The biography of British musician Mark Bolan was short-lived, but rich in bright events. He worked in the style of glam rock, was the composer and leader of the once popular band T. Rex. Bolan made a great contribution to world music and influenced the development of many musicians and trends.
Early creativity
Mark Bolan was born in 1947 and was named Mark Feld at birth. The child grew up in a London Jewish family. His parents were ordinary workers. A boy from an early age who is fond of music, at the age of 9 he received his first guitar as a gift and created his own group. He grew up a rebel, not surprisingly, at the age of 14, the teenager was expelled from school. Without completing his education, Mark did not work for long in the modeling business, and soon decided to devote himself to a musical career. The young man was greatly influenced by the famous musician Bob Dylan, from whose name the pseudonym Bolan was born.
Mark joined John’s Children, and when it broke up, he stayed in Europe for a while. According to the stories of the musician himself, in Paris he met a magician who could fly through the air, who gave him secret knowledge. After that, his active creative period began. Bolan returned to London and created many songs that formed the basis of his future repertoire. In July 1967, the Tyrannosaurus Rex team emerged, eventually evolving into T. Rex. The name of the group was unusual, in honor of the most predatory dinosaur.
T. Rex
The group's creativity can be divided into 2 stages. In the beginning, Mark's acoustic duet with Steve "Peregrine" Took appeared. The guitarist's pseudonym appeared not by chance, because the hobbit Peregrin Took is a character in the fantasy saga "The Lord of the Rings", and both young men were big fans of Tolkien's work. Love for everything mystical and mythical was reflected in the owl's songs. Satyrs, magicians, elves and unicorns were present in the texts. Sometimes the plots were so confused that even the author himself could not explain their meaning. Psychedelic folk in musical circles was not immediately accepted, and the unusual voice of the soloist came to the liking among hippies. Among them, he became popular, although he was indifferent to drugs and protests.
The first appearances of the band were performances on the streets of the city, they performed music in the style of folk-rock. The team was making good money and gaining popularity. Sometimes their recordings appeared on radio and television. In 1968, the group released their debut album, then recorded 2 more compilations during the year.
Riding the wave of popularity
But soon Bolan got tired of being in the role of an underground singer. Tyrannosaurus Rex's 4th LP, A Beard of Stars, released in 1970, marked a turning point in the band's development. By this time Bolan had parted ways with Took and had done a great job to turn the group's development in a different direction. The main changes took place in the sound, the music became harder and acquired notes of rock. An electric guitar with a soft, crackling sound was added to the instruments, and the name of the group was shortened to T. Rex. Only the producer of the group Tony Visconti and the singing of the vocalist of the group remained unchanged. The team was rapidly gaining momentum, album sales were growing, and some songs hit the British charts. The song "Hot Love" stayed at the top of the musical Olympus for 6 weeks. Mark's appearance captivated the audience at concerts. He decorated his face and eyelids with sparkles. It is believed that he is the founder of a new direction in music - "glam rock", which is characterized by cutesy, tinsel, clothes and hairstyles that hint at sexual orientation. However, Bolan was not gay, and the teenage hysteria that began around T. Rex was immediately called "Tirextaz" by the press. Meanwhile, the band went on tour in the United States. In America, Bolan created his biggest hit, Get It On. The song was written in a few minutes, because the author borrowed the guitar riff, and he did not experience a lack of free lyrics. It was enough for him to open his notebook and choose any one.
The success was continued by the new album "Electric Warrior", created in 1971. Concerts T. Rex gathered full houses, the team attracted the attention of the press. Popularity was added by joint performances with such celebrities as Ringo Star and the BBC program on Christmas Eve, where the guys took the same stage with Elton John. The musician David Bowie became the best friend of Mark until the end of his life.
Sunset glory
But, as often happens, the stars flare up brightly and quickly fade away. The fame of the T. Rex team gradually began to wane. The composition of the participants changed twice in several years, people close to the musician left him one after another. Mark Bolan himself has changed. He became withdrawn, unfriendly. Hiding from the press, he went to Monte Carlo for 3 years, and then to the United States. He worked from home, but continued to release singles and albums. In the mid-70s, the musician became noticeably fat, they say that he began to use cocaine.
The musician's personal life cannot be called cloudless either. He first started a family with June Child, this happened at the very beginning of his career. A few years later, the marriage broke up, and Mark began a relationship with singer Gloria Jones. In 1975, the couple had a son.
Over time, Mark noticeably lost weight and came out of seclusion. He tried to find a common language with the new generation of musicians of his collective, met with former colleagues. The musician even started his own television show promoting punk rock. His last appearance on the stage was a joint show "Marc" with David Bowie in early September 1977, where old friends sang a duet. Bolan died a few days later.
Car crash
On September 16, 1977, Bolan and his wife were returning home from the bar. Gloria's wife was driving. The car crashed into a tree at full speed, as a result of which Mark died on the spot. He did not live only 2 weeks before his 30th birthday. The musician himself did not know how to drive a car, he was very afraid of this, remembering the death of actor James Dean, which happened on the road.
On the 25th anniversary of Bolan's death, fans installed a bronze bust on the grave of their idol, they still remember and love him.
