In 1969, an unconventional band called Mott The Hoople emerged onto the English glam-rock scene, taking their name from a Willard Manus novel about an eccentric working in a circus freak show. Fronted by Ian Hunter, the band toured the UK relentlessly and their explosive stage act soon gained them a live following. There was only one problem; they couldn’t sell albums. After four crazed, but unsuccessful collections, the band split in March 1972.

Only a few short months later, a silver-lining surfaced; the ultra-glam and ultra-popular David Bowie revealed himself as a major fan of the seemingly ill-fated band. In an attempt to persuade Hoople to reunite, Bowie offered the group SuffragetteCity from his yet-to-be-released album, Ziggy Stardust. When they turned him down, Bowie penned All The Young Dudes for them, instead. Released as a single in ’72, the song was a hit in the UK.

On the heels of their first major success, came a follow-up album which was simply titled, Mott. The collection climbed to the top of the UK album charts and yielded two UK hits, Honaloochie Boogie and All the Way from Memphis.

Sadly, the band’s success was short-lived. Singer Ian Hunter went solo in 1975, starting a long and fruitful career featuring contributions from legendary punk rockers and classic rockers alike.

Old Records Never Die: The Mott The Hoople/Ian Hunter Anthology covers the entire career of glam-rock, proto-punk pioneer Ian Hunter, from his earliest days with Mott the Hoople to his 2007 album Shrunken Heads, touching on many highlights in between.