T.Rex - Vaults

There are number of early / live recordings that have emerged over the years:

• BBC recordings - resulting from John Peel's early support for Marc.
• John's children - Marc's group prior to forming Tyrannosaurus Rex.
• Beginning Of Doves - early Tyrannosaurus Rex recordings.
• Other issues - live concerts and others.

BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation)

The Peel Sessions

Limited edition as recorded in session on 27 October 1970. Only four tracks: Jewel, Ride a white swan, Elemental child, Sun eye. Jewel and RAWS also appear on Across The Airwaves.

BBC Radio 1 Live In Concert

Tyrannosaurus Rex recorded live in concert at the Paris Theatre, London on 4 January 1970.

A BBC History

26 tracks from 9 sessions covering Tyrannousaurus Rex and T.Rex. First session 30 October 1967, last session 03 August 1997

Across The Airwaves (1982)

Studio sessions for radio broadcasts from 1969 to 1971. The album cover says it is an original Radio 1 recording. Overlap with "A BBC History" yet to be checked.

BBC Recordings 1967-70 (1998)

Due for release February 98 according to my flyer from Key Mail Order but it is not out yet to my knowledge (24 Mar 98). Catalogue number Pilot 16. Two disc set with 16 page booklet with photos by Ray Stevenson and Pete Sanders.
=== Info from Cliff ===
Also NMC are holding fire on the Tyrannosaurus Rex at the BBC sessions disc in the hope that some 68 recordings do turn up.

BBC Recordings 1970-76 (1997)

2 CD set of 1970-76 radio sessions. Over 30 trax, many unreleased.
=== Review by Rick ===
Double Cd. Both of them are, I'm close to sure, just in some form a mixture of the already released for years: "The Peel sessions" & "Across the Airwaves", which have now been repackaged as a one set deal.

=== Question from MarkMcL ===
Q. Would I get anything that I do not already have on "A BBC History", Live in Concert" and "The Peel sessions" all from the BBC. Can anyone confirm or deny?

A. Mark if you mean the NMC CD "BBC Recordings 1970-76" the answer is yes:

The John Peel Concert b/cast 20.12.70 - 4 trks
Xmas jingle 1970
Telegram Sam
Children of the Revolution
The Slider
Rock On

and even a few more, I'll let the rest come as a surprise

Best Regards
Irving

Midnight Court at the Lyceum. (1998)

=== Review by Beartrap ===
I finally got hold of Midnight Court at the Lyceum last weekend. Initial impressions: while the sound is certainly rough, it's nowhere near as bad as I'd been led to believe. In fact the sound quality gives it a feeling of intimacy similar to that achieved on the Velvets' Max's Kansas City album. The interview is an interesting extra, and of course, it's a delight to hear Demon Queen again.

I never got to see Tyrannosaurus Rex live, so it's difficult to comment on the music except to say that this should have had a legit release a long time ago! Interesting to see The Wizard and One Inch Rock beginning to take on the forms they wear on the brown album.

The packaging is nicely done - it looks, to me, exactly like a live album released between Prophets and Unicorn. Lots of "period charm"... But the sleeve notes - oh dear. I got the impression that the writer didn't know a damn thing about Bolan and was putting the notes together from someone else's ill-informed idea of what should be said having first got through a few drinks too many.

Steve
=== Info from Jimbo ===
Got mine last week from Bolan Society. Its exactly the same as the bootleg: "For The Lion and the Unicorn". Real pleased 'bout the interview CD. Only had that on a bootie tape. Interview cd begins with Demon Queen and then Marc interview, recorded in Chicago, August 23rd 1969. Has to be my all time fav Marc interview.
=== Info from Irving ===
Dear Mark
I received my copy airmailed from the UK a fortnight ago. Today I received the 2-CD version from Rumblings (again via airmail).

Suspect it should be in all the UK shops by now.

Rip Off Alert - If you already have "For The Lion & Unicorn ...." bootleg CD don't bother buying the NMC release. NMC have copied the bootleg and left off several of the bonus tracks - sure they were the poorer sounding ones but it wouldn't have cost more or hurt anyone to leave them there.

The sound quality is the same on both, if anything the bootleg has slightly higher volume levels (that sound better to me).

