Mott The Hoople

Mott The Hoople - All The Way From Stockholm To Philadelphia: Live '71/'72 - 1998 - Angel Air

There isn't much revelation here as far as songs that can't be found on Mott's studio albums, or in radically redefined interpretations of early-'70s material. Still, this double-CD of previously unavailable live concerts is a worthwhile document for serious Mott fans, taken from good-quality radio broadcasts. A February 1971 show in Stockholm comprises the whole of disc one, which runs only 34 minutes with a smattering of material from their first three albums ("Laugh at Me" and "The Original Mixed Up Kid" are the best numbers) and an otherwise unavailable cover of Mountain's (yes, Mountain's) "Long Red." Disc two is entirely devoted to a Philadelphia show in November 1972, and offers considerably more music (75-minutes worth). By this time the band's international reputation had grown considerably, and most of the set consists of songs from the All the Young Dudes album, filled out by a too-long (nine-minute) encore cover of "Honky Tonk Women"; David Bowie (who introduces the concert) sings with them on "All the Young Dudes," the highlight of the program. For all the modern talk of Mott as precursors of sorts to punk, so much of this is period hard rock or boogie, prone to overlong solos (check out the 13-minute version of "Ready for Love" and that theory is hard-put to hold water, at least on this package.) Even the glam quotient is rather sporadic (indeed absent from the 1971 concert), although disc two does provide goods in this regard with "All the Young Dudes," "Hymn for the Dudes," and "Sweet Jane"; "Sweet Angeline" is the best example of Hunter's more introspective side. [A Japanese version includes bonus tracks.] © Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide

Although MTH were caught up in the British flamboyant "Glam Rock" scene that existed in Britain from the early to the mid seventies, MTH, were very unlike so many of these manufactured "glitter" bands. Mott were no "fly-by-nighters". They had been around since 1969, and were a hugely popular live band. The band's first few early albums did not sell many units, and yet their concert tickets were snapped up like hotcakes. A series of poorly attended fourth rate European gigs in the early seventies strongly tempted MTH to split, but David Bowie, a fan of their music gave the band a new lease of life by giving the band his classic ""All the Young Dudes" song, which they turned into a huge hit. By 1976, the band had virtually fizzled out. Some of the greatest rock'n'roll songs of the seventies were written by Mott's Ian Hunter. These songs include "The Golden Age of Rock 'n' Roll," "All the Way From Memphis," "Roll Away the Stone," and "Honaloochie Boogie," co-written with Mick Ralphs. " The band's best work was from the early seventies, and this 1998 double CD set shows the great talent of MTH. The album combines two radio FM broadcasts. The first disc contains a live concert from the Konserthuset in Stockholm Sweden on 16 Feb 1971, and the second disc is from The Tower Theater in Philadelphia PA on 29 Nov 1972. The recordings pre-date some of MTH's best songs, but what is here is terrific. There are great covers of Mountain's "Long Red", Little Richard's "Keep A Knockin'", Lou Reed's "Sweet Jane", The Rolling Stone's "Honky Tonk Women", and of course Bowie's "All The Young Dudes". Search this blog for more MTH related releases, including albums by Ian Hunter, Mick Ralphs, and Mick Ronson. N.B: The track "Keep A Knockin'" on Disc 1 is a 128 bit version, and is inferior in sound quality to the rest of the album. There are other releases of this album available with bonus tracks.

TRACKS / COMPOSERS

Disc 1: The Konserthuset, Stockholm, Sweden 16th February 1971

1.Long Red - Norman Landsberg, Felix Pappalardi, Leslie West, John Ventura
2.The Original Mixed Up Kid - Ian Hunter
3.Walkin' With A Mountain - Ian Hunter
4.Laugh At Me - Sonny Bono
5.Thunderbuck Ram - Mick Ralphs
6.Keep A Knockin' - Little Richard

