Angelheaded hipster: the songs of Marc Boland and T.Rex is out today

Today, BMG celebrates the genius and pioneering influence of Marc Bolan’s T. Rex - 2020 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee and one of the great rock musicians of all time - with the release of AngelHeaded Hipster: The Songs of Marc Bolan and T. Rex. The collection features 26 songs culled from Bolan’s vast body of work released as T. Rex and Tyrannosaurus Rex from 1968-77.

A wide-ranging cast of wizards and cosmic dancers have joined together to reimagine Bolan’s work - sometimes in radical fashion - resulting in a collection that is less tribute than bold new work. Read below for the full list of artists and tracklist, which includes Bolan’s greatest songs: “Jeepster,” “Bang A Gong (Get It On),” “Ride A White Swan” and beyond.

AngelHeaded Hipster was lovingly created by the late Hal Willner, who passed away on April 7 from COVID-19. As a producer of albums, concerts and even the sketch music on Saturday Night Live, Willner, “bent and shaped the dimensions of almost-popular music” (New York Times) in a career that spanned over four decades. Willner worked on AngelHeaded Hipster for several years, with sessions spanning continents, from New York, Los Angeles and New Orleans, to London, Paris and Berlin. In addition to its tracklist credits, the album features special guests Donald Fagen, Mike Garson, Bill Frisell, Wayne Kramer, Van Dyke Parks and Marc Ribot, with arrangements by Thomas Bartlett, Steven Bernstein, Eli Brueggemann, J.G. Thirlwell and Steve Weisberg.

The project was conceived and executive produced by Bill Curbishley and Ethan Silverman. Kate Hyman had the creative vision to ask Hal to produce it.

Five tracks from AngelHeaded Hipster have already been released and met with universal acclaim. Kesha’s “Children of the Revolution” was hailed as a “superstar” turn by SPIN; Devendra Banhart’s “Scenescof” was praised as “serene and trippy” by Rolling Stone; Brooklyn Vegan called Nick Cave’s “Cosmic Dancer” “gorgeous;” Consequence of Sound hailed Joan Jett’s cover of “Jeepster” as “splendid homage,” and Peaches’ take on “Solid Gold, Easy Action” was deemed “radical” by the NME.

Marc Bolan was many things - a folk pop troubadour, Glam Rock’s metal guru, a pop star who burned as bright as any, a brilliant guitarist, style icon, poet. He has been famously cited as a major influence by some of the biggest names in music from David Bowie to Johnny Marr. And though he died in 1977 aged just 29, after a car crash in London, he’ll finally be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this Fall with the Class of 2020.

AngelHeaded Hipster is now available on CD, LP and digital. A special limited-edition white vinyl version is available.

Download/listen to the album HERE.