The 2-CD version (supposed to be mail order only) has '69 interview and the song "Demon Queen". This is a great and rare song (from the Unicorn sessions), although it can be found on the reasonably common boot CD "A Paw Of Fur, An Aire Of Doom"

Best Regards

Irving

John's Children

Beyond The Rising Sun (1984)

John's Children and Marc Bolan recordings that pre-date Tyrannosaurus Rex. It is a mixture of MB tracks (*) available on Beginning Of Doves, Cat Black, etc. and JC tracks (**). Marc does NOT appear on the JC tracks.
Track listing: (Record 1) Mustang Ford * / Jasmine '49 * / Jagged Time Lapse ** / Killer Ben ** / Let me know ** / Observations * / Cat Black * / Black and White Incident * / Charlie / * You're a Nothing ** / Leave Me Alone ** / The Perfumed Garden of Gulliver Smith * / (Record 2)You Scare Me to Death * / I'm Weird * / Smash Blocked ** / Hippy Gumbo * / Strange Affair ** / Not That Sort of Girl ** / The Wizard * / Beyond The Rising Sun * / Eastern Spell * / Just What You Want - Just What You'll Get ** / You've Got The Power * / Cold On Me *.
=== Review by Chris ===
This is a two LP set (in a single flipback sleeve) from UK independent budget label 'Cambra' released in 1984. According to the blurb on the cover it's a mixture of Bolan period John's Children mixed with pure pre-Rex Bolan. In fact it is a strange mixture of the complete 'You Scare Me To Death' set (i.e. the demo's recorded by Simon Napier Bell and later overdubbed) and Bolan free John's Children. All but one John?s Children track is 'live', probably from 'Smashed Blocked', and none credit Boley as a composer. The not live track is 'Strange Affair', an early attempt at psychedelia, and Marc is nowhere to be heard. If that wasn't enough there is an uncredited track and the running order on the sleeve does not match that actually on the disc.

I really don't recommend this at all.

However, there are two gems and an interesting picture to make it moderately worthwhile, if you don't already own or don't mind another copy of 'You Scare Me To Death'. They are the single version of the 'Wizard' and its b-side 'Beyond The Rising Sun' (different from the 'Beginning of Doves' version), the interesting picture is a floating heads type PR shot (maybe a record cover) of John's Children with Bolan. The 7" 'Wizard' is different from the album version and perhaps preferable if you like your Bolan short and to the point. I have known lovers come and go, governments fall and seasons pass while Boley continues to chirrup 'he was a wizard a wizard he was' from the T.Rex album. The Cherry Red 1982 single reissue of 'The Wizard' had the original 'Beyond The Rising Sun' followed by 'Rings of Fortune' from the 'Doves' album. It's the same here but not mentioned on the sleeve, in one track and with no time between the songs.

Legendary Orgasm Album

Any info on overlap with the above and following albums welcome. My list says 'Classic psychedelic album, features Marc Bolan'.

Smashed Blocked (1984)

=== Review by Pete G. ===
There are some great photos of Marc with the band all dressed in white and info about the live BBC show where Marc refused to tune up his guitar plus a complete discography of John's Children and photos of singles picture sleeves.

At least half of this CD contains Bolan including some live BBC performance. I think the new disc "Jagged Time Lapse" is more listenable since includes the singles and B-sides instead but the quality is still pretty rough.
=== More infro from Rick ===
The only songs marc was an active member of the band is any Lp with these tracks:

• Desdemona (wrote , guitar & backing vocals)
  
• Remember Thomas Becket (not written by Marc but he is in the band line-up at this period as guitarist)
  
• Midnight Summers Scene; Sara Crazy Child (both written by Marc)
  
• Come & Play with me in the Garden (marc is in the line-up as guitarist)
  
• Go Go Girl -- written by Marc -- is actually "Hot rod mama" with a change in lyrics .. this is a bit rare
  

Jagged Time Lapse

=== Info from t i m o t ===

Pilot 18, running order:

• Desdemona
• Remember Thomas a Becket
• Its been a long time
• Arthur Green
• Midsummer Night's Scene
• Sarah crazy child
• Jagged time Lapse
• Gogo girl
• Come play with me in the garden

Bonus Tracks:

• Perfumed garden of Gulliver Smith (instrumental)
• Midsummer nights Scene (alt version)
• Not the sort of girl you take to bed (alt version)
• Help (beatles song)
• Casbah Candy

Beginning of Doves and related releases

The Beginnings Of Doves (1974)