Disc 2: The Tower Theatre, Philadelphia, USA 29th November 1972

1.Introduction/Jupiter - Holst (intro by D.Bowie)
2.Jerkin' Crocus - Ian Hunter
3.Sucker - Ian Hunter, Mick Ralphs, Pete Watts
4.Hymn For The Dudes - Ian Hunter, Verden Allen
5.Ready For Love - Mick Ralphs
6.Sweet Jane - Lou Reed
7.Sea Diver - Ian Hunter
8.Sweet Angeline - Ian Hunter
9.One Of The Boys - Ian Hunter, Mick Ralphs
10.Midnight Lady - Ian Hunter, Mick Ralphs
11.All The Young Dudes - David Bowie
12.Honky Tonk Women - Mick Jagger, Keith Richards

BAND

Ian Hunter (Piano), (Vocals)
Mick Ralphs (Guitar), (Vocals)
Pete Watts (Guitar (Bass)
Verden Allen (Organ (Hammond)
David Bowie (vocals on "All The Young Dudes"

REVIEW

Mott The Hoople were one of the most influential bands to come out of the UK. Everyone from Oasis to REM to Def Leppard have cited Mott as a major influence. In their day Mott soon became an awesome live act, and concerts were frequently a riotous affair. Sadly, they were unable to convert this live success into record sales, and four albums on Island sold poorly. A switch to CBS and a tie-up with David Bowie (before Bowie himself had broken through) saw long-overdue commercial success for Mott. However, very little evidence has been made available of Mott's live prowess, save for the too-short live album recorded and released shortly before Mott broke up at the end of 1974. Hence this welcome release on Angel Air, which features archive performances from 1971 and 1972. Both shows were originally recorded for radio, the first being in Stockholm, Sweden early in 1971, the second at the Tower Theatre, Philadelphia at the end of 1972. Disc 1 captures Mott in blistering form, despite a rather subdued audience. Mick Ralphs' guitar is well forward in the mix as he plays blistering riffs. Both Walkin' With A Mountain and Thunderbuck Ram move at the pace of a runaway locomotive, capturing the explosive energy that was Mott live. Late 1972 saw Mott touring the United States for the third time, this time under Mainman's management and as headliners for the first time. David Bowie introduced them at the Tower Theatre, Philadelphia amd joined them on stage for the encores, and this show makes up the second disc. Again Mick Ralphs' guitar is loud and clear as again he plays blistering but tasteful licks, like his extended solo on Ready For Love. Bowie joinds Mott for the first encore All The Young Dudes, where is backing vocals are clearly audible. A raucous version of the Stones' Honky Tonk Women closes the show, complete with a little audience participation. Both shows have, of course, been bootlegged over the years. The joy of releases such as this is the sound quality is vastly improved on anything which has gone before. Disc 1 is especially good in this regard. Disc 2 suffers from a recording defect on the first track, but this doesn't really detract from what is another fine recording. Crank the volume up high, and you can imagine you are really there in the front row - always the mark of a good live album. The set is beautifully packaged, with a 16-page booklet written as always by Campbell Devine (the man responsible for the recent Mott biography). The booklet also contains many rare live photos, my only complaint being that many of them are reversed (ie they appear to be playing left-handed). This set complements perfectly the recently-released Anthology and is not just an essential purchase for all Mott fans, but for any fan of rock music wanting to see just what all the fuss is about. © 1998-2005 Adrian Perkins, www.hunter-mott.com/discography/stockholm_to_philadelphia.html

