There Is No Reason Why You Shouldn't Own Every Mott The Hoople Album

Haha -- Overend's bass is still overdriving everyone's attempts to record it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m74fTgb-8tE

Two months later, and I'm still listening to these guys every day. Brain Capers might be my favorite now. "The Journey" is such a master class in making a ballad hard hitting. A forerunner to Springsteen. Also, "Alice" is becoming one of my favorite lyrics ever. As per their mention on the "Exahaustion in 70s Rock" thread, these guys are a meta-rock band, aren't they? Nearly every song is about being in a band or the hangers-on around the band. The first record is about how they're gonna be huge, and by Brain Capers they're pissed off that they aren't huge and then "All the Young Dudes" comes along and Mott and The Hoople is all "hey we're rockstars and this is crazy shit!"

xpost to Ned: The way that Hunter told it in the Word interview (which I no longer have to hand), Overend's moment of clarity re. doing the reunion came on the night he fetched up in our village pub - because basically we were all egging him on to do it, saying how great it would be, etc. He seemed surprised when old song titles and names of band members were quoted back at him (admittedly that was mostly me, showing off). Hunter said something along the lines of: it made him realise that Mott hadn't been forgotten and that was an appetite out there for a reunion.

Well, I have everything from Brain Capers through The Hoople and the double disc version of the live album now, so I guess I'll give them a fuller shot. Until now, only a few of their most rockin' songs have really caught my ear, but maybe I'll be into the ballads this time around.

Also, on "Raspberry Beret" Prince is channeling large chunks of "Honaloochie Boogie" and sticking Beatlesesque flourishes on top.

Here's a nice clip of "The Moon Upstairs" from Saturday's show.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtfkXPUz7zs

According to the Ian Hunter interview in this month's Word magazine, I am partially responsible for reforming Mott The Hoople. (Overend Watts! Hiking trip! Pub quiz!)

Mad Shadows - has a British rock n roll band ever sounded so dark, sloppy, out of control?
When My Mind's Gone is simply heartbreaking, Thunderbuck Ram is ferocious, and what about the beautiful chaos that is Threads of Irons?

Such a great great band.

That's a good way of putting it! I just spun through the album again; the highlights are the ones you mention plus "Walkin' With A Mountain" of course. The album sounds like it's recorded in an empty arena, huge & cavernous & kinda hazy at the edges, as though the punch of the sound leaks into the surrounding empty space. When that works, it's really really great; but the other cuts on the album sound too murky.

Quite probably it is not the best Mott album, but there's something truly urgent and devastating about it and in this case muddy production and shambolic playing are okay with me. (And "Walking with a Mountain" is another highlight indeed).

I'm in a big Mott/Ian Hunter phase these days, lots of good songs and scorching performances.

Yeah, "Thunderbuck Ram" left me raw this morning: it's a tender & vulnerable scorcher. Something about the album strikes me as gospel-y, maybe it's the pianos? It makes for weird juxtapositions: one the one hand they're roaring, but on the other hand the singing & lyrics are sad. And somehow the songs end up joyous; this is consistent through the end of the band. I don't really get how they pull it off.

Also: I get the Dylan comparisons wrt Hunter's vocal tone & "wordy" lyrics, but Dylan's rarely a tender lyricist. Whereas Hunter doesn't have that confidence or that desire to scorn. He cares!

Ha, I just pulled back out a bunch of Mott LPs yesterday, to be added to the too-be-played pile. Played Mott (my favorite, probably) for the first time in a while; had somehow forgotten how much I love "Whizz Kid" and "Drivin' Sister." Also always catches me by surprise when Mick Ralphs takes the lead vocal, in "I'm A Cadillac." (How many Mott songs does somebody other than Ian sing any? Well, not counting the later albums after he left, where they're just called Mott, I mean -- I actually like Drive On, from 1975!) Bizarrely, don't think I've ever actually heard Mad Shadows or Wildlife all the way through, though. Have always been a huge Brain Capers fan, and like the debut a lot, but for some reason I've always taken people's word that the 2nd and 3rd weren't worth checking out. Guess I'll keep an eye out for them now, though I'm never been big on "murk," so I dunno.)

