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Life & Arts

It was all about the 'Young Dudes' in the '70s

Mott the Hoople's classic rock album personified scene

by SCOTT WHITT
The Daily Cougar

Editor's note: On the Record is an article that explores the relevence of a past album in today's music culture.it also gives writers the opportunity to explain why the work is significant to them.

There is the old adage "everything old is new again," and that is prevalent in music bands like The Strokes, Jet, The Darkness, Morningwood and Kings of Leon, all of which have aped certain aspects of 1970s rock. These bands may recycle the riffs, play through Orange Amplifiers and wear bellbottoms, but they are mere imitators in comparison.

The 1970s glam rock landmark album All The Young Dudes by Mott The Hoople was just reissued by Sony, and should be used as a teaching tool to all the pretenders. The album is best known for the title track, co-written by David Bowie, and serves as an anthem for the early glam scene. 

Legend has it that the band was on the verge of disbanding when Bowie took it under his wing and offered up this song. The song was more than a song; it became a perfect snapshot in the same way that Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" was for grunge. 

"Dudes" sums up the androgynous scene that was booming at the time, and lead singer Ian Hunter's vocal delivery comes across as the spokesman. He is more like the cool guy next to you at the bar telling you a story than he is a rock singer. It contains, arguably one of the best lines in rock with, "Who needs TV when I've got T-Rex."

The album is just not this one song, though. The brilliance of the album is that it starts off with a cover of "Sweet Jane," which is a rather gutsy move to cover a song that was only a couple of years old. Even more impressive is that the bandmates improved it by speeding it up and not being Lou Reed.

Another gem is "Ready for Love" where guitarist Mick Ralphs takes vocal duties. He would later re-record this song with his new band Bad Company. 

"Sucker" and "One of the Boys" are just two of the other tracks that help make this an essential album.

On this reissue, Sony/Legacy Records has added seven songs ranging from demos to live tracks previously unavailable in the United States. The crown jewel in these treasures is the recording of "All The Young Dudes" featuring Bowie on lead vocals. It is interesting to hear his take on the track, but one soon realizes that he made the right decision in giving up the song.

There are many stores on Harwin in Southwest Houston where one can buy a $3000 Gucci bag for $50. It may look like the real thing, but is obviously a fake. In music, as in handbag shopping, there is no substitute for the real thing.
 

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