Mott The Hoople biography
Mott the Hoople were a British rock band with strong R&B roots, popular in the glam rock era of the early to mid 1970s. They are popularly known for the song "All the Young Dudes", written for them by David Bowie and appearing on their 1972 album of the same name.
History
The early years
Mott the Hoople can be traced to two beat bands from Herefordshire in the early 1960s. The Soulents were from Ross-On-Wye, and boasted Pete Overend Watts on guitar, and Dale "Buffin" Griffin on drums. The Buddies were from Hereford, and featured Mick Ralphs on guitar and Stan Tippins on vocals. By 1966, Ralphs, Tippins, and Watts (the latter now on bass) had come together in a band called The Doc Thomas Group, and soon secured a residency at a club in a resort town in Italy. The group were offered a recording contract with the Italian label Dischi Interrecord, and released an eponymous album in January 1967. By 1968, drummer Dale Griffin and organist Verden Allen had joined the band.
Although the group toured and recorded in Italy as The Doc Thomas Group, their gigs in the UK were played under the names of The Shakedown Sound, and later as Silence. Silence recorded demos at Rockfield Studios in Monmouth, Wales, which were shopped to EMI, Polydor, Immediate and Apple with no success. The group came to the attention of Guy Stevens at Island, who liked the group but not with Tippins as lead singer. Advertisements were placed ("Singer wanted, must be image-minded and hungry"), and Ian Hunter was selected as lead singer and piano player. Tippins assumed the role of road manager.
Stevens read the Willard Manus novel, Mott the Hoople, about an eccentric who works in a circus freak show, while in prison, and determined to use it as a band name.
The band's debut album, Mott the Hoople (1969), which was recorded in a week, was a cult success, and their repertoire included cover versions of "Laugh at Me" (Sonny Bono) and "At the Crossroads" (Doug Sahm's Sir Douglas Quintet), and an instrumental cover of "You Really Got Me" (The Kinks).
The second album, Mad Shadows (1970) sold poorly and received generally negative reviews. Wildlife (1971) fared even worse, and flirted with an overtly country-hippie stance and accordingly (usually) acoustic instrumentation. On 10 October 1970, Mott the Hoople and Bridget St John were showcased on BBC Two's, Disco 2.
The glam years
David Bowie had long been a fan of the band, and heard from Watts that they were about to split. He persuaded them to stay together and offered them "Suffragette City" from his then yet-to-be-released
Ziggy Stardust album. They turned it down. Bowie also penned "All the Young Dudes" for them, and it became their biggest hit. Released as a single in July 1972,
it was a success in the UK, with the band using Tippins - who by this time was their tour manager - to sing backing vocals during concert. Bowie produced an album, also called
All the Young Dudes, which included a Mick Ronson strings and brass arrangement for "Sea Diver", sold well but stalled at #21 in the UK Albums Chart. Late in 1972 they were going to record another Bowie song, "Drive-In Saturday", but their intended arrangement did not satisfy him and their professional relationship effectively ended. Another casualty in the wake of
All the Young Dudes was Verden Allen, who departed before the release of their next album,
Mott.
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