M- '69 TYRANNOSAURUS REX UNICORN UK Hippie Folk Psych

$

46

1969 FIRST PRESSING ~~ MINT VINYL ~~ COLLECTIBLE                                               

IN SHRINK WRAPPER                                                        

         Tyrannosaurus Rex

                Unicorn

                                     USA - blue Thumb - BTS 7

TOP MINTY CLEAN VINYL in THICK GATEFOLD COVER!

***IN SHRINK WRAPPER

Legendary British hippie duo creating whimsical folkpsych grooves featuring the ever clever Marc Bolan and his elfian warbled voice amid creative poetic imageries accompanied effectively by the cult figurehead Steve Took who mainstays the rhythms on bongos and assorted sound effects, twinkling throughout the melodic tunes...

Tyrannosaurus Rex, after releasing two charming albums "My People Were Fair" and "Prophets Seers And Sages", perfected their sound on "Unicorn", creating a work which remains singularly unique in just about all genres of music to this day. Some T.Rex fans infatuated with Bolan's later electric image remained completely turned off by his earlier hippie Tolkein-influenced work, but for those with an open ear "Unicorn" reveals just as many catchy, hummable tunes as "Electric Warrior" and "The Slider" combined, recorded with a wall of sound production that has to be heard to be believed.

Lyrically, the Tolkein fantasy influence remained strong but Bolan's sense of wordplay was reaching Shakespearian heights--if this sounds exaggerated, simply listen and marvel at lines such as "the skull of jade was pearl inlaid, the silks skin-spun, repelled the sun" or "Nijinsky hind is a wisp of our world through the heart's eye, a likeness in flesh of the magic contained in a pearl's shell..", all sung in a magnificent soft-focus slur that sounds at first listen like an utterly foreign tongue.

The fabled Spector-ish production values utilize just about every acoustic instrument imaginable, including guitars, pianos, organs, bongos, talking drums, pixiephone, gong, drums, bass, claves, fonofiddle and harmonica, treated at times with vast amounts of reverb ("Chariots Of Silk", "Catblack") for a grand, ethereal sound; a song like "She Was Born To Be My Unicorn" almost seems to float with a liquid momentum. Most importantly, however, every track is melodically rich, with eminently hummable verses and uplifting choruses that can sound royally majestic ("Chariots Of Silk"), poignantly lilting ("Seal Of Seasons") or foreboding ("Warlord Of The Royal Crocodiles") with ease, dispelling the occassional monotony that had plagued the first two releases. With its combination of accessible song craftsmanship and highly quirky vocals and production, "Unicorn" allows Bolan's personality to burn through with a grace and heart-melting passion which makes it one of the most underrated and overlooked masterpieces in rock, albeit with a strong cult following.

So what we have here is pure art-rock. Many of the songs possess captivating melodies, exquisite musicianship, and the type of experimentation, sincerity, and thoughtfulness that was suppose to epitomize music of the 1960's, but so often didn't. While the overall feel of the album is optimistic and light, some slower, darker, sad and even brooding fare can be found.

1. "Chariots of Silk" – 2:26
2. "'Pon a Hill" – 1:14
3. "The Seal of Seasons" – 1:49
4. "The Throat of Winter" – 1:59
5. "Cat Black (The Wizard's Hat)" – 2:55
6. "Stones for Avalon" – 1:37
7. "She Was Born to Be My Unicorn" – 2:37
8. "Like a White Star, Tangled and Far, Tulip That's What You Are" – 3:49
9. "Warlord of the Royal Crocodiles" – 2:11 =0 A
10. "Evenings of Damask" – 2:26
11. "The Sea Beasts" – 2:26
12. "Iscariot" – 2:53
13. "Nijinsky Hind" – 2:20
14. "The Pilgrims Tale" – 2:07
15. "The Misty Coast of Albany" – 1:43
16. "Romany Soup" – 5:40

CONDITION: The gatefold cover is "EX" (excellent) ...strangely in shrink wrap that covers the outside and inside (so you can open it with shrink wrap on entire outside/inside cover)  Has no split seams, no bends, no writing....and NO delete marks! (a hard one to find without delete markings)...this one >>  A superb collectible.

The vinyl is all clean and glossy M- 

      A cool addition to anyone's music library!

SEE: SELLERS OTher items for similar cool sounds for "head" people...

EFFICIENT/CAREFUL GRADING

All imperfections are noted both cover & record