First time I've seen this thread. That clip of "Moon Upstairs' is WAY better than I would have any reason to think a 70 year old Ian Hunter could be sounding in 2010!

xpost
maybe I'm completely wrong here, but Hunter always seemed to me very un-British in his open vulnerability.

Mad Shadows is definitely murky and even a failure in terms of "well constructed records", but at least it is a glorious failure.

Yeah, and it's from a very murky time, many of the best, worst and most mediocre from that year are a bit murky. Soon after, you get the normalization of post-Woodstock/Altamont mass bohemia-aimed product, then Exile On Main Street and There's A Riot Going On provided the affront of delib and deft, in-your-face murk. But back to Mott: "Crossroads" was a revelation to me: I didn't know who it was (or what it was; didn't yet know much about Sir Doug), except that it wasn't Dylan, yet provided so much of the Dylan-ness--the feel, the vibe, not just the literal sonic similarities--so absent on Nashville Skyline (which was still pretty good not to mention Self-Portrait (not so good). They weren't just doing a nice re-run either, the performance and the song had distinctive qualities. Otherwise, I'd agree that Brain Capers is prob the one to start with. But yeah, Live (from their Broadway sojurn, right?) and Rock 'n' Roll Queen (superbly slimmed-down singles and focus tracks) are also must-hears. Plus, the recent comp Dirty Water: The Birth of Punk Attitude, topping my P&J, makes great use of "The Moon Upstairs", with ambitious-to-voraci=ious vengefulness/idealism rec. to metal spirits as well. Hunter's mad laughter goes well w roller coaster into next track by Zoltan X, who say: "Humans are funnnn--ahhhh hah hah hah!"

I bought that comp - extra kudos to Kris Needs for the inclusion of the Silhouettes's song!

"don't think I've ever actually heard Mad Shadows or Wildlife all the way through"

you crazy! get on that! it's all good if you ask me.

really been digging the first two ian solo records (and the production on those! hoo boy).

AND i've been digging the two british lions albums too. which are quirky cool. was really happy to get a copy of the unreleased-at-the-time second album that cherry red was kind enough to put out a few years after the fact. cool stuff!

and i've been playing the two widowmaker albums (ariel bender's band) as well. like the first one and not so sure i need the second one.

I have a soft spot for Mick Ronson's Slaughter on 10th Avenue and Play Don't Worry: bizarrely, they contain two covers of Italian mainstream pop songs (his take of Lucio Battisti's I Giardini di Marzo aka Music Is Lethal is astounding).

Joe Elliott has formed a band to cover post-Mott-the-Hoople output from Ian & the boys.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-lrlcmNxLY

They've received the rock doc treatment:

http://www.filmlinc.com/films/on-sale/the-ballad-of-mott-the-hoople

I found a DJ promo copy of Brain Capers yesterday!

Not much to say really, but just enjoyed the BBC4 doc on Mott, Britishes might want to watch on iplayer if they missed it. (or stay up till 2.55 this morning, when it's repeated. I guess that's an option)

I need to find out which of their lps I rate, don't think I've listened to them anywhere near enough.
Enjoyed the documentary when i saw it a couple of weeks back.

Have had a couple of their lps on disc for a few years, including the 2fer of the 1st 2 which I don't think has the best sound. THink i need to pick up The Hoople and Brain Capers on disc too.

I've seen Brain Capers refered to as protopunk or similar on a couple of occasions. Not sure if that's down to Clash connections, not hearing it on the FLAC files I have of it that I noticed anyway. May just be taht they're too quiet sounding.

I think the protopunk content of Capers is maybe down to "Death May Be Your Santa Claus" being on it? I don't really hear much protopunk going on, thought they seemed to have an influence on Slaughter and the Dogs...

