Customer Reviews

Live 1977

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

While these live shows do not represent T. Rex at its 1971-1973 peak, the disc is a great piece of history--1) it is one of Marc Bolan's only live discs 2) the main CD is of the final tour of Marc's life, while his career was finally on the upswing again and he was sounding great, just months before the fatal car crash. Docked one star simply because the sound has a few glitches. Had he lived, Bolan would have made far more of an impact in the U.S. than he did. This release shows he had assembled a great group of musicians again (some who had played with Bowie) and still had the genius songwriting spark.

T Rex never released a live album. Had Bolan not died in 1977, I wouldn't mind betting that this would have been the follow-up to Dandy, with Debora lifted from it as the single. He's clearly put the excesses of the previous few years behind him and is enjoying himself.

Of the posthumous live albums that have been released, this is far and away the best: the band are tight, Bolan's in great form and the audience are loving it. The sound is a little ropey in places, but the tapes had had twenty years to deteriorate before the CD was released.

Some of the hits are there, but more importantly the album includes a number of tracks from the then new album Dandy. Best song is the amazingly punked-up Debora. The second CD is a concert from three years previously when Bolan was in his porky pixie phase. It's a nice extra (my copy states that only the first five thousand copies include the second CD) but by no means essential in the way that the first CD is.

Was I ever pleased to see this c.d.! Being a Bolanite I had these shows already on bootleg(oops I mean fan recording),both vinyl and tape.Over in the U.S way back then,fans were making pen pals in the back of the music rags to obtain the rainbow show.This tour was the last before Bolan died Sept.16,1977 (one month to the day after Elvis).It was nice to buy it for the very fact that the sound quality would be a tad better than the boots I've been playing over two decades. Too bad there was never a live venture released during his career,as T.Rex really rocked LIVE! As always Marc and the new T.rex revamped and reworked most of the songs.Check out the legendary Herbie Flowers and his wonderful basslines....Damn Hot!This tour had the Damned opening ,because Bolan was on the pulse of newer music and no doubt helped sell those tour tix.Very shrewd.From Jeepster to Hot Love the crowd was loving it.For all you Damned fans Bang a Gong has bolan bringing out the Damned and they do jam....damn! Speaking of Bang a Gong ,I was a bit let down when on disc two,the aforementioned was not included from the Cleveland Agora show.How do I know? StellaMarz and I were there November 11,1974.The show was recorded by WMMS (when they were cool)Then Broadcast the following week.Hence a spat of boots of that particular show.The official Light of Love Tour was succinct ... and to the point> LET"S ROCK! With Gloria Jones on vocals and clavinette,we were treated to updated versions of Jeepster,Telegram Sam.Songs from the Casablanca l.p. LIGHT OF LOVE,Token of my Love and Teenage Dream.It should be noted that Teenage Dream was originally the Zinc Alloy l.p. and also on 45 as a solo Marc Bolan release in 1974.Even though Zinc Alloy was not issued in the U.S .,some of those songs were issued on the Light of Love L.p.ZIPGUN BOOGIE was a new tune ,slagged by the critics when released on single ,but it sure cooked live. The one gem that isn't here is Bang a Gong. Bolan was just crazed !at one point he went into a monologue/poem thing and spoke of "seeing James Dean",.Hmmmm,Dean did die in a car crash September 30,Bolan born on Sept.30,and ditto he died in a car crash as his teen idol Eddie Cochrane. I swear Bolan really wasn,t from this place as he was said in an interview. But these recordings do attest that he did cruise by.Play this Loud and have a Party.Marc would love it. keep a little Marc in your heart.....

This Live T Rex CD must rate at one of the worst live performances ever recorded. All the eliments people love about Bolan and T Rex are missing. The nice guitar riffs are lost and the Bolan voice is particularly not good . I even asked myself if it was really him singing. No, he didn't try too hard that night,did he? He couldn't have known he was being recorded and that it was going to be released. He would never have alowed it out.A total [upset]. Save your money and buy some of his studio material

I have been a T-Rex tragic since I was 16, about 40 years ago. Bought Electric Warrior in a second hand store..It was a bit scratched, but I didn't care I was hooked. Unfortunately Marc didn't release any live shows. According to the blurb on this CD 'He claimed that he felt it unfair to expect fans to buy the same material more than once' ( I wonder what Deep Purple would make of this statement haha). This album shows that he was on his way back. A good mix of his new album at the time, Dandy in the Underworld and some of his classics. Unfortunately...The quality is not great, lots of crackles and pops, but as in the title of my review, This is as good as it gets!!! My first copy of Electric Warrior had lots of scratches and I didn't care, so this is great for me!

Hearing these versions of Token Of Your Love and Teenage Dream makes you wish there were more "live" T. Rex available from this era. These two songs alone are worth the price. A video of this gig would have been great to see.

Interesting capture of T Rex live, with mediocre sound quality. Often times the crowd overpowers Marc and the band, but great song selection and energy overcomes some of this. Good addition for folks who already own most of the catalogue.

Nothing can top hearing Marc Bolan & T.Rex live, except that is... Marc Bolan & T.Rex LIVE!
But as that (sadly) is never to be again, the next best thing is LIVE recordings of the King of Glam/Bopping Elf/Godfather of Punk.
This Cd ROCKS! Great quality, when you think that in 1977 the technical equipment was NOTHING like it is today!
Bolan's unique (and very often COPIED vocal style - Bono:U2 amongst them), reverberates deliciously thru both discs.
The music is pure Bolan Boogie/Bop/Rock.
Its very easy to see the Legacy Bolan has imprinted on Popular music, as even today his style has transgressed time and space. His original sound, as is proved by the countless covers, is as actual now as it was in the 70's. Check out the recent & excellent "(Bang A Gong)Get It On" covers by the likes of LONDON BUS STOP or NATURAL BORN HIPPIES, garanteed to get your bones shakin'!
T.REX fan or not, "Marc Bolan & T.Rex Live 1977" is NOT just a Blast From The Past, but a Top actual account of how Timeless-Music should be played!!!
Go out & buy this one, and let your kids hear it too!
Allan-Michael

T.REX fans, leave this one alone. His voice is tired at the end of this last tour and there is no T.REXTASY to this one at all. Sad to say.