Mott The Hoople were initially the result of a union between two prominent bands
from the borders of England and Wales - The Soulents and The Buddies. They
worked together under a series of different names with varying line-ups until
Guy Stevens at Island Records discovered them; he signed them to the label but
replaced singer Stan Tippins with Ian Hunter and re-branded them as Mott The
Hoople (the name came from the title of a Willard Manus novel about an eccentric
who works in a circus show). Their self-titled debut album was recorded in a
week in 1969 and won them a cult follo...