Early Tyrannosaurus Rex recordings and a better buy than Misty Mist or Observations. Also available under the title Archive Series.
Marc had gone to court to stop Simon Napier-Bell releasing these tapes as BODoves. He [SNB] wanted to release it in 1972 but the title was to be "Hard on Love" not "Doves"
Full track listing:
1. Jasper C. Debussy
2. Lunacy's Back
3. Beyond The Rising Sun
4. Black and White Incident
5. Observations
6. Eastern Spell
7. You Got The Power
8. Hippy Gumbo
9. Sarah Crazy Child
10. Rings of Fortune
11. Hot Rod Mama
12. The Beginning of Doves
13. Mustang Ford
14. Pictures of the Purple People
15. One Inch Rock
16. Jasmine '49
17. Charlie
18. Misty Mist
19. Cat black
20. Sally Was an Angel

Archive Series

Identical track listing to Beginnings Of Doves.
===Info from Pete G ===
These tracks are 1966 demos pre-Tyrannosaurus Rex released originally as the Beginning Of Doves by Marc's old manager Simon Napier-Bell. They were also issued under the titles Love And Death, You Scare Me To Death (some of the aforementioned tracks with newer electric added trax by studio musicians), etc... Most issues credited to Marc Bolan instead of T.Rex including the new "Archive Series" issue. Are the tracks at least remastered from the original source tapes?

Pete

Observations

Companion to Misty Mist; a sub-set of the tracks on Beginnings Of Doves - to be more precise Side 1 - tracks 1 to 10..

Misty Mist

A sub-set of the tracks on Beginnings Of Doves - to be more precise Side 2 - tracks 11 to 20. Better to buy B.O.D. Combined with Observations you would get the full set of tracks.

You Scare Me To Death

The connection between The Beginning of Doves and You Scare Me To Death are that they are the same acoustic demos but YSMTD has added electric backing trax from studio musicians. Also released under the title "Cat Black" on CD in the US. See Cat Black for YSMTD track listing.

=== Info from David ===
Hi,
As I understand it Simon Napier Bell had heard that Amplex wanted a jingle to advertise a breath freshener. SNB suggested to Marc that he write one. Marc went away and came back with Horrible Breath ( not literally ! ) It was a great song but not quite what Amplex had in mind. It was never used. When SNB made his 1981 album from the "lost" tapes he changed the title to "You scare me to death".I always thought this was a sick ploy to gain attention for the album.
David.

=== Info from Pete G ===
All the tracks are acoustic demos that were recorded in 1966 and previously released in its entirety as The Beginning Of Doves in 1974?. Marc's manager at the time, Simon Napier-Bell, owns the rights to these tapes and reissued them with studio backing tracks in 1981 as "You Scare Me To Death". You may also see some of these on the CD issues "Prehistoric", "Love & Death", "Hard On Love", etc.. always credited to Marc Bolan and not T.Rex.

Pete Gianakopoulos

Prehistoric

The same tracks as Beginnings Of Doves, You Scare Me To Death, Observations and Misty Mist.

Catblack

A subset of the tracks on Beyond the Rising Sun. Song titles: cat black / hippy gumbo / you scare me to death / mustang ford / you've got the power / eastern spell / charlie / I'm weird / observations / jasmine '49 / black and white incident / the perfumed garden of gulliver smith. Originally released under the title You Scare Me To Death.

Love and Death

Love and Death is yet another rehash of Doves/You Scare Me to Death/Misty Mist etc.

Other Vaults

Shadowhead (2001)

The next release after "bump & grind" from the folks at THUNDERWING.

=== Review by Romany Stew===

The first thing I noticed is how clean this recording is,much like the first CD fromThunderwing Productions "Bump n' Grind".The second thing is the missing back up singers,which I find really refreshing<BFG>.

I think some of the versions on this CD would of been a better choice to release,but it could just be that they sound new and not over done as some of Marc's later work seemed to be.

What this CD show's us that with some Love and Attention Marc's music can come alive againas if it were recorded today.I would love to hear what the Thunderwing team could do with remasteringsome of Marc's classic albums.

Some of the most stand out tracks are track 7 Blues Jam,more like Jazz Jam.This is a very interesting tack as I have never heard Marc play in this style before,I would of loveda whole album of Marc's Jazz Jam.

Truck On Tyke in its original mix was just tooooo much for me<G>,but in this versionthe back up singers are well under control and the sound is much more balanced.

I do love the studio talk before the session starts recording,but I think I will makean edited version for regular play in the car CD.

The whole album has a very nice smooth clear sound to it,you can hear everythingin the recording with none of the harshness that you hear in some of Marc's released CDs.This is a problem because when they made a the CD's of Marc's albums they were using20 plus year old 2 track stereo mastered tapes that were originally mixed for LP records. Let's hope Tony V can do as good of job on the upcoming Electric Warrior remix asthe Thunder Wing team have done with Shadowhead.

