Beard Of Stars - TYRANNOSAURUS REX***

Prelude/A Day Laye/The Woodland Bop/First Heart Mighty Dawn Dart/Pavilions Of Sun/Organ Blues/By The Light Of The Magical Moon/Wind Cheetah/A Beard Of Stars/Great Horse/Dragon's Ear/Lofty Skies/ Dove/Elemental Child

Beard Of Stars was the last of the four hippy dippy Tyrannosaurus Rex albums before Marc Bolan launched his new glam rock image. Mickey Finn replaces Steve Took as collaborator. (UK:21)

"The music of Tyrannosaurus Rex was a strange amalgam of folk, psychedelia, avant-garde and rock, completely outlandish and different from almost anything else on the British scene at the time. Bolan, who had one of the prettiest faces among his musical peers, was also blessed with probably the most appalling voice, which could wake dead listeners and sounded off tune at all times. And yet, as the saying goes, that peculiar voice was so ugly it became beautiful."

"Beard Of Stars shows a group that is beginning to transform and emerge from the hippie era to explore new territories. It features a relaxing intro that flows right into the acoustic strummings of the second track, one of the better openings to any album of the period. Marc Bolan's vocals are strange and beautiful. Some of the later highlights of the album include the title track and the very strange Great Horse where you can almost imagine Marc as some Celtic bard or medieval troubadour."

"On this album the music is slightly more accessible than the earlier material, with extensive usage of electric guitar, which also sounds quite weird, and more rock rhythms, resulting in more listeners getting interested in the group's music, which would later turn into a raging success, after Bolan changed the name to T. Rex."

"Freedom of artistic expression was never in better shape at this time but sadly disappeared soon after when the corporate management methods started to call the shots. In retrospect this was a musical experiment more than anything else. Regardless of the actual musical value, its historical importance signifies open-mindedness, experimentation and courage to express your ideas, all the qualities that contemporary music lacks so badly."

"Bolan goes electric, swapping his acoustic guitar for organ and electric guitar, and gets a new percussion partner in Mickey Finn; the result is that this Tyrannosaurus Rex album shows the first significant advance in the group's sound since their debut. The songs are also more diverse and better-written."