Tag: Mott the Hoople

Mott the Hoople – All The Young Dudes

There are songs that become so connected to a band that it’s easy to forget they didn’t write them. All The Young Dudes is one of those songs for me. David Bowie wrote it and you can certainly hear Bowie all over it, but Ian Hunter’s voice made it belong to Mott the Hoople. Hunter has always been one of my favorite singers. He doesn’t have one of those perfect voices, and that’s exactly why I like him. There is personality and feel in every word.

By 1972, Mott the Hoople were in trouble. The band had built a loyal following as a terrific live act, but record sales weren’t matching their reputation, and they were considering breaking up. David Bowie was a fan and didn’t want to see that happen. He initially offered them Suffragette City, which they turned down. Bowie then played them a new song he had written called All the Young Dudes. This time they knew he had something.

Bowie produced their recording and also contributed backing vocals. The single was released in 1972 and became a hit in the UK, becoming the song that saved Mott the Hoople. It also gave the band their breakthrough in America. The song became closely associated with the glam-rock movement, although Mott never sounded quite like the other glam bands to me. There was always more straight-ahead rock and roll underneath everything they did.

What I love is how much it sounds like Bowie without Ian Hunter ever trying to be Bowie. You have Bowie’s melody, words, and production, but then that unmistakable Hunter voice comes through the speakers. Bowie later recorded versions himself, but Mott’s is the one. Bowie gave them the song, and Ian Hunter and Mott the Hoople gave it its identity.

Give me a singer with character over a technically perfect singer almost every time (and this has nothing to do with Bowie; I like his voice). This has that great slow build and a chorus made for a crowd to sing. Bowie may have written it, but when I hear that opening guitar and then Ian Hunter comes in, I don’t think of anyone else.

Mott the Hoople does a great job on this. This era is my favorite of David Bowie… All the Ziggy Stardust music (which this was originally written for) and the Hunky Dory album…not that any era of Bowie is bad.

David Bowie on writing the song for The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars album

David Bowie: “Ziggy was in a rock ‘n’ roll band, and the kids no longer want rock ‘n’ roll, there’s no electricity to play it. Ziggy’s adviser tells him to collect news and sing it, ’cause there is no news. So Ziggy does this, and there is terrible news. ‘All the Young Dudes’ is a song about this news. It is no hymn to the youth as people thought. It is completely the opposite.”

The song peaked at #37 on the Billboard 100, #31 in Canada, and #3 in the UK in 1972.

 

All The Young Dudes

Well, Billy rapped all night about his suicideHow he’d kick it in the head when he was 25Speed jive, don’t want to stay aliveWhen you’re 25

And Wendy’s stealing clothes from Marks & SparksAnd Freddy’s got spots from ripping off the stars from his faceFunky little boat raceTelevision man is crazy saying we’re juvenile delinquent wrecksOh, man, I need TV when I’ve got T.RexOh brother, you guessedI’m a dude, dad

All the young dudes (hey dudes!)Carry the news (where are you?)Boogaloo dudes (stand up, c’mon)Carry the news

All the young dudes (I want to hear you)Carry the news (I want to see you)Boogaloo dudes (I want to talk to you, all of you)Carry the news (now)

Lucy looks sweet ’cause he dresses like a queenBut he can kick like a mule, it’s a real mean teamBut we can loveOh, yes, we can love

And my brother’s back at home with his Beatles and his StonesWe never got it off on that revolution stuffWhat a drag, too many snagsNow I’ve drunk a lot of wine and I’m feeling fineGot to race some cat to bedOh, is that concrete all aroundOr is it in my head? YeahI’m a dude, dad

All the young dudes (hey dudes)Carry the news (where are you?)Boogaloo dudes (stand up)Carry the news

All the young dudes (I want to hear you)Carry the news (I want to see you)Boogaloo dudes (I want to relate to you)Carry the news

All the young dudes (what dudes?)Carry the news (let’s hear the news, c’mon)Boogaloo dudes (I want to kick you)Carry the news

All the young dudes (with the glasses)Carry the news (I want you)Boogaloo dudes (I want you in the front)Carry the news (now)

All the young dudes (now you bring him down)(‘Cause I want him)Carry the newsBoogaloo dudes (I want him right here)(Bring him, c’mon)Carry the news (bring him)

All the young dudes (I’ve wanted to do this for years)Carry the news (there you go!)Boogaloo dudes (how’d it feel?)Carry the news

Mott The Hoople – The Golden Age Of Rock And Roll

Happy Friday to everyone. This ends my unofficial week of UK bands that didn’t break big in the US. All of them should have but for different reasons didn’t quite make it. Whenever Ian Hunter sings I listen. Not only was he great in Mott The Hoople but I like his solo music as well. The first time I noticed him was with All The Young Dudes and then a single release in the 80s called All The Good Ones Are Taken. It was wonderful in the middle of the 80s hearing that power pop single on the radio.

Mott The Hoople had one huge hit in America. It was the David Bowie penned song All The Young Dudes. Bowie was a fan of the band and sent them Suffragette City but they didn’t think it fit their style and politely turned it down. Mott The Hoople were about to break up so Bowie showed this to the band on acoustic guitar and they loved it right away.

The Golden Age Of Rock and Roll was written by Ian Hunter. It was released in 1974 on the album The Hoople. This would be the last album with Ian Hunter as lead singer. It was also the first and only one with guitarist Luther James Grosvenor, who went by Ariel Bender for contractual reasons. He replaced Mick Ralphs who left the year before and co-founded Bad Company.

Mott The Hoople influenced bands such as Oasis, Queen, Def Leppard, Queen, The Clash, KISS, Cheap Trick, and many more.

Hunter started a solo career with the eponymous 1975 album that included his song, Once Bitten Twice Shy,  and has remained prolific. That song was later covered by Great White in 1989.

 Ian Hunter had journalistic training. “When I left school I became a cub reporter for the Wellington Journal in Shropshire, that job lasted about three months because although I could do the typing. I couldn’t do the shorthand. Then I went to Butlins [holiday camp] with my girlfriend and met two kids in a group who asked me to enter a talent competition with them.

“We’d only known each other for three days and there were about 165 acts altogether – but we won it, then a couple of weeks later I had a letter from them in Northampton asking me to join them in a group. That group was called Apex and that was in fact how it all started.”

Some fun trivia…Kari-Ann Mollera was the model on the The Hoople album and Roxy Music’s 1972 debut album. 

The Golden Age of Rock ‘n’ Roll

Everybody hazy shell-shocked and crazyScreaming for the face at the windowJeans for the genies dresses for the dreamiesFighting for a place in the front row

Oh oh oh good for your body it’s good for your soulOh oh let’s go it’s the golden age of rock and roll

Well you get a little buzz send for the fuzzGuitars gettin’ higher and higherThe dude in the paint thinks he’s gonna faintStoke more coke on the fire

Oh oh oh gotta stay young you can never grow oldOh oh the golden age of rock and roll

The golden age of rock and roll will never dieAs long as the children feel the need to laugh and cryDon’t wanna wreck, just recreationDon’t wanna fight but if you turn us downWe’re gonna turn you ’roundDon’t mess with the soundThe show’s gotta move everybody grooveThere ain’t no trouble on the streets nowSo if the going gets rough don’t you blame us

Oh oh oh gotta stay young you can never grow oldOh oh the golden age of rock and roll