Mott The Hoople consists of Ian Hunter.
Mott the Hoople were a 1970s British rock and roll band. They are perhaps best known for their song "All the Young Dudes", written for them by fan David Bowie, and its album.
In 1968, Mick Ralphs, Verden Allen, Pete "Overend" Watts and Dale "Buffin" Griffin formed a band called Silence, playing near Hereford, Herefordshire, England. Adding high-voiced lead singer Stan Tippens in 1969, the band recorded early tracks at a studio in Monmouth, later dominated by Love Sculpture and Dave Edmunds. Stan was soon injured and could not sing, but the band lobbied and eventually signed with Island Records, and moved to London to record with Guy Stevens as producer.
Stevens changed the band's name to "MOTT THE HOOPLE" - from a novel of the same name by Willard Manus. The book is about an eccentric that works in a circus freak show. The band recruited a new singer, Ian Hunter, who had replied to a music magazine advertisement, which read "Singer wanted, must be image-minded and hungry". Tippens became the road manager for the band. Mott the Hoople (1969) was a cult success, that included memorable cover versions of "Laugh at Me" ( Sonny Bono), and an instrumental version of "You Really Got Me" ( The Kinks).
The second album, Mad Shadows ( 1970), sold poorly and received generally negative reviews; as did Wildlife ( 1971). Even allowing for the fact that the group was building a decent following, Brain Capers (1971) also did not do well, and the band was close to breaking up.
David Bowie had long been a fan of the band, and heard that they were about to split. Bowie convinced them to stay together, and offered them "Suffragette City" (off his then massively popular Ziggy Stardust). They refused the song and Bowie wrote "All the Young Dudes" for them instead. Released as a single in July 1972, it was a major success in the United Kingdom - with the band using Stan Tippens to sing the higher notes of its chorus during live gigs. A Bowie-produced album, also called All the Young Dudes, sold well. Late in 1972 the band was going to record another Bowie song, "Drive-In Saturday", but their intended arrangement dissatisfied the composer 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, which climbed into the Top Ten of the UK album charts, and became the band's best seller to date in the US.
