My People Were Fair... Rare First Matrix, First Stamper, First Press. Ex Cond

	£		58
	$		77

My People Were Fair and Had Sky in Their Hair... But Now They're Content to Wear Stars on Their Brows is the 1968 debut album by Tyrannasaurus Rex who had only that year changed their name, but possibly not their style, from John’s Children. Only a matter of a few years would see them change their name again and lose this early psychedelic, mystical aura to become T Rex!

This is a very, very rare and very, very early original FIRST PRESSING, from the EMI Hayes Pressing Plant and is possibly one of the first vinyl discs off the press, perhaps as a demo or at the very least the groups first run album. These are the Stamper details on this wonderfully lacquered, heavy vinyl record, which is in excellent condition. Whilst it has been played, I played it probably around four times, as I found the music too avante garde and I was too young to fully appreciate it and so left it stored from 1968 until now! Its condition is amazing, with just the hint of little surface hair-lines or more likely sleeve lines, being the paper movement of the inner sleeve coming on and off the disc. It retains its lustre, as you can see from the wonderful dark mirror like sheen, reflecting my image as I photographed it! The sleeve itself is in very good condition, with a laminated front and just an aged but fully intact and unblemished rear, which was not laminated. The spine has a tiny little mark dead centre, but otherwise this Garrod & Lofthouse sleeve and the vinyl disc would not suggest that it is over 44 years old!

1968 Stereo SLRZ 1003.

Side 1. YCARX 43 – 1G . Side 2. YCARX  44 – 1G.

There are further Stamper marks at 3.00 o’clock of ‘G’ which would equal ‘1’ and 6.00 o’clock of A1. This information, using the EMI coding for Stamping, would suggest that 1G is the No 1 Stamper and First press and 1 & A1 would suggest, possibly, one of the very first records off the press! It is quite possible that, like many pressings, a ‘first batch’ was produced and many would have been distributed to the group and colleagues and then out to the shops as a first release.

This is my own record and owned by me since 1968. I am selling it and another original and rare Tyrannosaurs Rex LP: Prophets Seers & Sages: The Angel of The Ages. See other details and its full listing. I was a sound engineer myself and producer for a number of years, working at different studios in London.       

 The album reached number 15 in the charts upon initial release. Not to be confused with the later re-release and pairing withProphets Seers & Sages: The Angels of The Ages, in 1972, which reached No 1. The record features Marc Bolan on vocals and guitars, and Seve Peregrin Took on backing vocals, drums, pixiphone and percussion. It also features DJ John Peel, who reads a Bolan-penned fairytale for the album's closing track.

The album was recorded at Advision Studios in London in early 1968. Advision was the first studio in the U.K. with eight-channel recording equipment. This Advision eight-channel machine was a model 280 made by Scully Recording Instruments. It allowed for far greater recording flexibility than the standard 4-track recorders of the era and was recorded in full stereo, unlike recordings by other groups that were still recording in mono and having to have their masters edited to convert to stereo.

Recordings of the songs "Mustang Ford" (single release, titled "Go Go Girl") and "Hot Rod Mama" (live) by John's Children exist. This album was paired with Prophets, Seers & Sages: The Angels of the Ages (1968) and released in 1972 as the double album Tyrannosaurus Rex: A Beginning, following the success of T-Rex's Electric Warrior (1971) and The Slider (1972). In 1985 it was re-released on Sierra Records (Replay series) FEDB 5013.

It is now a rare example of an iconic groups first foray into the real music world and the label Regal Zonophone was an EMI amalgamation from the 1930’s of the Regal label and the Zonophone label, but was reaching its own end, too.   

Track listing

All tracks written by Marc Bolan

Side One

No.

Title

Length

1.

"Hot Rod Mama"  

3:09

2.

"Scenescof"  

1:41

3.

"Child Star"  

2:52

4.

"Strange Orchestras"  

1:47

5.

"Chateau in Virginia Waters"  

2:38

6.

"Dwarfish Trumpet Blues"  

2:47

Side Two

No.

Title

Length

1.

"Mustang Ford"  

2:56

2.

"Afghan Woman"  

1:59

3.

"Knight"  

2:38

4.

"Graceful Fat Sheba"  

1:28

5.

"Wielder of Words"  

3:19

6.

"Frowning Atahuallpa (My Inca Love)"  

5:55