Mott the Hoople reunion

[Brian]

Five years ago, I started The Ian Hunter Thread on this message board. I'm proud of every one of the 66 posts -- not all of them mine, thankfully -- and I loved having those You Tube videos and photos old and new alongside my ramblings about Ian Hunter, the Rant Band, Mick Ronson and Mott the Hoople in one tidy place. But the new forum software calls for single-page threads instead. Here is where we left off on page 7:

Jul 14, 2013 23:24:03 GMT -8 Brian said:

This fall, Ian flies to England for the second Mott the Hoople reunion mini-tour. I wish I could go. The bootlegs I've collected from the 2009 reunion erased all my fears about the five original members taking a stage after 36 years apart. In my dreams, they will produce their own DVD capturing at least one of their upcoming shows.

My dream came true, though I had to wait until last week to have it.

The original members of Mott the Hoople, with Martin Chambers from the Pretenders sitting in for ailing drummer Dale (Buffin) Griffin, played five dates last November. Concert Live would record one concert and release it on two CD's like it did in 2009, but this time we would also get a bonus DVD of a different show. The package was originally set to be shipped that month. I waited until late January to pay 34 pounds or $58 American for my pre-order. The band wasn't happy with the sound of the London gig, I gathered.

To say it was worth the wait is a cliche. To mention that so far I cry like a baby every time I press play, with the Jupiter theme from Holst's "The Planets" followed by the welcoming love of the audience and the opening notes of "Rock and Roll Queen," is just plain weird, even if babies actually cry happy tears. Yet both statements are true.

Oh no, I'm off on another Mott the Hoople binge again.

The official Mott the Hoople website: mottthehoople.com/main/

[Brian]

Until unauthorized clips from the official DVD appear on You Tube, you'll have to settle for audience videos like this one from, I'm guessing, London.

I have so much to say about the Concert Live DVD and CD's I got in the mail that I must warn uninterested readers of the Montrose Peace Vigil message board to look away or scroll, because I'll be emoting here for weeks. If you don't already appreciate Mott the Hoople after 45 years, my geeky ramblings and the videos that I scrounge up probably won't demonstrate the band's magic and place in British rock history. Only my love.

What's different about the first reunion tour in 2009 and last November's? First and foremost, "Violence." I never imagined that I would live long enough to hear Mott the Hoople perform that song, let alone with organist Verden Allen, who left the band just before they placed that brilliant track at the end of side one of their "Mott" album. After that, Ian Hunter sat down at the piano for a medley of "When My Mind's Gone," "No Wheels to Ride" and “The Journey,” perhaps the deepest cuts of all. I could have done without “Honaloochie Boogie” again. But we got "Death May Be Your Santa Claus" -- and this:


Some guy named John McCarthy in Newcastle captured some amazing shots from the balcony, even if the sound isn't always great.

Ah, but we can click on another You Tube post with much better Newcastle audio of "Waterlow" -- an obscure Mott the Hoople song that Ian revived in his solo concerts a decade ago -- along with some great still photos of the reunion show here: