Angelheaded Hipster: The Songs of Marc Bolan & T. Rex

As a long-term T. Rex fan, there's not many archive clips in here that I hadn't seen before - but there are some, which is good. Also, the interviews with various old associates (such as Bowie, Elton and Ringo) and cover artists from the accompanying AHH album (such as Nick Cave) are quite interestingly fresh. Nice to see non-interviewed players such as Wayne Kramer also.

The interpretations of the songs from the album vary from the straight-on copy to almost unrecognisable, but the whole is imbued with a pervasive sense of affection for the man and his music, which is quite touching, as is their descriptions of his influence on their lives and careers.

Quite nicely done.

Greetings again from the darkness. Is it possible to be a rock star that no one has heard of? Well, in a way, that's what happened to Marc Bolan. In Great Brittain, Bolan and his band T. Rex drew huge crowds and had a massive fan base, whereas in the United States, they had only a small cult following (which meant very little record sales or radio airtime). Ethan Silverman (he of previous short films and music videos) conceived of this record album/documentary combination, and in 2020 set out to make the project come to life.

This may be the only 'making of an album' documentary that doesn't feature a single complete song being recorded. Instead, Silverman treats us to a revolving studio door of musicians who have come to pay tribute to the influential Bolan by recording one of his songs. The lineup includes such artists as U2, Nick Cave, Joan Jett, Beth Orton, Maria McKee, The Orwells, Macy Gray, Snarky Puppy, Lucinda Williams, Kesha, and the multi-talented John Cameron Mitchell. Unfortunately, missing from the action is David Johansen (passed away earlier this year), whose version of "Bang a Gong" is an album highlight, and whose band New York Dolls were assuredly influenced by Marc Bolan.

What really makes this a gift for us Marc Bolan fans is the stream of archival interviews and concert clips, many of which we've never seen before. Glitter band, glam-rock, or androgyny - however you choose to describe it, there is no denying Marc Bolan was a pioneer. He, along with David Bowie, brought a new look and feel to music ... turning rock concerts into theatrical productions. Bolan and Bowie were colleagues, friends, and rivals and Silverman plays clips of each discussing the complicated relationship and respect the two shared. They set the stage for acts like Alice Cooper, KISS, Queen, Def Leppard, and even R. E. M. It's also mentioned how Bolan's understanding of production led him to take full advantage of color TV, which was then entering mainstream.

The concert clips are undeniable proof of Marc Bolan's charisma, showmanship, and talent. The feedback and tributes from other artists make his songwriting excellence clear to the rest of us. We even get a concert clip of young Elton John playing keyboard with T. Rex, and Ringo Starr discussing Bolan's influence on "Back Off Boogaloo", Ringo's 1972 hit single. Bolan's partner, singer Gloria Jones, is the mother of his son Rolan. She provides some memories, while Rolan sings backup on some recordings prior to showing us his family photo album. There is a terrific clip of Marc Bolan (as TV host) introducing a hot new band, Generation X featuring Billy Idol, who also contributes his own recollection of Bolan.

The 25-song album was produced by Hal Willner, whose career touched so many artists (Marianne Faithful, Lou Reed, Lucinda Williams). Willner passed away in 2022, and he's a steady studio presence throughout the film. A musical highlight here is Nick Cave's moving version of "Cosmic Dance", allowing his haunting voice to capture those lyrics. Marc Bolan died in a car crash in 1977 at age 29. The album has been available, and Silverman's documentary is now beginning a rolling theatrical run.

A tiered theatrical release begins August 8, 2025, opening in various cities each week through September 13, 2025. It will become available on Digital beginning September 5, 2025.

Where does Angelheaded Hipster rank among the enormous array of rock'n'roll documentaries? In my opinion it belongs somewhere near the middle of the pack along with the Joan Jett doc Bad Reputation. Much better than the tedious Bowie film Moonage Daydream, but nowhere near the Iggy Pop masterpiece Gimme Danger.

There are some amazing interviews with the likes of Billy Idol and Nick Cave as well as good archival footage of Marc Bolan during his heyday. The only thing I feel it lacks is some new perspective on T. Rex and Mr. Bolan. Of course that does not make it a complete waste of time and energy, just a slight disappointment.

It's the guy you don't see listed on the main "cast" page, and is down at bottom, uncredited with anything in particular, of the extended cast page: Hal Willner.

This recording was a Hal Willner joint. You need to go outside of IMDB. Start with his wikipedia page. His specialty over 40 years (apart from driving SNL's music) was "tributes" - a name that doesn't do the albums of contemporary musicians covering important composers justice. Monk. Mingus. Weill. Rota. Every one of them is absolutely amazing, and a product of Willner's choice of musicians to bring into each. So when you look down this list and see Bill Frisell and Wayne Kramer listed as "session musicians" (which they really aren't), it conveys nothing of the unique musical character each one bring.

This was particularly touching given that Willner was killed by COVID early in the pandemic (he got one of those RIP closing credits on that week's SNL), and it took a few more years for this documentary - as much of the making of the album as about Bolan himself - to come out.

You really don't want to miss this one.

Never an easy task to make a documentary about a person who has long passed away, buy it has been researched well. There are some nice interviews with people such as Bowie, Ringo, Elton, and many of the artists who sang on the collection. I actually enjoyed the Dvd more, though there are some good covers such as Cave, Bjorns, Banhart and Orton. It was very pleasurable to see many young musicians enjoying his music and getting involved. I thought the angle for Gloria Jones was a bit odd. There were few things I did not know which is always nice. Yes, yes its not perfect but its a decent homage and at least someone made it and I am very grateful for that. It is a shame it did not get a wider release and living in Madrid it took me ages to actually get my hands on a copy. The live footage and talk show footage is great. Bolan is allowed to breathe in the documentary which is nice.