***Much of the album returns to the understated romp he had always excelled at—the delightful knockabout “Precious Star,” the unrepentant boogie of “Till Dawn” and the pounding title track all echo with the effortless lightheartedness which was MARC BOLAN at his most carelessly buoyant, while “Token of My Love” is equally incandescent, a playful blues which swiftly became a major in-concert favorite. But the essence of Zip Gun remains fi rmly in the funky pastures which characterized Zinc Alloy, with the only signifi cant difference lying in the presentation. Out went the plush production which so diluted the earlier set, to be replaced by a sparser sound which emphasized the rhythms, heightened the backing vocals, and left rock convention far behind. “Light of Love,” “Golden Belt” and the heavyweight ballad “I Really Love You Babe” may not be Stax-sized attractions, but they have an earthy authenticity nevertheless. Decades on, each of Bolan’s latter day albums retain a hint of their original controversy, but hindsight lends them an impact (and, for what it’s worth, a credibility) which contemporary listeners could never have imagined. And Zip Gun, an album which scored the worst reviews of all, hits as hard as any of them. (STREET DATE - 7/19/2011)