Metal Guru was released in May 1972 and got to number 1 for 4 weeks. This was the last chart topper T Rex would have although several singles would crack the top 10. It never charted in America and I think really, Marc was only a British superstar but they were the first band to send all the fans into a frenzy, or as it was known T Rextasy since the Beatles!
Here is the single, on his own label given to him by EMI, the sign of a true superstar. Put a liitle Marc in your heart R.I.P
This single brings great memories back as I was really getting into electronic music at that time, 1980 seemed to be the year for synth tracks. Me and my sister saw the guys on TOTP and she bought us tickets to see them at Hull City Hall the same week they were on the show. I played and played this single and it is pretty worn now, they were one of the first bands I saw live and when I saw them live it was awesome, Phil at the front with the guys on keyboards with Adrian's slide show to fit each track. Who would have thought barely a year later and the band would be so successful!
The band were after a new record contract and signed to Mercury Records after the label heard the track and offered them a 5 album deal. The single was released at the beginning of June and hit number 1 for two weeks and got to number 2 in America. It has become a heavily covered single and has featured on quite a few film and TV soundtracks over the years, an always popular track to feature on love song compilations it remains an ever popular single!
John only really had 4 hit singles in the UK but he is more known for working with other musicians and worked with Tina Turner quite a lot. If you get a chance, listen to this track, it still is an awesome song!
Here is the single in blue vinyl and complete with the picture cover, it was reissued again in 1980 as part of the Six Pack in a different sleeve and a different shade of blue!
The video to me is a very iconic video of the 1980's, from the drenched solarised colour, to the bulldozer with the New Romantic Blitz kids in front of it walking with Bowie, made it a classic piece of film, still one I can watch over and over! I never realised until now, the single didn't even get into the US charts, it peaked at 101.
Here's the sleeve and the label to the single, there were 3 different sleeves and this one has a set of stamps issued inside featuring photo's of him in the suit he wore for the video. Listen to the single and send yourself back to 1980
My sister always wrote the top 20 charts out every week and I used to visit her and we'd spend a Sunday listening to the radio or she'd play the previous weeks top 40 she'd recorded onto cassette off the radio. So I did the same, I'd listen to the charts, record the songs I liked and bought singles when I had pocket money. So it was Glam rock I first really got into, Sweet being my faves of that period followed by T Rex, Slade and Queen. After the Punk explosion which I didn't really get into till after event really but I loved a lot of the new wave bands that were coming into the charts, Blondie, The Police & Ian Dury. The end of the seventies came New Wave Of British Heavy Metal (Or NWOBHM as it was refered to in the music papers) which brought bands such as Judas Priest, Iron Maiden & Motorhead, I found heavy metal to be just so full of energy and it was exciting like I found Glam rock to be!
The beginning of the eighties was Electronic music, the sound of the synths and the alien sounds that came with the tracks at that time. Gary Numan, Human League and Kraftwerk were big names connected with the music. Which led to the New Romantics who were around from 80-83 with electronic sounds and stylish clothes to match the music who brought us Spandau Ballet, Duran Duran, Soft Cell and ABC.
To me after around 1985 I think music started to go downhill, there wasn't anything exciting for me, it seemed to turn into safe pop music or Club hits or even R&B and Rap (which I hate, I've tried to listen Rap & R&B but apart from the odd track it's just not my scene man)! Then towards the late 90's came dance music and Trance which I really love listening to which brings back all the electronic music I'd always liked and pulsating beats of trance music brings me up to date!
Here is a photo of a very small part of my 7'' vinyl collection, I'm still sorting it all out, it takes time but I'll get it done then it will be the start of the albums!
Rumour has it that the single actually reached number 1 during the Jubilee week, knocking Rod Stewart off the top spot but the powers at the BBC (and who knows where else) made sure the single stayed at number 2 in all the charts of that period including Top Of The Pops chart run down. To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the single, there was a call for everyone to buy the reissued single and get it to number 1, but I don't think it even got in the charts. The same happed this year as a Facebook campaign to get it to the top again, but even Johnny Rotten didn't want anything to do with it either!
I remember hearing and readiing all the fuss about the trouble with the band and Punk rock which was just exploding on the scene and my Mother saying to me "if you ever buy a Sex Pistols record I'll smash it up" well it just makes you want to buy it doesn't it! This scan is actually the limited edition 30th anniversay copy of the single, an exact copy on heavyweight vinyl.
It came off the album Hounds Of Love which to me is an amazing album, one I still play a lot and enjoy every listen to!
Up to the release of this single, I was never a big Kate Bush fan, I liked the odd single but for some reason I bought this without ever hearing the track, think it might have been the hype of the new release that interested me. I remember I had been out for a drink the night before so when I went and got the single I was still hungover, went home and put the single on and the first play was all I needed, well I remember playing it over and over that day! Since then I bought every thing she had released and became a huge fan. The song was remixed recently to be included in the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics and got to number 6 on downloads.
Without You was first performed by Badfinger who were signed to the Beatles record label Apple records. Nilsson, heard it and thought it was the Beatles. he recorded his own version of it and it got to number 1 here in the UK charts in 1972. His heart wrenching vocals about a failed relationship, just make this song and the emotion is just so raw you can feel every 3 plus minutes of it as it plays. A classic song that has a sour ending to it. In the mid 70's there was a royalties row with the writers of the song and Nilsson, they claimed they wern't getting any royalties for the song. The stress of the court case was too much and Pete Ham hung himself, several years later on Tommy Evans hung himself as well. To make matters worse, in the 1990's Mariah Carey issued her version and completely murdered the track dead with her screeching awful vocals.
Gary Numan had formed Tubeway Army in 1978, released one album and was in the recording studio recording the follow up album which was to be Replicas, when he came across a synth in the studio. Everyone had thought what a great idea it was of his to make an electronic single, but as he admitted later on, all he did was replace lead guitar parts with the keyboard parts instead. After appearing on TOTP and a gimmick release of a limited editon 7'' picture disc, it climbed the charts and stayed at number 1 for 4 weeks and a classic was made!
Here are the images of the single, the original picture cover plus both sides of the limited edition picture disc
I've always wanted to create a web site for and about the music I like, what I collect and what I'm into! Music has been with me all my life, no matter what has happened in my life, good or bad it has been there and I'm really glad it has been too. Have you ever heard a song that hits something deep inside of you, hits a nerve or is just the song you need to hear? There's always a track that you can relate to, reminds you of a time in your life or even when the going gets tough, a song can lift you up and change your mood!
As the song goes, Music is my first love and it will be my last, music of the future and music of the past!
As I get into this blog, I'll be posting singles, CD's photo's and info about the artists I'm into, I'll try and find as much correct information about the artsits as I can, I will check the web plus also I'll use what info I can remember and aslo my trusty bible's of music, The British Hit Singles and Top 40 Charts which I often refer to! All the records featured here are my own singles scanned in to feature on here.
