Rhino / Wea
2002
The T. Rex Wax Co Singles: A's And B's (1972-77)
About This Album
Since Marc Bolan's own label issued its first greatest-hits package back in 1973, there has been no shortage of collections rounding up the peerless sequence of 18 singles (some with multiple B-sides) released between January 1972 and Bolan's death in September 1977. Indeed, this set was itself just a few months old when its contents were redistributed across two box sets' worth of CD singles, each one replicating the original U.K. 45. As a simple one-stop chronological gathering of the Bolan jukebox at its born-to-boogie best, however, this two-disc package is hard to beat. In common with the two single-disc collections that it supersedes, the discs are divided neatly between A-sides (disc one) and B-sides (disc two), a running order that traces Bolan first from "Telegram Sam" to "Celebrate Summer" and then from "Cadillac" to "Ride My Wheels." And it would be futile to try and pretend that the B-sides disc, at least, does not have its highs and lows, as it swings from the tight sexuality and swaggering electricity of the 1972 vintage "Lady," "Thunderwing," and "Born to Boogie," to the somewhat plodding disco offcuts that were "Groove a Little," "Tame My Tiger," and "Dock of the Bay." The A-sides disc, on the other hand, offers an unyieldingly even footing -- not every Bolan single was a major hit, but every one should have been, and the thrill of hearing even such mid-decade slump epics as "Light of Love," "London Boys," and "Laser Love" is not diminished by repetition. Meanwhile, the opening salvo of "Telegram Sam," "Metal Guru," and "Children of the Revolution" offers a dramatic overture that few, if any, acts have even come close to emulating. ~ Dave Thompson, All Music Guide
Track List

Disc 1 (try tracks 1,2,3,4,6,9,10,12,14 and 17)

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Disc 2 (try tracks 2,8,9 and 15)

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