Search - Mott the Hoople :: All the Young Dudes

Classic Mott Restored

J P Ryan | Waltham, Massachusetts United States | 03/04/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

""All The Young Dudes" was the first Mott The Hoople album I ever bought, and over 30 years later it remains their finest moment. "Dudes" was the group's fifth album, and their last with all five original members (Verden Allen was the first to go, in January 1973). Some complain of Bowie's typically thin mix (cf. "Raw Power"), or the slight distraction of the ringing telephone during "One Of The Boys", but for me the silliness at the end of "Violence" on the followup, "Mott" is far more of an irritant. "Mott" is a fine meditation on the ups and downs of rock and roll life, but "Dudes" - as sexy, liberating, and haunting today as it was in '72, remains the groups most potent statement and viscerally powerful music. Note I say 'group,' for this is also the last Mott album with everbody in the band (except drummer Buffin) very much involved in the songwriting.

Of course, Bowie's title song is the centerpiece, but Mott's performance is passionate and definitive. Elsewhere the band rocks slow and steady ('Sucker') as well as fast and crunchy (the Stones-like 'Jerkin Crocus', vastly superior to "Mott's" too-similar 'Drivin' Sister'). Verden Allen's 'Soft Ground'is a fine song and great change of pace, but it should be noted that Mick Ralphs' 'Ready For Love' - all 7 minutes of it - beats the rather pat Bad Company version hands down and features some of Ralph's most lyrical playing on the marvelous, extended instrumental coda. Other selling points: Ian Hunter's passionate closer 'Sea Diver', which hints (but does not succumb to) the slightly melodramatic tendencies evident on Mott's next two studio albums, and fabulously appropriate cover art.

This newly expanded version, it should go without saying, blows the old Sony CD away. The bonus cuts are strong, though it makes little sense to close with live Mott from Ariel Bender's tenure rather than something featuring Ralphs and Allen. With this new "Dudes," released concurrently with a superbly remastered/expanded "Mott" the entire original Mott The Hoople catalog has been expanded and remastered for the 21st century.

The Island/Atlatic albums have been beautifully upgraded by the Angel Air label, and "The Hoople" is available as a Sony import, now with excellent bonus tracks and superior sound (beware, it is not the first one listed at amazon, but can be identified by the "import" designation and slightly abbreviated title ("Hoople" rather than "The Hoople") in amazon's listings. One of the best rock and roll bands of the first half of the '70s is finally getting it due."

Riding on the sun without burning their fingers (4 stars 1/2

Wayne Klein | My Little Blue Window, USA | 03/08/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This marvelous remaster of "All the Young Dudes" supercedes the British release of a couple of years ago. That version beautifully remastered by Ray Staff is captured here with the addition of bonus tracks taken from the "All the Young Dudes Anthology" and "2 Miles from Heaven". These include demo versions of "One of the Boys", "Black Scorpion" (a demo for "Moma's Little Jewel" at a brisker pace)and "Ride on the Sun" (a demo for "Sea Diver"). We also get an "audiomorph" of Bowie's unfinished demo of "Dudes" cross faded and mixed with Hunter's vocal version effectively creating a duet of sorts. This also was available on the "Dudes" anthology. Additionally we get the 45 edit for "One of the Boys" and live tracks drawn from the UK 2 disc release of "Live" (which was recorded two years after this album but that's a minor point. It would, however, have been better to release this with bonus tracks recorded by the original line up from the 1972-3 tour).



We also get liner notes discussing the making of the album but no song lyrics. There were other bonus tracks that could have been included from the band's years at Columbia. Those are, however, available on the limited edition "Dudes" anthology. Columbia has done a terrific job repackaging this 35th anniversary edition (that's if we're counting from the band's first release in 1969).



Just before the band recorded this album they had experienced three years of fruitless releases and were ready to break up. Every album they had made had been met with public indifference despite critical acclaim. Then along came David Bowie. He helped the band refashion itself into a glam rock band. Bowie streamlined their sound a bit but, more importantly, he came with a potential hit single he had written himself. The band turned down the first song offered (opinions differ as to what it was) but did accept the second which Hunter and the rest of Mott recognized would fit their sound. "Dudes" is one of the band's best albums (along with "Brain Capers" and "Mott")catching them just as they were reenergized by Bowie's involvement."

At long last !

T. McCool | Lafayette, IN United States | 03/01/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Mott the Hoople were the most influential and most under-rated band in the history of rock. All the Young Dudes was their rise from the ashes. The story is well-told. Now at last Sony has remastered their Columbia albums with bonus tracks. The bonus tracks are new to the US, but have been available in the UK in various forms.



"Side one" of the original LP was a tour-de-force of the sexual gestalt of the early 70s in general and the "glam" movement in particular. All the Young Dudes was adopted by the gay community as their anthem. Sucker begins with "Hi there, you're friendly neighborhood sadist come to take you for a ride." Momma's Little Jewel is "fresh from the nuns who made you." Jerkin' Crocus claims "I know what you want, just a lick from an ice cream cone."



The rest of the CD is just plain brilliant Mott the Hoople. One of the Boys is All the Young Dudes without the sex. Mick Ralphs sings Ready for Love - a song he will eventually re-record with his new band, Bad Company. And no Mott record is complete without a ballad from Ian Hunter, and Sea Diver is one of his best.



There are flaws with the record. Bowie severly clipped the drum sound on the original, and it's fixed as best can be on this remaster. The "phone" trick in One of the Boys is annoying, which makes the single edit included in the bonus tracks a real treat. Verden Allen sings a self-penned number that is not atypical Mott, but Allen's organ was so key to the band's original sound he deserves a spotlight track. Listen closely to the coda to One of the Boys and spot his brilliance. This would be his last record with Mott, and he made the best of it.



I have to comment on the liner notes. An excellent essay is included, and its written by a true fan - meaning that it's accurate and informative. However, the notation for the bonus tracks is lacking. Comparing the two recent remasters (the Mott album was remastered and released at the same time), there are inconsistencies. The two live tracks included here are a later version of the band - only three of the five band members on All the Young Dudes are present, and Ariel Bender, Ralph's replacement on lead guitar, is not credited. The live cuts are from Sony's UK-only expanded edition of the Live album. That is noted on the live cuts on Mott, but not mentioned here. Minor details.



All the Young Dudes is an excellent snapshot of the early 70s, but amazingly enough, the best of Mott was yet to come!"