Electric Warrior

For the DC Comics character and series, see Electric Warrior (comics).
Electric Warrior
Studio album by T. Rex
Released 24 September 1971
Recorded March–June 1971 at Trident Studios and Advision Studios, London, England; Wally Heider Studios, Los Angeles; Media Sound Studios, New York City, United States
Genre Glam rock
Length 39:02
Label Fly (UK), Reprise (US)
Producer Tony Visconti
T. Rex chronology
T. Rex
(1970)		 Electric Warrior
(1971)		 The Slider
(1972)
Singles from Electric Warrior
  1. "Get It On"
    Released: 1971
  2. "Cosmic Dancer"
    Released: 1971
  3. "Jeepster"
    Released: 1 November 1971

Electric Warrior is the sixth studio album by English glam rock act T. Rex. It is the group's second album released under the name "T. Rex", with the first four billed as "Tyrannosaurus Rex". It was released on 24 September 1971 by record label Fly in the UK and Reprise in the US. The album marks a turning point in the band's sound, dispensing with the folk-oriented music of the group's previous albums and pioneering a new, "glammier" style of rock known as glam rock.[1] The album also drew attention to the band in the United States with the top 10 hit "Bang A Gong (Get It On)". This would prove to be the band's only successful single in America, deeming the band a "one-hit wonder" there.

Cover art

The cover artwork was designed by British art design group Hipgnosis, based on a photo taken by Kieron "Spud" Murphy at a T. Rex concert at the Albert Hall, Nottingham on 14 May 1971.

Release

Electric Warrior was released on 24 September 1971 by record label Fly in the UK and Reprise in the US. Electric Warrior reached number 32 in the US Billboard 200 chart[2] and went to number 1 on the UK Albums Chart, staying there for several weeks[3] and becoming the best-selling album in the UK in 1971. It was preceded by the single "Hot Love", a million-selling single in the UK, where it stayed at number 1 for six weeks.[3]

Two singles were released from the album: "Get It On" and "Jeepster". "Get It On" was T. Rex's biggest selling single, and became the band's only top-ten US hit.[4] In the United States, "Get It On"'s title was originally changed to "Bang a Gong (Get It On)" to distinguish it from Chase's song "Get It On", which was also released in late 1971. The printing of the song title "Bang a Gong (Get It On)" on the back cover of original Reprise Records North American pressings of Electric Warrior is in a different typeface from the surrounding text, with the song's original title retained on the lyric sheet.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
BBC Musicfavourable[5]
Robert ChristgauB[6]
Pitchfork9.5/10[7]
Q
Rolling Stonefavourable[8]
Uncut8/10[9]

Electric Warrior has received acclaim from critics.

In his retrospective review, Steve Huey of AllMusic gave the album 5/5 stars, writing "the real reason Electric Warrior stands the test of time so well – despite its intended disposability – is that it revels so freely in its own absurdity and willful lack of substance. Not taking himself at all seriously, Bolan is free to pursue whatever silly wordplay, cosmic fantasies or non sequitur imagery he feels like; his abandonment of any pretense to art becomes, ironically, a statement in itself. Bolan's lack of pomposity, back-to-basics songwriting, and elaborate theatrics went on to influence everything from hard rock to punk to new wave. But in the end, it's that sense of playfulness, combined with a raft of irresistible hooks, that keeps Electric Warrior such an infectious, invigorating listen today."[1]

The band's fans from the "Tyrannosaurus Rex" days panned the album, deeming Bolan a "sell-out". However a new wave of fans quickly rolled in, specifically teenagers, as the glam rock genre boomed in popularity.

Legacy

The album is considered a pioneering record in the development of glam rock.[1]

The album is often credited as the first glam rock album, though this can be debated as David Bowie's The Man Who Sold the World album cover (of Bowie in a 'Mr Fish "man's dress"') suggests early hints of glam rock.

In 1987, Electric Warrior was ranked number 100 in Rolling Stone magazine's "100 Greatest Albums of the Last 20 Years" list. In 2003, the album was ranked number 160 by the same magazine in its list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. In 2004, Pitchfork ranked Electric Warrior as the 20th best album of the 1970s.[10]

American rock band The Bongos released a cover of "Mambo Sun" in 1981. "Get It On" was a hit cover single for rock supergroup The Power Station in 1985. Former Guns N' Roses guitarist Gilby Clarke covered "Life's a Gas" on his 1995 EP, Blooze. Five songs from the album – "Cosmic Dancer", "Jeepster", "Get It On", "Life's a Gas" and "Rip Off" – were covered by various artists on the tribute album Great Jewish Music: Marc Bolan in 1998. Poison drummer Rikki Rockett included a cover of "Life's a Gas" on his 2003 solo album Glitter 4 Your Soul.

The song "Jeepster" is featured in a bar scene in Quentin Tarantino's Death Proof (2007). In the opening scene of the film Billy Elliot (2000), the title character is shown putting Electric Warrior on a turntable and skipping to the song "Cosmic Dancer". "Cosmic Dancer" was also included in the soundtrack for the film Velvet Goldmine (1998). Morrissey has also covered "Cosmic Dancer" live in concert, both solo and with David Bowie. He included a live recording on the 1991 CD and album single for "Pregnant for the Last Time".

Bolan, in a 1971 interview contained on the Rhino Records reissue, said of the album "I think Electric Warrior, for me, is the first album which is a statement of 1971 for us in England. I mean that's... If anyone ever wanted to know why we were big in the other part of the world, that album says it, for me."

Track listing

All tracks written by Marc Bolan. 

Side A
No. Title Length
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
No. Title Length
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

Chart positions

Chart Year Peak
position
UK Albums Chart 1971 1[11]
1972
US Billboard 200 1972 32[2]
Preceded by
Led Zeppelin IV by Led Zeppelin
The Concert for Bangladesh
by George Harrison & Friends		 UK Albums Chart number-one album
18 December 1971 – 29 January 1972
5 February 1972 – 19 February 1972 		Succeeded by
The Concert for Bangladesh
by George Harrison & Friends
Neil Reid by Neil Reid

Personnel

Technical personnel

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Huey, Steve. "Electric Warrior – T. Rex | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  2. 1 2 "Electric Warrior – T. Rex | Awards | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  3. 1 2 "T. Rex | Artist | Official Charts". Official Charts. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  4. ↑ "T. Rex – Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  5. ↑ Jones, Chris (29 September 2003). "BBC – Music – Review of T. Rex – Electric Warrior (SACD)". BBC Music. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  6. ↑ Christgau, Robert. "Robert Christgau: CG: T. Rex". robertchristgau.com. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  7. ↑ James, Brian (25 February 2003). "T. Rex: Electric Warrior | Album Review | Pitchfork". Pitchfork. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  8. ↑ Gerson, Ben (6 January 1972). "[Electric Warrior review]". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  9. ↑ Bonner, Michael (23 April 2012). "T. Rex – Electric Warrior Deluxe Edition – uncut.co.uk". Uncut. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  10. ↑ "Staff Lists: Top 100 Albums of the 1970s | Features | Pitchfork". Pitchfork. 23 June 2004. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  11. ↑ "The Official UK Charts Company: All the Number 1 Albums". Official Charts. Archived from the original on 9 February 2008. Retrieved 29 December 2014.

External links

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