Album: Electric Warrior
Artist: T. Rex
1971

Marc Bolan: vocals, guitar
Mickey Finn: conga drums, bongos
Steve Currie: bass
Bill Legend: drums
Howard Kaylan: backing vocals
Mark Volman: backing vocals
Rick Wakeman: keys (6)
Ian McDonald:  saxophone
Burt Collins:  flugelhorn


Tony Visconti: production
Roy Thomas Baker: engineering
George Underwood: artwork, photography
George Marino: mastering


Tracks:
Side A
1. "Mambo Sun" (3:40)
2. "Cosmic Dancer" (4:30)
3. "Jeepster" (4:12)
4. "Monolith" (3:49)
5. "Lean Woman Blues" (3:02)

Side B
6. "Get It On" (4:27)
7. "Planet Queen" (3:13)
8. "Girl" (2:32)
9. "The Motivator" (4:00)
10. "Life's a Gas" (2:24)
11. "Rip Off" (3:40)

all songs by Bolan



Notes: Wakeman tells the story of how he was £8 short on his rent (about £104 in 2016 terms). He spent the day going around agents to see if anyone wanted him for a session. No luck. Until late, when Visconti finds him to say that Bolan is doing a session, which would mean a payment of £9. Wakeman goes along and listens to the band play the song through. What he hears is a very guitar-orientated song and he says to Bolan that there's nothing for him to do, nowhere to add any keyboards. Bolan tells him to play a piano glissando when he indicates. Wakeman protests that Bolan could do that himself, to which Bolan answers does he want to pay his rent? He's giving him this work because he knew Wakeman would say no if he had just tried to give him the money needed.

Baker would to go on to produce Yes's Heaven & Earth many years later.

Sometimes called the first glam rock album, it made #1 in the UK in Dec and was the best-selling of 1971. It fell off the top spot in Jan 1972, but returned to in Feb. It also made #32 in the US. Three singles were released, all that year: tracks 6, 2 and 3.

For US release, to avoid confusion with another song of the same name, (6) was renamed "Bang a Gong (Get It On)" there. It made #1 in the UK for 4 weeks, and 2 weeks in Ireland. It also made #3 in Germany and Switzerland, #6 in Norway, #10 in the US, #11 in Australia, #12 in Canada and #15 in the Netherlands. It was the 11th and 89th best-selling single of 1971 in the UK and Australia respectively, and the 56th in the US for 1972. (HP, 13 Apr 17)

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