John's Children
Jagged Time Lapse

John's Children. One of the many splendid and kaleidoscopic meteors of the mid-'60s. A group unknown to most and known to a few only for having included Marc Bolan in the lineup for a short period. And it's a shame it fell into oblivion. N.B. Those who love psychedelia and the mythical Swinging London must own something by John's Children.

The group's most beautiful period coincides (not by chance!) with the entry of Marc Bolan, placed there by manager Simon Napier Bell (Yardbirds), supposedly to fill the role Pete Townshend held in the Who. In short, Bolan was meant to serve as the composer and pseudo-leader of the band. And so it was, but only for a few months. However, those months were very productive. "Desdemona" is John's Children's only hit, a psychedelic and sensual march penned by Marc Bolan that scandalized the public opinion of '67 for the phrase "Lift up your skirt and fly". The result: banned by the BBC. But in return, it gave great publicity to the group, which found themselves playing at the legendary "14 Hour Technicolour Dream" and then opening for the Who in Germany. "Desdemona" is also the first song on "Jagged Time Lapse", an anthology that collects a good part of the material written by the future Tyrannosaurus Rex. "Remember Thomas A'beckett" is a fantastic and carefree pop-psycho gem with an irresistible chorus, while "It's Been A Long Time" is another march, this time melancholic, adorned by a poignant string section that smells very much like the Beatles. "Artuhr Green" is the classic example of how Bolan is an artist to whom many still refer today: this splendid piece could indeed have come from the guitar of a Noel Gallagher or a Graham Coxon. "Midsummer Night's Scene" is a sublime ballad punctuated in the verse by an exhilarating bass riff, leading to the elevation of the chorus with a lot of lysergic choirs.

"Sarah Crazy Child" is the sweetest composition on this album: rhythmic yet delicate and elegant. Another jewel by Bolan. Who, in fact, takes it back after John's to include it in the Tyrannosaurus Rex repertoire. But that's another story. The album continues with the title track, "Jagged Time Lapse", perhaps the album's least successful piece, then ignites with the caustic "Go Go Girl" (which Bolan renames "Mustang Ford" for the first Tyrannosaurus work), an explosion of fuzz and hair-tearing choirs. "Come And Play With Me In The Garden" is nothing more than "Remember Thomas A'beckett" with a few small differences, while "Perfumed Garden Of Gulliver Smith" raises a question: why include the instrumental version in the album instead of the sung one? It would have been, without a shadow of a doubt, the most beautiful song on the album (there's even an acoustic version under the name of Marc Bolan solo, the most beautiful ever, perhaps one of the highest points of his entire career). Boh. We'll never know. Pity. "Not The Sort Of Girl You Take To Bed" is a nursery rhyme that instead reflects Barrett and his "Bike". Beautiful and very, very lysergic.

The album draws to a close with a Beatles cover, "Help", in a version that even seems gospel-soul flavored, with crazy backing vocalists warbling here and there; and then concludes with "Casbah Candy", which is just "Jasper C. Debussy" by Marc Bolan solo, with a different text. A schizoid blues with a mind-blowing piano solo. Very beautiful.