Song Of The Day (The Chain): Mott The Hoople – All The Young Dudes

Day 23. I’m assuming that most people who may be reading this post will be able to pick out the link between Perfect Day & All The Young Dudes from miles away. That’s right. Perfect Day is take from Lou Reed’s excellent album Transformer, which, as I’m sure you’re aware, was produced by none other than David Bowie. All The Yung Dudes by Mott The Hoople is also produced by David Bowie. Unlike Perfect Day, however, Bowie actually wrote All The Young Dudes. Legend has it that Mott The Hoople asked Bowie for Drive-In Saturday, but he liked it too much & decided to give them All The Young Dudes instead. An excellent Bowie version is also available.

All The Young dudes is a fairly typical Glam-era Bowie tune, with a swaggering & androgynous vibe, amazing guitar work (Bowie & the legendary Mick Ronson both play on it) & lyrics about feeling different & taking solace in your generation’s art. NME described it as “one of that rare breed: rock songs which hymn the solidarity of the disaffected without distress or sentimentality”.

Well, Billy rapped all night about his suicide
How he’d kick it in the head when he was twenty-five
Speed jive, don’t want to stay alive
When you’re twenty-five
And Wendy’s stealing clothes from Marks & Sparks
And Freddy’s got spots from ripping off the stars from his face
Funky little boat race
Television man is crazy saying we’re juvenile delinquent wrecks
Oh, man, I need TV when I’ve got T.Rex
Oh brother, you guessed
I’m a dude, dad

All the young dudes (hey dudes!)
Carry the news (where are you?)
Boogaloo dudes (stand up, come on)
Carry the news
All the young dudes (I want to hear you)
Carry the news (I want to see you)
Boogaloo dudes (I want to talk to you, all of you)
Carry the news (now)

Lucy looks sweet ’cause he dresses like a queen
But he can kick like a mule, it’s a real mean team
But we can love
Oh yes, we can love
And my brother’s back at home with his Beatles and his Stones
We never got it off on that revolution stuff
What a drag, too many snags
Now I’ve drunk a lot of wine and I’m feeling fine
Got to race some cat to bed
Oh, is that concrete all around
Or is it in my head?
Yeah
I’m a dude, dad

All the young dudes (hey dudes)
Carry the news (where are you?)
Boogaloo dudes (stand up)
Carry the news
All the young dudes (I want to hear you)
Carry the news (I want to see you)
Boogaloo dudes (I want to relate to you)
Carry the news
All the young dudes (what dudes?)
Carry the news (let’s hear the news, come on)
Boogaloo dudes (I want to kick you)
Carry the news

All the young dudes
(With the glasses)
Carry the news (I want you)
Boogaloo dudes (I want you in the front)
Carry the news (now)
(Now, you’re his friends)
All the young dudes (now you bring him down)
(‘Cause I want him)
Carry the news
Boogaloo dudes (I want him right here)
(Bring him, come on)
Carry the news (bring him)
(Here you go)
All the young dudes
(I’ve wanted to do this for years)
Carry the news
(There you go!)
Boogaloo dudes
(How’d it feel?)
Carry the news

If you’ve not heard it (you should have), here’s the Bowie version too.

Keep up to date with the Song of the Day (The Chain) Spotify playlist.