It has been nearly 45 years since the death of Marc Bolan, a.k.a., T. Rex., at the shockingly young age of 29. Yet five decades after the heyday of glam rock, Bolan’s music remains ubiquitous. At this exact moment audiences around the world are hearing the swaggering “Bang a Gong (Get It On)” as it accompanies a key scene in Top Gun: Maverick. The newest album from Def Leppard, Diamond Star Halos, takes its name from “Gong.” And Bolan has been name-checked in multiple reviews of the latest album from a similarly gender-fluid pop star, Harry Styles. Now the high-profile documentary Angelheaded Hipster: The Songs of Marc Bolan & T. Rex makes its world premiere at the 2022 Tribeca Film Festival.
A good chunk of Angelheaded Hipster documents the star-studded creation of a 2020 tribute album, also called AngelHeaded Hipster: The Songs of Marc Bolan & T. Rex. Indeed, the goal of director Ethan Silverman’s film is stated with clarity early on by the late Hal Willner, who oversaw the album. His intent, Willner says, was to “explore Marc Bolan as a singer and songwriter where he’s never gotten his due. He’s gotten his due as a rocker with cool grooves. You listen back to those songs and they are deep.” Musicians and songwriters, it seems, have considered Bolan a lyrical genius for decades. The level of respect for Bolan is clear in the caliber of performers featured on the album (and in the film): U2, Nick Cave, Joan Jett, Kesha, Elton John. Cave specifically notes Bolan’s lyrical prowess, going so far as to call him “a better lyricist than Bowie.”
The recording of the tribute album is an interesting framing device, bringing to mind the tribute show in 2005’s Leonard Cohen: I’m Your Man. Frequent cuts from archival footage of performances and interviews to the recording sessions serve as a reminder, though, that few have had Bolan’s unique charisma. While it’s a treat to see Cave deliver a somber version of “Cosmic Dancer,” the other renditions mainly remind us we’d rather be watching Bolan.
Happily, Angelheaded Hipster does have plenty of actual T. Rex footage. Silverman moves speedily from Bolan’s childhood to his hippie Tyrannosaurus Rex era, the seismic glam rock success in the U.K., and a subsequent dip in popularity. The most compelling footage, surprisingly, is from Marc, a 1977 TV show hosted by the singer. It saw him champion rising punks Generation X and Mod upstarts the Jam, and even featured his old friend and rival, David Bowie.
One of the film’s other pleasures is hearing from his partner, Gloria Jones, as well as the son they had together, the delightfully named Rolan Bolan. Jones, a legendary singer herself, offers some astute, deeply personal commentary throughout, but Rolan should have been featured to a greater degree. We see him cover “Children of the Revolution” for Willner’s album, but only hear him speak a handful of times. It is noteworthy that two of these instances rank among the most moving moments––when Rolan pages through a book of Polaroids showing his mother and father at the peak of their powers, and when Rolan tearfully explains how spends September 16, the date of his father’s death, each year. A 2021 documentary about another offbeat musical icon, Poly Styrene: I Am a Cliché, was co-directed by its subject’s adult daughter, and focused on her often. Rolan’s point-of-view deserved to be more prominently featured.
Ultimately, however, Angelheaded Hipster serves its purpose. Bolan and his work are justifiably celebrated. He is given credit for repeatedly being ahead of the curve and unafraid to embrace new musical trends and movements. Late in the film a group of children who attend the Marc Bolan School of Music and Film in Sierra Leone sing a lovely rendition of “Children of the Revolution,” hammering home (or banging a gong?) the sense that T. Rex’s impact is greater than many ever realized. It’s a beautiful moment, showing that even with some flaws, Angelheaded Hipster more than achieves its goals.
Angelheaded Hipster: The Songs of Marc Bolan & T. Rex premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival.