T. Rex, originally Tyrannosaurus Rex, were an English rock band formed in London in 1967 by singer-songwriter and guitarist Marc Bolan, who was their leader, frontman and only consistent member. Originally an acoustic psychedelic folk band, Bolan began to change the band's style towards electric rock with their fourth album, 1970's A Beard of Stars, and shortened their name to T. Rex by the time their self-titled fifth album was released later that same year. This development culminated with their first significant hit single "Ride a White Swan", and the group soon became pioneers of the glam rock movement.
From 1970 to 1973, T. Rex were extremely popular in the UK, with a run of eleven top 10 singles, four of which reached number 1: "Hot Love", "Get It On", "Telegram Sam" and "Metal Guru". Other major hits included "Jeepster", "Children of the Revolution", "Solid Gold Easy Action", "20th Century Boy" and "The Groover". The band's 1971 album Electric Warrior received critical acclaim, reached number 1 in the UK and became a landmark album in glam rock. The 1972 follow-up, The Slider, was their most successful album in the US, where it went top 20. 1973's Tanx saw the band incorporating soul, funk and gospel into their sound. From 1974, T. Rex's appeal began to wane, though the band continued releasing albums, with their subsequent work blending rock with R&B and disco.
In 1977, Bolan died in a car crash several months after the release of the group's final studio album Dandy in the Underworld, and the group disbanded. T. Rex have continued to influence a variety of subsequent artists. The band were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020.
Formation and psychedelic folk (July 1967 – mid-1970)
Marc Bolan founded Tyrannosaurus Rex in July 1967, following a handful of failed solo singles and a brief period as lead guitarist in psych-rock band John's Children. After a solitary disastrous performance as a four-piece electric rock band on 22 July at the Electric Garden in London's Covent Garden alongside drummer Steve Porter plus two older musicians, guitarist Ben Cartland and an unknown bassist, the group immediately broke up. Subsequently, Bolan retained the band name and the services of Porter, who switched to percussion under the name Steve Peregrin Took, and the two began performing acoustic material as a duo with a repertoire of folk-influenced Bolan-penned songs. Inspired by an influential performance by Ravi Shankar whom Bolan had seen while touring West Germany with John's Children, the band adopted a stage manner resembling the performance of traditional Indian music.
The combination of Bolan's acoustic guitar and distinctive vocal style with Took's bongos and assorted percussion—which often included children's instruments, such as the Pixiphone—earned them a devoted following in the thriving hippy underground scene. BBC Radio 1 Disc jockey John Peel championed the band early in their recording career. Peel later appeared on record with them, reading stories written by Bolan. Another key collaborator was producer Tony Visconti, who produced all of the band's records through to the mid-1970s. Their debut album My People Were Fair and Had Sky in Their Hair... But Now They're Content to Wear Stars on Their Brows remained in the UK Albums chart for nine weeks and peaked at number 15. Their second album Prophets, Seers & Sages: The Angels of the Ages was released a few months later, reaching number 44.
During 1968–1969, Tyrannosaurus Rex had become a modest success on radio and on record. Their third single "Pewter Suitor", released in January 1969, failed to chart but their third album Unicorn charted just outside the Top Ten. While Bolan's pre-Tyrannosaurus Rex solo material had been rock and roll-influenced pop music, by now he was writing dramatic and baroque songs with lush melodies and surreal lyrics filled with Greek and Persian mythology as well as poetic creations of his own. The band became regulars on Peel Sessions on BBC radio, and toured Britain's student union halls.
Their fourth single "King of the Rumbling Spires", issued in July 1969, was a musical departure compared to the previous material: they used a full rock band setup with a drumkit and an entirely electric sound. However, by mid-1969, there was a rift developing between the two halves of Tyrannosaurus Rex. Bolan and his girlfriend June Child were living a quiet life, Bolan working on his book of poetry entitled The Warlock of Love and concentrating on his songs and performance skills. Took, however, had fully embraced the anti-commercial, drug-taking ethos of the UK Underground scene centred around Ladbroke Grove. Took was also attracted to anarchic elements such as Mick Farren/Deviants and members of the Pink Fairies Rock 'n' Roll and Drinking Club. Took also began writing his own songs, and wanted the duo to perform them, but Bolan strongly disapproved of his bandmate's efforts, rejecting them for the duo's putative fourth album, in production in Spring/Summer 1969. In response to Bolan's rebuff, Took contributed two songs as well as vocals and percussion to Twink's Think Pink album.
Behind the scenes, Bolan's relationship with Took ended after this dispute, although they were contractually obliged to go through with a US tour which was doomed before it began. Poorly promoted and planned, the acoustic duo was overshadowed by the loud electric acts they were billed with. To counter this, Took drew from the shock rock style of Iggy Pop; Took explained, "I took my shirt off in the Sunset Strip where we were playing and whipped myself till everybody shut up. With a belt, y'know, a bit of blood and the whole of Los Angeles shuts up. 'What's going on, man, there's some nutter attacking himself on stage.' I mean, Iggy Stooge had the same basic approach."
Bolan returned to the UK in September and advertised for a replacement for Took. A month later, he recruited percussionist Mickey Finn. and they completed the fourth album, released in early 1970 as A Beard of Stars, the final album under the Tyrannosaurus Rex moniker. This line-up headlined the first Glastonbury Festival in 1970. As well as progressively shorter titles, Tyrannosaurus Rex's albums began to show higher production values, more accessible songwriting from Bolan, and further experimentation with electric guitars and a true rock sound.
Glam rock and commercial success (July 1970 – December 1972)
Bolan continued the process of simplification by shortening the band's name to T. Rex. The new sound was more pop-oriented, and the first single, "Ride a White Swan", recorded in July and released in October 1970, made the Top 10 in the UK by late November and would soon reach number 2. Ticket fees were reduced to 10 shillings/50p to attract a younger audience. The eponymous first T. Rex album, also recorded that summer, was released in December and continued the move to electric guitars. In early 1971, T. Rex reached the top 20 of the official UK Albums Chart. During the February–April 1971 suspension of the official album chart (caused by a national postal strike) a chart by Melody Maker—which the Official Charts Company's website nowadays recognises as canonical for the gap period—listed the LP as having peaked at number 7.
"Ride a White Swan" was quickly followed by a second single, "Hot Love", which reached the top spot on the UK charts, and remained there for six weeks. At the end of 1970, Bolan expanded T. Rex from a duo to a trio, adding bassist Steve Currie (formerly of local Grimsby group "The Rumble Band" while working for the local tax office). A few months later, in early 1971, the band became a quartet with the addition of drummer Bill Legend, giving T. Rex a more full and conventional rock band line-up to record and tour to growing audiences. After Chelita Secunda added two spots of glitter under Bolan's eyes before an appearance on Top of the Pops, for which Bolan wore shiny satin trousers and a shiny jacket (from Chelsea boutique Alkasura) in place of his previous hippy clothes, soon followed by another appearance for the show on which he wore a silver velvet/satin sailor suit, the ensuing performances would often be viewed as the birth of glam rock.