Marc Bolan: Cat Black Single (1981)

A Posthumous Glam Whisper

Marc Bolan’s “Cat Black” 7-inch vinyl single, was released in the UK on November 6, 1981, on Cherry Red Records (catalogue: CHERRY 32). Backed with “Jasper C,” this posthumous release of two unreleased tracks showcased Bolan’s whimsical glam style. Produced by Simon Napier-Bell, the A-side’s quirky pop and B-side’s Debussy nod failed to chart.

Single Overview

Single 7" Vinyl (Commercial) Plastic Injection in Picture Sleeve

A-Side: “Cat Black” (Marc Bolan)

Composed by Marc Bolan. Produced by Simon Napier-Bell.

B-Side: “Jasper C” (Marc Bolan)

Composed by Marc Bolan (Debussy). Produced by Simon Napier-Bell.

Release Details:

Label: Cherry Red Records (UK pressing, 45 RPM).

Formats:

Companies, Credits and Notes:

A:

Acoustic Guitar – Marc Bolan

Backing Vocals – Dyan Birch, Frank Collins, Paddy McHugh

Bass – Brian Odgers

Drums – Graham Jarvis

Electric Guitar – Bernie Holland

Piano – Graham Todd

B:

Acoustic Guitar – Marc Bolan

Bass – John Paul Jones

Drums – Clem Cattini

Guitar – Jim Sullivan

Piano – Nicky Hopkins

Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Cherry Red Records Ltd.

Copyright © – Lupus

Copyright © – Essex Music International

Mastered At – The Town House

Pressed By – Polygram Industries Messageries

Recorded At – De Lane Lea Studios

Artwork [Artwork By] – James Wolf

Engineer – Dave Siddle

Producer, Arranged By – Simon Napier-Bell

Written-By – Bolan*

'Cat Black' taken from the album "You Scared Me To Death" ERED20.

Voice & acoustic guitar recorded at De Lane Lea Studios, Kingsway, London 1966

(P) 1981 Cherry Red Records Ltd.

(C) Lupus

Made in France

Single Chart Performance

Did not chart (Official Singles Chart)

Legacy and Collection

“Cat Black” is a Bolan rarity, verify catalogue CHERRY 32. Streams on Spotify via compilations preserve the analog whimsy. This single is a must-have for Bolan collectors.

Have you snagged this Bolan rarity in your vinyl collection? Does “Cat Black” purr for you? Share in the comments!

Sources

Information is drawn from my personal knowledge and supplemented by web sources, including Prince Vault, Discogs, 45cat, AllMusic, Rate Your Music, Wikipedia, BBC Official Charts Company, Billboard Chart History and UTube