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The star-studded tribute album celebrating the music and legacy of pioneering glam-rock act T. Rex and its frontman, Marc Bolan, will be released next year, Variety reports. Among the well-known acts who’ll be contributing to the project: U2, Elton John and Joan Jett.
Veteran producer Hal Willner, who’s been responsible for organizing a wide variety of tribute concerts and albums during his career, is overseeing the project. The record will be a companion to a documentary about T. Rex.
A source tells Variety that U2 has recorded a version of T. Rex’s biggest hit, 1971’s “Bang a Gong (Get It On),” for the album. Other artists expected to be featured on the record include Foo Fighters, Jane’s Addiction singer Perry Farrell, Soft Cell‘s Marc Almond and pop star Kesha. According to a source close to the situation, the lineup of contributors has not been finalized yet.
Hartwig Masuch, CEO of the BMG label, first told Variety about the company’s plans to do a T. Rex doc and tribute album back in January.
Alongside David Bowie, T. Rex was among the most popular acts to emerge from the British glam-rock scene and went on to be a major influence on many punk-rock and New Wave artists.
The band scored nearly a dozen top 10 hits in the U.K. during the early 1970s, although “Bang a Gong (Get It On)” was its only single to break into the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. Other T. Rex classics include “Jeepster,” “Telegram Sam,” “Children of the Revolution” and “20th Century Boy.”
Sadly, Bolan died in a car crash in September 1977. He was just 29.
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