All The Young Dudes is turning out to be my favorite of theirs. Most consistent - down to some of the songs being kind of samey - but really good material and production throughout.

They're back! Five November gigs in the UK, all original members but Buffin, who's in poor health. They're playing the O2 of all things. Is this their first arena gig?

I am really pleased they are back together again. I saw one of their warn up shows before their 2009 reunion and it was a lovely experience - the band were enjoying being together as much as the audience loved seeing them together.

brain capers is almost too epic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpp4C_fmhR0

RIP Buffin

http://m.herefordtimes.com/news/14212483.Mott_The_Hoople_drummer_Dale__Buffin__Griffin_dies_at_67/

very sad.

:(

i'll sometimes listen to mott the hoople albums and focus in on the drumming alone. he played with such humor and that seemingly effortless swing that characterized that wave of british rock drummers. he always seemed to be playing catch-up to the band. wait for me, guys!

that swing, or whatever it is, is entirely unachievable by modern rock drummers from what i can see. even listening to the zep reunion show, or any classic band with a new drummer (e.g. sabbath, boc, whatever). drummers today are clobberers.

Tend to agree with this last.

Thus Sang Freud otm. I remember a John Paul Jones interview from around 1990 where he was asked about Zeppelin's influence on current bands. He said the drummers all completely missed the point, and were all (in Jones' words) "BOOM. BASH. BOOM. BASH." He pointed out that Bonham was heavily influenced by Motown and (especially) James Brown records, and that those elements were completely absent from the work of late 80s/early 90s metal or hard rock drummers.

And drummers today, if they want steady work, have to learn to play with a click-track. All a click-track does is suck the soul out of a drummer. Such towering classics like "Honky Tonk Women," "Superstition" and the Isleys' "Fight The Power" speed the fuck up, which only benefits the songs. But a contemporary producer would hear such speedups as "wrong."

Buffin's playing on "Violence" is some of my favorite of anyone. He does the push-pull of the tempo like Ringo, speeding up ever-so-slightly, then pulling back. No drummer today would dare try that.

there is always that guy from Helmet...

i do love that guy from helmet...i don't love a lot of modern drummers. there are metal drummers i like.

that guy from helmet is wonderful

Interesting, Tarfumes, I've heard Jimmy Page say that the biggest 'mistake' you could make as a session musican was speeding up - so he was always deliberately breaking that rule w/ Zep.

RIP, Mott4ever

(i've said it before a million times but it bears repeating. a lot of the olden day heroes of yore had played in a zillion kid/teen/garage/club/wedding bands for years - even at really young ages - and they played a hundred different crowd-pleasing styles and THEN they joined the band that made them famous. they had years of gig experience under less than optimal conditions. battle-tested you could say. this is not true of most musicians starting out now.)

um so they - the people now - they learn how to do something one way - the thing that they like doing - or maybe two ways - and that's about it. they aren't really about variety. though technically they may be very accomplished. to me, it's rare to hear a musician now - especially within rock - who has a musical personality or identity. something that comes through in their playing that tells you who they are and what they are about. not in the way that so many of the old geezers did. of any genre.

yeah all those british drummers probably cut their teeth playing trad jazz, which benefited their later playing so much. buffin was basically the man. RIP.

Mick Fleetwood!

RIP Buffin. I'm disregarding the fact that I met him and he was kind of a dick because, well, he was in Mott the Hoople.

Some Ian Hunter wisdom to cheer you up in this sad time: free summer shows of NYC 2009

This documentary is so lovely, I've watched it now like 3-4 times. I'd almost think you could do a feature film period piece on Mott and Guy Stevens. I'd really like to track down Ian Hunter's book from the period.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2MJWIVeVNo

Very very cool! I will definitely watch this, thanks for posting.

Seeing reports on FB that Overend Watts has passed away (cancer).

RIP :(