Great job Thunderwing,Shadowhead is by far the best sounding Marc album to date.

Romany Stew

Acoustic Warrior

A number of recording made (I believe) for North American radio stations with added audience noise to made it sound like an "Unplugged". Personally I think it works OK but I am in a minority of one (sorry James, Pete, Catblack and all the others).

=== Review by Catblack ===

Last night [a friend of mine] gave me 'Acoustic Warrior'. I'd heard a few tracks off the 20th century boy teaser, and though y'all here urged extreme caution, I had to give it a listen.

Wowzers, what a stinker. I thought I could handle the audience claps dubbed in, but once I realized that this was more akin to the posthumous Hendrix releases -- Studio musicians brought into the studio to 'fill-out' the sound -- I almost gagged. The worst part, thoughout it all is that Marc's guitar and vocals, recorded in the days before digital, are washed out in the background.

I'm a big proponent of digital sampling, but this is right out fraud. I don't think Marc, if he were alive today, would have approved of this at all.

Can anyone tell me where I can find the original recordings on CD? (I recognized (barely) some of the tracks from the 'Rabbit fighter' release...)
[Editor's note: For the answer see Spaceball review by Pete G. ]

Spaceball (1997)

2 CD set of 1971-72 US radio promo tours. 20 trax. 12 page booklet. The original "untampered" US Radio Sessions. That is Acoustic Warrior without the extras. Tracklisting:

CD 1
Recorded in Los Angeles, February '72, Marc acoustic
Spaceball Ricochet / Jeepster / Cosmic Dancer / Main Man / Ballrooms of Mars / Mystic Lady / Girl / Baby Strange

Recorded in Boston, September '72
Left Hand Luke / Slider
Spaceball Ricochet
-----------------------------
CD2

Recorded in New York, April '71
Cosmic Dancer / Planet Queen / Elemental Child / Jewel / Hot Love

Recorded in New York, April '71, Bolan and Finn
Cosmic Dancer / Honey Don't / Planet Queen / Get it On Blues
=== Review by Pete G ===

The Spaceball collection is where to turn -- two CDs worth of mighty fine US radio session goodness, with Marc in his straightforward and non-overdubbed glory throughout.

Yes. The new 2 CD Spaceball has most of the trax which were previously available on the 3rd disc of the 3 CD box set on Relativity and the Till Dawn 2 LP / single CD set put out by Marc on Wax. Debora is from the live fan club LP version from In Concert and Seagull Woman soundz like the LP version minus some parts. Acoustic Warrior is a dreadful CD. When is the label Telstar going to release the drum and bass/jungle record Marc mysteriously recorded in foresight back in the day...

Pete
=== Review by DaveDo ===
Good Morning /Afternoon Tillers,
I'm up quite early for a Sunday morning, it's cold but the sun is shining. I've just had a stroll down the garden to inspect my pond, a daily ritual, and all is well.
No one else is up yet so I'll post my "Spaceball" review. I found it quite difficult to rewiew what is essentially a compilation. The songs are a little rough around the edges sometimes but this doesn't detract from the magic!

SPACEBALL - MEMORIES.

Most of the songs from this album I first heard many many years ago. As a teenager having discovered Marc and T.Rex I quickly became "obsessed". I couldn't get enough, books, posters, magazines, cuttings and most importantly the MUSIC. I would send off for bootleg tapes, rare material, sessions, live concerts,interviews, anything I cold lay my hands on.

I remember getting the tape with the US radio sessions on, the sound quallity of most of these rarities was, looking back was generally appalling. The had been copied and re-copied on cheap equipment on to even cheaper tapes. But I adored them! to actually have this material that wasn't generally available was a total trill. The slow acoustic versions of Jeepster and Baby Strange were always special. I rever for one minuite concidered that the sound quallity was terrible, just to have these gems was enough. I played them to death. It was like Christmas when on of these tapes arrived in the post. I replyed to an ad in either Sounds or the NME for "T.Rex's rarest song", Honey Don't. I sent about £4.00 and received a cassette with this one song on, again the quallity was awful, but again total elation!

Fast forward 20 or so years and I've got a lovely, shiny, clean, perfect CD. An improvement ? I'm not really sure.

