Rock’n’roll’s past, present and future stars crossed each other in transit in the space of a few months in 1972: Chuck Berry and Jerry Lee Lewis headlined The London Rock And Roll Show at Wembley Stadium in August, and T.Rex rocked Wembley Empire Pool (now Arena) in March.
And, soon to eclipse them all, Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars made their Top Of The Pops debut in July. This 36-track, two-CD/LP set takes its name from the Fly compilation released in 1972, and expands its reach up to the tragic ending of Bolan’s career in 1977.
The monster hits don’t require explanation, but all shades of Bolan-love, B-sides and album cuts are covered, from the warbling of Is It Love to the Bo Diddley beat of Jitterbug Love. Among the rare-ish is London Boys, a flopette single from 1976. Running an eye down the tracklisting, it’s tempting to wonder whether selections were made on the basis of the most Bolanesque-sounding titles (hence Venus Loon from Zinc Alloy). Inevitably the post-Visconti productions are less enticing, with the exception of super-stomper Laser Love.
A collection that’s nice to have rather than essential.
