Marc Bolan, no doubt, embodied the whole of T. Rex. That’s not discounting the contributions of Steve Took, Mickey Finn, and the host of others that helped to musically embroider T. Rex into a solid band that helped typify the Glam movement of the time. Regardless, it was Marc Bolan that graced covers, that stood out front on the stage, and that gave the Glam to the band as a way of life. T. Rex shone brightly for a few years with the arrival of Electric Warrior in 1971. That album yielded the ultimate hit that still resonates today with “Bang A Gong (Get It On)”. T. Rex followed it up with several strong albums that include The Slider (1972), and Tanx (1973). After those, the star fell hard for Marc Bolan but those three albums are firmly encapsulated as the music that Bolan built, and that T. Rex played.
On April 26, Edsel Records (Demon Music Group UK) revisits Tanx (my personal favorite of T. Rex by slim margins) with a 50th Anniversary reissue of the classic. The 2CD set will feature the original album remastered for the reissue, and an alternate version of the original album that provides 23 “works in progress” songs. 7 more bonus tracks are included on the first CD after the original album plays through. CD2 adds demo tracks to its offerings. An 8-page booklet with lyrics, photos, and notes regarding the second CD and its contents is packed in the 7″ gatefold packaging.
The 50th Anniversary Tanx by T. Rex will be available on 2CD and DD.
Tanx (50th Anniversary Edition) – T. Rex
CD1 (Original Album/Bonus Tracks)
01 Tenement Lady
02 Rapids
03 Mister Mister
04 Broken-Hearted Blues
05 Shock Rock
06 Country Honey
07 Electric Slim And The Factory Hen
08 Mad Donna
09 Born To Boogie
10 Life Is Strange
11 The Street And Babe Shadow
12 Highway Knees
13 Left Hand Luke And The Beggar Boys
Bonus Tracks – Extended Play
14 Children Of The Revolution
15 Jitterbug Love
16 Sunken Rags
17 Solid Gold Easy Action
18 Xmas Riff
19 20th Century Boy
20 Free Angel
CD2 (Alternate Tanx: Left Hand Luke)
01 Tenement Lady / Darling
02 Rapids [incomplete]
03 Mister Mister
04 Broken Hearted Blues
05 Country Honey
06 Mad Donna
07 Born To Boogie
08 Life Is Strange
09 The Street And Babe Shadow
10 Highway Knees
11 Left Hand Luke
Extended Play
12 Children Of The Revolution [incomplete]
13 Solid Gold Easy Action
14 Free Angel
Additional Acoustic and Bass Demos
15 Mister Mister
16 Broken Hearted Blues
17 The Street And The Babe Shadow
18 Tenement Lady
Additional Acoustic Demos
19 Tenement Lady
20 Broken Hearted Blues
21 Mad Donna [different lyrics]
22 The Street And The Babe Shadow
23 Left Hand Luke