sessions, although it failed to chart on its January 1969 release.

Release

Unicorn was released on 16 May 1969 by Regal Zonophone in the UK and Blue Thumb in the US; it was their first album to be released in the US. It reached No. 12 in the UK Albums Chart, the duo's highest position to date. [1]

Unicorn was the last of Tyrannosaurus Rex's albums to feature Took; Bolan fired him after an American tour in September 1969, refusing to include Took's songs on the next album. [2]

In 2004, the album was remastered and reissued by A&M Records.

Critical reception and legacy

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [3]

The album was initially received with the duo's best reviews to date. Nick Logan of New Musical Express called it "a happy warming sound, absorbing, refreshing and stimulating" while Melody Maker declared it their most interesting to date, singling out "Cat Black (The Wizard's Hat)" as "one of the best tunes that Marc has written". Record Mirror also labeled it fresh and unique, comparing it favorably to the "unoriginal top-heavy guitar-based groups" popular at the time. [4]

In a retrospective review, AllMusic praised most of the songs, saying "Cat Black" "comes on like a lost Spector classic, with apoplectic percussion and a positively soaring, wordless chorus". The reviewer also notes that some songs predated the transition from acoustic to electric music, remarking "you can hear the future". [3]

Songwriter and musician Luke Haines of the Auteurs dubbed it a "genius" album and praised Took for his contributions on the record. [5]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Marc Bolan

Side A
No.TitleLength
1."Chariots of Silk"2:26
2."'Pon a Hill"1:14
3."The Seal of Seasons"1:49
4."The Throat of Winter"1:59
5."Cat Black (The Wizard's Hat)"2:55
6."Stones for Avalon"1:37
7."She Was Born to Be My Unicorn"2:37
8."Like a White Star, Tangled and Far, Tulip That's What You Are"3:49
Side B
No.TitleLength
1."Warlord of the Royal Crocodiles"2:11
2."Evenings of Damask"2:26
3."The Sea Beasts"2:26
4."Iscariot"2:53
5."Nijinsky Hind"2:20
6."The Pilgrim's Tale"2:07
7."The Misty Coast of Albany"1:43
8."Romany Soup"5:40
2004 reissue bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
17."Pewter Suitor" (single A-side)3:10
18."King of the Rumbling Spires" (single A-side)2:08
19."Do You Remember" (single B-side)2:15
20."'Pon a Hill" (Take 1)1:14
21."The Seal of Seasons" (Take 1)1:40
22."The Throat of Winter" (Take 1)1:46
23."She Was Born to Be My Unicorn" (Take 1)2:38
24."Warlord of the Royal Crocodiles" (Take 1)2:11
25."Evenings of Damask" (Take 5)2:16
26."Iscariot" (Take 3)1:58
27."The Misty Coast of Albany" (Take 1)1:40
28."Romany Soup" (Take 2)1:40
29."Pewter Suitor" (Take 1)3:16
30."King of the Rumbling Spires" (Take 7)2:45
31."Do You Remember" (Take 3)2:17

Personnel

Tyrannosaurus Rex
Additional Personnel

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marc Bolan</span> English guitarist and singer (1947–1977)

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Regal Zonophone Records</span> UK record label

Regal Zonophone Records was a British record label formed in 1932, through a merger of the Regal and Zonophone labels. This followed the merger of those labels' respective parent companies – the Columbia Graphophone Company and the Gramophone Company – to form EMI. At the merger, those records from the Regal Records catalogue were prefixed 'MR' and those from the Zonophone Records catalogue were prefixed 'T'. Record releases after the merger continued using only the 'MR' prefix.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Peregrin Took</span> English musician and songwriter (1949–1980)

Steve Peregrin Took was an English musician and songwriter, best known for his membership of the duo Tyrannosaurus Rex with Marc Bolan. After breaking with Bolan, he concentrated on his own singer-songwriting activities, either as a solo artist or as a frontman for several bands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mickey Finn (percussionist)</span> British percussionist (1947–2003)

Michael Norman Finn was an English musician. He was best known as the percussionist and sideman to Marc Bolan in his band Tyrannosaurus Rex and later the 1970s glam rock group T. Rex. After Bolan's death and T. Rex's demise, he worked as a session musician for The Blow Monkeys and The Soup Dragons.