DaveDo.
=== Info on Bolan Alley ===
Q from Cliff.
Bolan Alley - interesting, but has anyone actually ever seen a copy of this alleged disc? I started collecting boots in 1973. I never came across it. The first Marc boot I found was 'Son Of Magical Pouting Panache'. No collector I know has a copy of Bolan Alley. No bootlegger I know has ever heard of it. It doesn't appear in the Hot Wacks Bootleg discography. In my opinion it was the figment of someone's imagination. Ideas anyone?
A1 from Rick.
I have the CD right here in front of me & it is a boot CD of course , but it follows the track listings that I had always read were the ones for "Bolan Alley" so I don't think it was a figments of imagination.
A2 from Vampyre.
Rick, I have a bootleg CD with the exact same track listing (including version 1, 2, etcs in parenthesis) and it is a picture disc with a fab silk screened pic. It's called Cosmic Planet Elemental Queen on Retropop label, 159080. The legit Spaceball CD beats shit out of the bootleg as far as sound quality, more tracks, and of course, the booklet.
A3 from Rick.
so it seems to me the history of it goes like this :

1- Bolan Alley LP Bootleg ( a rumoured release listed with the tracks from the known USA radio shows )
2- released on CD as "Elemental Queen" in Pix CD a Cd pressing of what was rumoured to be the track listing of the "Bolan Alley" LP
3- Legit release as "Spaceball" 2 CD set The rights are issued and the radio shows finally appear as a legit release -with much clearer sound-
Rickster

Hullaballoo (1997)

==== Review by Russ ====
Capitol radio sessions ... is the Acoustic sets that are quite popular. I think one is on "Highway Angels" and the Cd "Acoustic Warrior" are the acoustic solo radio shows with added instruments.

==== Review by Jimbo ====
Hullabaloo - the legendary Capital Radio Sessions & more 63 mins

If you can only buy one more CD for the rest of the year, it has to be this one.
At last, a Hullabaloo session of superb sound quality, with marc, gloria and the band laid back and live and soundind superb. With Kenny Everett and Maggie Bell ad-libbing throughout. From Mothering Sunday- 28th March 1976, the show kicks off with London Boys and Funky London Childhood. Both unique live recordings. Followed by a melodic and warbling Dreamy Lady. "Oh baby, I need your Kenny Everett charm around my arm" laughs Marc. tracks include, Teenager in Love, New York City.
Theres more. T-Rex live at the Wimbledon Theatre '76. Includes,
I love to Boogie,
Funky London Childhood,
Soul of my Suit.,
New York City
Laser Love.
Get it On.
Cd also contains;
T-Rexra Bonus Trax;
Capital Radio Jingle
Live German version of Laser Love.
Get it On.
Capital Radio rehersal.
Marc and Roy Wood.
Walkin thru that Door (marc and Gloria)
Interview with Stan Lee
I love to Boogie from Totp 76.
==== Note from MarkMcL ====
Hullaballo is available from The Marc Bolan Society
The Bolan Society
PO Box 297
Newhaven
East Sussex BN9 9NX
UK

Electric Warrior Sessions

Not actually out takes from EW but various sessions recorded around that time.

Electric Boogie (1997)

=== from the Nov 97 edition of Record Collector: ===

(quote)
T-Rex fans expecting to hear recordings from the Weeley Festival on Burning Airlines' "Electric Boogie" CD are invited to contact the label for free revised booklets after it was discovered that the performances come from other 1971 shows. "We were duped by a so-called fan who sold us the tapes" says a spokesman, adding that "as T-Rex fans ourselves we were particularly upset due to the immense amount of hard work put into the project."

For a free revised booklet, please write to T-Rex, NMC ltd, 112b High Road, Ilford, Essex, IG1 1BY
(unquote)

T.Rex In Concert

Info from Ivan: (quote) Live tracks from the 1971 "Electric Warrior" tour. A Picture disc (A BOLAN 1P) exists in two versions with different pictures and a DJ only promo version with the same catalogue # has all the crowd noise removed so that there are distinctive bands between the tracks. Notable as the first Bolan live LP. (endquote)

For me this was a disappointment. It has "whistling" Bob Harris introducing the band and quite a lot of chat from Marc about how they were really the same band despite having gone electric. And then an incident where a fan was being thrown off the stage. But, all in all, musically pretty dire IMHO. Give me a studio album any day.

Pain and Love

I know nothing about this apart from the track listing
1 Capital Jingle
2 Till Dawn 2
3 Till Dawn 3
4 Two Tone Lady
5 Saturation Syncopation
6 Pain & Love
7 Jam
8 Telegram Sam
9 Thunderwing
10 Spaceball Richochet
11 Baby's New Blues
12 Mister Mister
13 A Thousand Marc Charms
14 Saturation Syncopation
15 KLOS Jingle
16 KLOS Jingle
17 WGLD Jingle

Songs from the Granada TV Series

That just about says it.