My knowledge of 70's music has grown in recent years, but it has only begun to process the impact of David Bowie and his cohorts. If this blog helps me bring that era into greater focus, making artists like Lou Reed, Iggy Pop and Marc Bolan more than just mile markers on the trek up Mount Glam Rock, then the experiment will be a runaway success. First stop: Mott the Hoople. Frustrated by their lack of success and thinking seriously about bowing out of the game, this British band took one more stab at it at Bowie's behest. In fact, a small, symbolic relic of this encouragement is immortalized on tape as they can be heard scrapping the intro to the second track, "Momma's Little Jewels." The bandmates sound ready to call it a day when Bowie's voice comes through from the production booth, saying, "Don't stop, carry on." With Reed's "Sweet Jane" kicking off the album and Bowie contributing the title track, MTH seem content to plant their standard firmly in the glammers' camp. All the elements are here: seedy lyrics, sleazy guitar riffs, Jagger swagger. On "One of the Boys," lead songwriter Ian Hunter seems to give away the whole style-over-substance tenet of the glam rock ethos when he sings, "I don't say much, but I make a big noise." Grade: B
