T. Rex were an English rock band, formed in 1967 by singer-songwriter and guitarist Marc Bolan. The band was initially called Tyrannosaurus Rex, and released four psychedelic folk albums under this name. In 1969, Bolan began to shift from the band's early acoustic sound to an electric one. The following year, he shortened their name to T. Rex. The 1970 release of the single "Ride a White Swan" marked the culmination of this development, and the group soon became a commercial success as part of the emerging glam rock scene. From 1970 until 1973, T. Rex encountered a popularity in the UK comparable to that of the Beatles, with a run of eleven singles in the UK top ten. One of the most prominent acts in British popular culture, they scored four UK number one hits, "Hot Love", "Get It On", "Telegram Sam" and "Metal Guru". The band's 1971 album Electric Warrior received critical acclaim as a pioneering glam rock album.
While his tenure as the frontman for the legendary Roxy Music remained his towering achievement, singer Bryan Ferry also carved out a successful solo career that continued in the lush, sophisticated manner perfected on the group's final records.
Originally released back in the very first flash of T.Rexstacy, in an age (hard to imagine now) when the shelves did not overflow with Bolanic compilations, the irresistibly budget-priced Fly Back: Best of Marc Bolan & T. Rex was many newfound fans' first exposure to the music Marc Bolan was making before he hit fame – and what a shock it was. Drawing from all four Tyrannosaurus Rex albums released between 1968-1969, plus a couple of unissued outtakes and single-only sides, Fly Back remains one of the most inspired, and illustrative, of all the collections out there. From the psychedelic folk of "Debora" to the guitar extravaganza "Elemental Child," from the proto-rock of "King of the Rumbling Spires" to the sweet insanity of "Strange Orchestras," Fly Back touches upon all the duo's musical facets, while weaving some of Bolan's most compulsive melodies into the framework, "Child Star," "Lofty Skies" and "Stacey Grove" included.