10 Essential Glam Rock Albums
6. Mott The Hoople - Mott
The great, Bowie-adjacent Mott The Hoople burned brightly for 5 years between ‘69 and ‘74, releasing seven strong albums built around killer guitar work and the versatile vocals of Ian Hunter.
Their semi-eponymous 1973 release Mott is the best of the bunch, delivering a harder edge than most while riding the crest of the peaking glam rock wave.
Perhaps the best known cut is “Honaloochie Boogie”, with its irresistible chorus and awesome guitar riff that sounds so warmly, unmistakably ‘70s. Opener “All The Way From Memphis” is another heavy hit, with the group sounding like the world’s best bar band as they pound pianos and trade off solos.
The second half of the record gives way to epic movements, with songs stretching past the 5 minute mark, rewriting their own history on “Ballad of Mott the Hoople” and taking a stab at elegiac country on “I'm a Cadillac/El Camino Dolo Roso”.
They sound like a live unit throughout, their prolific release schedule a result of their sheer togetherness as a band. Inspiring stuff.