Ballad of Mott the Hoople: Retrospective

Mott the Hoople | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 15, 1993)
• Original Release Date: June 15, 1993
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B0000027G3
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #180,660 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Compilation!, July 29, 2005

By 

Morten Vindberg (Denmark) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Ballad of Mott the Hoople: Retrospective (Audio CD)

Mott the Hoople was one of the most interesting British glam-rock bands of the 1970's. They started their recording career with Island Records as a progressive rock band. They released 4 fine ( though uneven ) records for Island during 1969-72, before they changed for CBS. This change combined with David Bowie producing his own "All the Young Dudes" for them gave the big breakthrough and a new profile as the rock'n rollers of glam rock.

This 2 CD collection concentrates on their CBS period, though each of their 4 Island albums are represented by one track. These 4 tracks are all good songs in their own right, but can obviously not cover the great variety of their output during that period. So go for other compilations / or the originals ( now with bonus-tracks ) if you want to research their early days.

David Bowie produced their first album "All the Young Dudes", and his touch his very apparent through-out the album. The sound is close to his own on albums like "Hunky Dory", "Ziggy Stardust" or "Alladin Sane". Only two track has been left out from that album, which along with the follow-up "Mott" was their most consistent record. Their song-writing matured during that period, and although the band was uncertain whether they would be able cope with Bowie's skill, when the recording's of "Mott" began, that self-produced album shows the band at the peak of their creativity. Only one track is missing from the album. Outstanding tracks from the album are the rockers "All the Way From Memphis" and "Honaloochie Boogie" along with the great ballads ""I Wish I Was Your Mother", "Ballad of Mott the Hoople" and "Hymn for the Dudes".

Unfortunately guitarist and songwriter Mick Ralphs was growing frustrated with Ian Hunter taking more and more of the spotlight, and he left soon after the release of "Mott". Spooky Tooth guitarist Luther Grosvenor ( Ariel Bender ) was recruited to take his place, but things never become the same again.

Their final studio album, the slightly chaotic and spotty "The Hoople", did contain some fine tracks and was a commercial succes, containing the two hit-singles "The Golden Age of Rock'n Roll" and "Roll Away the Stone"; but the spark had gone, and they spilt up in 1974.

Besides their albums the band recorded some fine singles-only tracks; all of which are included here. Hunter's ballad "Rose" is outstanding and it also became a live-favourite. The late B-side "Rest in Peace" is another song in the same category - great song!

The two 1974 A-sides "Foxy Foxy" and "Saturday Gigs" are also great; especially the autobiografical ballad "Saturday Gigs" is outstanding. This was one of the very last recordings they did, featuring guitarist Mick Ronson. A little sad they did split up after that, because the recording shows that this new line-up had the potential of creating new exciting material. On the other hand "Saturday Gigs" is a worthy final note to the career of a great band.

Great informative booklet!! Recommended!

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Best Domestic Retrospective Available, May 17, 2001

By 

J. E FELL "boogaloojef" (Carterville, Illinois United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Ballad of Mott the Hoople: Retrospective (Audio CD)

This set is a remastered 2 cd anthology of Mott The Hoople. It concentrates primarily on their Columbia material. It contains only material from the period when Ian Hunter was the vocalist in the band. The Ian Hunter incarnation of the band started out in Great Britain with Mick Ralphs on guitar, Overend Watts on bass, Dale "Buffin" Griffin on drums, and Verden Allen on organ. The band released four mostly forgotten but underrated albums for Atlantic. Cuts from these albums appear on the first disc with one cut from each album. These cuts include the great "Rock And Roll Queen" and "Walkin' With A Mountain". I would have liked a few more cuts from this era included such as covers of "You Really Got Me", Sonny Bono's "Laugh At Me", "Darkness Darkness", and "Your Own Backyard". Ian Hunter's vocals are somewhat in the style of Bob Dylan. Verden Allen's prominent organ on some cuts also reminds listeners of Dylan's band from this time period. Due to lack of success the band was about to call it quits when David Bowie offered them his song "All The Young Dudes" which became a rock anthem and secured them a contract with Columbia Records. One of the cuts included is "Ready For Love/After Lights". This was a percursor of Mick Ralph's exit to form Bad Company with Paul Rodgers and Simon Kirke. Bad Company rerecorded their own version of "Ready For Love" after Ralphs left Mott The Hoople. Ralphs was replaced by Luther Grosvenor (renamed Ariel Bender when he joined Mott The Hoople) formerly of Spooky Tooth. The band was still successful but concentrated more on the theatrical aspects of the band during this period even wearing some make-up. Bender was then replaced by ex-David Bowie guitarist Mick Ronson because Hunter needed some more creative input. Soon Hunter lost interest and quit to start a solo career. The band soldiered on but was not successful. This set contains a number of unissued tracks, alternate takes, and non-lp single sides. My favorite cuts include "Ballad Of Mott The Hoople", "One Of The Boys", and "All The Way From Memphis" among others. I wish they would have included "Jerkin' Crocus" from the Columbia years though. Hunter's songwriting was interesting and at times autobiographical. Their music and stance influenced a variety of bands including hard rock/heavy metal bands, punk rockers, and the glitter bands among others. If you like smartly written seventies era hard rock, you will enjoy this set. If you want to hear more of their earlier material I recommend Rhino's Backsliding Fearlessly: The Early Years anthology. It is a single disc anthology which contains only material from their first 4 Atlantic albums plus some rare tracks.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Most Overlooked Band of the 70's, November 28, 1999

By 

T. C Lane (Marina, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Ballad of Mott the Hoople: Retrospective (Audio CD)

It seems that I've spent years convincing people of the greatness of Mott the Hoople. The review below from the fan in Chicago sums up this superb introduction to Mott. The Greatest Hits CD is a nifty sampler, but for a few bucks more you get great liner notes and a deeper song selection. Mott's place in the music history books is not always recognized. Critics loved them, so you can't call them underrated. So, I call them the most overlooked band of the 70's. This 2 CD set is a chance for you to catch up. Then go and buy their other catalog items.