<i>Electric Warrior</i> 1971 studio album by T. Rex

Electric Warrior is the second studio album by English rock band T. Rex, their sixth since their debut as Tyrannosaurus Rex. The album marked a turning point in the band's sound, moving away from the folk-oriented sound of the group's previous albums and pioneering a more flamboyant, pop-friendly glam rock style.

<i>The Slider</i> 1972 studio album by T. Rex

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.

<i>A Beard of Stars</i> 1970 studio album by Tyrannosaurus Rex

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.

<i>Prophets, Seers & Sages: The Angels of the Ages</i> 1968 studio album by Tyrannosaurus Rex

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.

<i>T. Rex</i> (album) 1970 studio album by T. Rex

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.

<i>Tanx</i> 1973 studio album by T. Rex

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.

<i>My People Were Fair and Had Sky in Their Hair... But Now Theyre Content to Wear Stars on Their Brows</i> 1968 studio album by Tyrannosaurus Rex

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Get It On (T. Rex song)</span> 1971 single by T.Rex

"Get It On" is a song by the English rock band T. Rex, featured on their 1971 album Electric Warrior. Written by frontman Marc Bolan, "Get It On" was the second chart-topper for T. Rex on the UK Singles Chart. In the United States, it was retitled "Bang a Gong (Get It On)" to avoid confusion with a song of the same name by the group Chase.

Steve Took's Horns was an English rock band with blues rock and punk influences formed in 1977 by former Tyrannosaurus Rex percussionist turned solo artist Steve Peregrin Took together with Trev Thoms, later of Nik Turner's Inner City Unit. The band was the first in which Thoms worked with his future Inner City Unit bandmate Ermanno Ghisio Erba aka Dino Ferari, in what would be a long string of collaborations until Thoms' death in 2010. A 2004 posthumous album of the band was reviewed in Classic Rock magazine, a 1978 live performance was reviewed in Melody Maker, the band's 1977 recording session was described at length in a Forced Exposure interview with eyewitness Larry Wallis and the band was euologised in a Record Collector article about Took written by Luke Haines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ride a White Swan</span> 1970 single by T. Rex

"Ride a White Swan" is a song by English band T. Rex. It was released as a stand-alone single on 9 October 1970 by record label Fly, and was the first single credited under the band's new, shorter name. Like all of the band's songs, it was written by the group's singer, guitarist and founder Marc Bolan. The song was included on the US version of the 1970 album, T. Rex.

<i>Bolan Boogie</i> 1972 compilation album by T. Rex

Bolan Boogie is a compilation album by the English glam rock band T. Rex. After Marc Bolan had left Fly Records to form his own label distributed through EMI/T. Rex Wax Co, his former label released this compilation in 1972 with recent single A- and B-sides recorded in 1970 and 1971, many of which had not appeared on previous albums. Also included are album tracks from Tyrannosaurus Rex's Unicorn (1969), A Beard of Stars (1969) and T. Rex's T. Rex (1970).

<i>Zinc Alloy and the Hidden Riders of Tomorrow</i> 1974 studio album by Marc Bolan & T. Rex

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".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">T. Rex (band)</span> English rock band

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Groover (T. Rex song)</span> 1973 single by T. Rex

"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.

<i>You Scare Me to Death</i> 1981 studio album by Marc Bolan

You Scare Me to Death is a posthumous album credited to Marc Bolan of T. Rex. Released in 1981 by record label Cherry Red, it is first LP of material released after his death in 1977.

"King of the Rumbling Spires" is a single by Tyrannosaurus Rex, released in July 1969. It featured the duo of Marc Bolan and Steve Peregrine Took and was written by Bolan. It was a minor chart hit, the first by the group to contain electric guitar instead of acoustic, and was Took's last appearance with the duo on record.

References

  1. "T. Rex Uk Charts". Official Charts Company . Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  2. Marc Bolan – The Final Word documentary, BBC, 2007 – comments by Tony Visconti at 27:42 point of video
  3. 1 2 Thompson, Dave. "Unicorn – Tyrannosaurus Rex". AllMusic . Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  4. McLenahan, Cliff (2019). Marc Bolan: 1947-1977 A Chronology. Helter Skelter Books.
  5. Haines, Luke "Auteur to Author". Recordcollectormag.com. 28 February 2017. Retrieved 28 February 2017