Girl I'm just a vampire for your love

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Q.� Which was the first Glam Rock album ��������� < xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

A.� Those who analyse such historical aspects would probably point to Electric Warrior by T Rex, an album which as easily stood the test of time, mainly due to the twin foundations of Marc Bolan's song writing, and Tony Visconti's production.

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Q.� Let's look at the writing first.

A.� Certainly. Marc Bolan had emerged from the hippy 1960s and his bed-sit student hippy template duo Tyrannosaurus Rex, and mutated the entire concept into a glitter-and-androgyny tat-monster called T Rex. Out went the Afghan coats, the tie-dye tee shirts, the mystical sword-and-wizard acoustic songs, and Steve Peregrine Took on percussion. In came glitter, make-up, silver lame and feather boas, ladies' shoes, perfect pop songs, and Mickey Finn on percussion.

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Q.� Why the change

A.� People who knew Marc Bolan confirmed that his ambition to be famous overrode just about everything, and Bolan was astute enough to see that the hippy sixties were fading, and youth wanted something of their own, as youth always does. Bolan anticipated the urge to dress up and annoy parents perfectly, and ushered in the joyful era of Glam Rock.

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Q.� And the songs

A.� Marc Bolan knew his limitations, and he disguised them expertly. Never a virtuoso guitarist, Bolan played delightful little licks and swirls to accompany his three-minute pop gems. They were always perfectly placed and played, under-stated, but always totally appropriate for the song. No-one could call Bolan a classic vocalist, but again he wrote to suit his voice, nothing too heavy on the range, but breathy and sexy in that particularly dual-purpose fusion that pop enjoys�- drawing teenagers like a magnet, and sending parents into a frenzy. Bolan could write musical and lyrical hooks you could hang a coat and hat on, part whimsy, the last vestiges of his hippy past, combined with sexual imagery that spoke volumes to his army of faithful followers.

Q.� So which are the highlights

A.� It's true to say that there are no dodgy tracks on this album. It has something for every occasion, but firm favourites among fans are Bang A Gong (Get It On), known by the bracketed title in the UK, but changed in order not to offend the all-important radio playlist compilers in the USA. It has to be one of the most joyous pop songs ever committed to vinyl.

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Jeepster is the archetypal T Rex song, in which all the elements that made them successful gel together. Bolan's vocal and guitar, hinting at romance, sex, and rhythm in equal measure, Mickey Finn's percussion is further forward in the mix than usual, joining the solid rhythm section and carrying the entire perfect�combination towards its tongue-in-cheek conclusion, Bolan's lascivious reference to vampirism� "And I'm gonna suck ya!" followed by gasps and screams that go a little further than subtle hinting at what Bolan is really intending.

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Q.� What about the production of the album

A.� The intriguing choice of the first track�- Mambo Sun�- indicates Tony Visconti's ability to lead the listener through an intriguing mixture of songs and styles. The loose loping beat and almost-hippy lyrics�-�"I've got stars in my beard, and I feel real weird," give no hint of the tub-thumping glam standards that lie further on in the album.

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Using Flo and Eddie, singers with The Turtles, as backing vocalists was a positively inspired choice.�Their falsetto accompaniment to the album's high spots add to the unusual aspects of the record. Use of strings, the echoes, the 'live' feel of the recordings, as though the whole thing was done in one day, all adds to the overall appeal of the album.

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The poignant Life's A Gas, with Bolan in reflective acoustic mode, is made even more meaningful with the line "I hope it's gonna last .." which of course became his tragic epitaph.

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Q.� Is this album the highlight of Bolan's career

A.� Without doubt. Marc Bolan's career was never again so exciting, so vibrant, and so full of promise and zest for the future. It wasn't to be. At the time of Bolan's death, his career was in freefall, he had gained weight, starred in an unsuitable TV show relegated to Children's TV in the afternoons, it is likely that he would have continued to degenerate into a shadow if his former self. As it is, death has allowed Bolan's elfin fame to shine ever more brightly, and this album to stand as a tribute to his mercurial talent. It's an essential purchase for anyone who wonders where Glam came from, and just how much can be achieved with the basic ingredients of pop.

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Andy Hughes