BIO

Mott the Hoople are one of the great also-rans in the history of rock & roll. Though Mott scored a number of album rock hits in the early '70s, the band never quite broke through into the mainstream. Nevertheless, their nasty fusion of heavy metal, glam rock, and Bob Dylan's sneering hipster cynicism provided the groundwork for many British punk bands, most notably the Clash. At the center of Mott the Hoople was lead vocalist/pianist Ian Hunter, a late addition to the band who developed into its focal point as his songwriting grew. Hunter was able to subvert rock & roll conventions with his lyrics, and the band — led by guitarist Mick Ralphs — had a tough, muscular sound that kept the group firmly in hard rock territory, even when flirting with homosexual imagery and glammy makeup. However, their lack of success meant that they inevitably splintered apart in the '70s, with Ralphs forming Bad Company and Hunter launching a cult solo career. Mick Ralphs (lead guitar, vocal), Verden Allen (organ), Overend Pete Watts (bass), and Dale "Buffin" Griffin (drums) formed Silence in 1968 and began playing around their hometown of Hereford, England. Early in 1969, the band added vocalist Stan Tippens and landed a record contract with Island (Atlantic in the U.S.), heading to London to record with producer Guy Stevens, whose first move was to change the band's name to Mott the Hoople, after a Willard Manus novel. By the summer, Tippens was fired, later becoming the band's road manager, and was replaced by Ian Hunter. Mott the Hoople's eponymous debut album was released in the fall of 1969 and it became an underground hit, known for its fusion of Blonde on Blonde-era Dylan and heavy metal, as well for its straight cover of Sonny Bono's "Laugh at Me" and its pounding instrumental version of the Kinks' "You Really Got Me." Despite all of the attention, Mott the Hoople received, it didn't sell well and neither did its poorly reviewed 1970 follow-up, Mad Shadows. The band returned in 1971 with the country-tinged Wildlife, which was its least popular record to date. Despite their lack of sales, Mott the Hoople had gained a cult following in Britain through their constant touring. At a concert at the Royal Albert Hall in July 1971, the band sparked a mini-riot that led the venue to ban rock concerts for a number of years. More than any of their previous releases, Brain Capers (1971) demonstrated the band's live power, but when it failed to sell, the group was prepared to disband. Just as the band was about to split, David Bowie intervened and convinced the group to stay together. Riding at the height of his Ziggy Stardust popularity, Bowie agreed to produce Mott's next album and offered "Suffragette City" for the bandmembers to record. They refused the song, asking for "Drive-In Saturday" instead. They eventually settled for "All the Young Dudes," which became the group's breakthrough hit. An explicitly gay anthem recorded by a heterosexual band, "All the Young Dudes" became the anthem for the glam rock era, becoming a number three hit in the U.K. and a Top 40 hit in the U.S. in the summer of 1972. An album of the same name was released on Columbia Records in the fall, and it became a hit in the U.K. and the U.S. Allen left the band before the recording of the group's follow-up to All the Young Dudes, citing Hunter's reluctance to record his songs. A concept album about a rock band struggling for success, Mott, released in the summer 1973, expanded the band's success, receiving good reviews and peaking at number seven in Britain and number 35 in America. "All the Way from Memphis" and "Roll Away the Stone" became Top Ten hits in the U.K., confirming the band's status as one of the leaders of the glam rock movement. In the summer of 1974, Hunter published Diary of a Rock Star to great acclaim in the U.K. While the bandmembers were finally experiencing the success that they had desired, the group was beginning to fall apart. Frustrated with Allen's departure, as well as the fact that his song "Can't Get Enough" was out of Hunter's range, Ralphs left Mott in late 1973 to form Bad Company with Paul Rodgers. He was replaced by former Spooky Tooth guitarist Luther Grosvenor, who changed his name to Ariel Bender upon joining the band; keyboardist Morgan Fisher also joined the group. The new lineup toured in late 1973, and the concerts were documented on 1974's Mott the Hoople Live. The live record was released after The Hoople appeared in the spring, peaking at 11 in the U.K. and 28 in the U.S. on the strength of the singles "The Golden Age of Rock & Roll" and "Foxy Foxy." Former Bowie guitarist Mick Ronson replaced Bender in the fall of 1974 upon Hunter's request. Within a few months, the pair left the band to begin working as a duo. The remaining members of Mott the Hoople added guitarist Ray Major and vocalist Nigel Benjamin, truncating their name to Mott. The new incarnation of the group released Drive On (1975) and Shouting and Pointing (1976) to little attention before adding John Fiddler as their lead singer and changing their name to British Lions. They split up two years later. Though the allegiance between Ian Hunter and Mick Ronson was short-lived, it was well-received and the two would continue to sporadically work together until Ronson's death in 1993. Hunter pursued a moderately successful solo career, highlighted by his eponymous 1975 album and 1979's You're Never Alone With a Schizophrenic. Hunter's "Ships" was covered by Barry Manilow in 1975, while Great White took his "Once Bitten, Twice Shy" into the Top Ten in the early '90s. © Stephen Thomas Erlewine, allmusic.com