Remembering When David Bowie Saved a Band From Extinction by Writing Them a Classic Song in 1972

David Bowie made countless contributions to the music world during his marvelous career. Obviously, we tend to focus on the songs and albums that he released throughout the years when we talk about his legacy.

But Bowie also helped ensure that one of the top glam rock acts of the 70s stayed in existence long enough to make a major impact. And he did that by writing them a song.

Bowie as Writer for Hire

David Bowie was a busy fellow in 1972. That was the year that he unleashed his Ziggy Stardust persona on the world. He did that via the groundbreaking album The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars, released in June of that year, and the subsequent tour to promote it.

Yet even at that stage, Bowie was keeping his options open in terms of his career. He felt a bit of ambivalence about being a full-time performer. At the time, he was still entertaining thoughts of focusing on songwriting and then farming the songs that he wrote out to other artists.

In early 1972, he sent a demo of the song “Suffragette City”, which would later be a linchpin of the Spiders From Mars album, to the British band Mott The Hoople. He admired the band’s work and thought that the song might be a good fit. They turned it down. But that wouldn’t be the end of the story between Bowie and Mott.

Making Mott Happy

Although the sequence of events has been reported differently over the years, the most common story is that Bowie wrote “All The Young Dudes” in an overt attempt to keep Mott The Hoople together. He found out that they were considering hanging it up when their bassist Pete Watts reached out to him and asked if Bowie might be able to use him on a project.

Bowie confirmed this sequence of events in an interview with Mojo in 2009 (as reported by The Bowie Bible):

“It was the first song I’ve written for somebody else. They were at the point of breaking up as a band and I told them not to, because I thought they were a very good band. I told them I’d write them a hit single. And I did. It was easy.”

At the time, Mott The Hoople had released four albums, none of which bothered the US or UK Top 40. It’s understandable that they were thinking of ending things. But Bowie was true to his word, even going the extra mile to ensure that “All The Young Dudes” would be a breakout for them.

“Dudes” Abides

Bowie not only wrote “All The Young Dudes”, but he also produced the session for the single. He then had Mott The Hoople join him on his Ziggy Stardust-fueled tour. On top of all that largesse from Bowie, the song itself, an anthem that helped define the glam movement, was a can’t-miss.

“All The Young Dudes” shot to the Top 5 in the UK. Its success did indeed convince Mott The Hoople that they still had a bright future. To the band’s credit, he used that momentum to its fullest.

In the following years, Mott The Hoople, led by legendary lead singer Ian Hunter, delivered a series of albums and singles that stamped them as one of the most compelling bands of the era. David Bowie might have given them the launching pad with “All The Young Dudes”. But they deserve the credit for the rest of their stratospheric rise.

(Photo by Chris Walter/WireImage)