David Bowie helped put the glam rock movement on the map in the 1970s. He obviously did this via his own music. In addition, he wrote one of the era’s defining hits, “All the Young Dudes,” which was first recorded by the British band Mott the Hoople in 1972.
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What was the song about? And why did Bowie earmark it for Mott the Hoople instead of recording it himself? Let’s look back at the details behind “All the Young Dudes.”
Bowie the Benefactor
David Bowie had already scored a hit single in 1969 with “Space Oddity.” But it wasn’t until three years later that things began to coalesce to where he would become the iconic figure we knew him to be throughout his career. At one point in the early ’70s, he even considered giving up his recording career and sticking to just writing songs for others.
Although he shelved that idea on the whole, the massive year he enjoyed in 1972 included a hit song he donated to another band. But first he delivered his breakthrough album to the world. The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars appeared in June and was an immediate game-changer.
Bowie turned out to be ridiculously prolific in that time period as well. As he was debuting his Ziggy character to the world, behind the scenes he was looking out for a band he liked a lot but was imploding. And that’s how “All the Young Dudes” came to life.
Hoople Heroics
Mott the Hoople debuted with a lot of promise with their self-titled UK debut album in 1969. Unfortunately, by 1972 their commercial success had not caught up to the esteem they received from critics and a loyal fan base. As such, they had essentially decided to go their separate ways until Bowie came into the picture.
He had sent the group a tape of the song “Suffragette City,” hoping that they might choose to record it. (Bowie later did his own version of that song on the Ziggy Stardust album.) Mott’s bassist, Pete Overend Watts, contacted Bowie to let him know the group were essentially splitting, and actually asked Bowie if he needed a bass player in his band.
Bowie was shocked, and quickly contacted the band to ask them to hold up for a minute. He promised he’d write them a song that would be a hit, and he’d even produce the record. The resulting song, “All the Young Dudes,” gave Mott the Hoople a Top-5 spot in the UK in 1972, and even hit the Top 40 in the States, proving Bowie was as good as his word.
The Meaning Behind “All the Young Dudes”
“All the Young Dudes” was Bowie’s love letter to the misfits and disaffected youths he saw in his audience. Even though he didn’t try to hide the excesses of their lives, he imbued them with the dignity others might have denied them. We can love, Mott’s frontman Ian Hunter sings in the song. Oh yes, we can love. In other words, their appearances might be wild and their behavior strange to the uninitiated, but their hearts were as pure as anyone’s.
Bowie gives quick snapshots of characters like suicidal Billy and shoplifting Wendy, but he insists they’re more genuine to him than staid society members: Television man is crazy saying we’re juvenile delinquent wrecks / Oh, man, I need TV when I got T. Rex, Hunter sings, referencing Marc Bolan’s glam-rock heroes. The lyrics also draw comparisons to the slightly older generation’s reverence of the Beatles and Stones, something the narrator never understood: We never got it off on that revolution stuff / What a drag, too many snags.
The chorus calls out to this underestimated army: All the young dudes / Carry the news. With “All the Young Dudes,” David Bowie rejuvenated the career of Mott the Hoople. He also solidified his reputation as the spokesman for an entire subset of fans many artists never even acknowledged.
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