Page Index
“All the Young Dudes” is a song written by David Bowie and initially recorded and released as a single by the English rock band Mott the Hoople on Columbia Records in 1972. The song was produced by Bowie and offered to the band after they rejected Bowie’s “Suffragette City.”
Bowie would later record the song on his own. Often regarded as an anthem of glam rock, the song has garnered critical acclaim and financial success. Rolling Stone magazine ranked “All the Young Dudes” 166th on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time in 2021. Additionally, it is one of the 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll listed by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Short Info
Song: All the Young Dudes
Artist: Mott The Hoople
Album: All the Young Dudes
Written By: David Bowie
Release Date: 28 July 1972
All the Young Dudes Lyrics
[Verse 1]
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
[Chorus]
All the young dudes (Hey dudes!)
Carry the news (Where are you?)
Boogaloo dudes (Stand up, c’mon)
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 (Nowwww)
[Verse 2]
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
[Chorus]
All the young dudes (Hey dudes)
Carry the news (Where are you?)
Boogaloo dudes (Stand up)
Carry the news (ha ha)
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, c’mon)
Boogaloo dudes (I want to kick you, ha ha ha ha)
Carry the news
[Outro]
(Hey, you there)
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 (Ha, ha, ha)
Boogaloo dudes (I want him right here)
(Bring him, c’mon)
Carry the news (Bring him)
(Ha, ha)
(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
Back Story of All the Young Dudes
David Bowie sent the band a demo of “Suffragette City” on 4 February 1972, hoping they would record it. The band performed it and determined that it did not fit their sound. In late March 1972, bassist Pete Watts phoned Bowie and politely declined, indicating that the band had disbanded. Bowie then contacted Watts two hours later and said, “I’ve written a song for you since we spoke, which may be fantastic.”
Bowie had just completed two albums back-to-back and was preparing to release another single, “John, I’m Only Dancing,” so he was anxious to create for other musicians. While Bowie’s manager Tony Defries was negotiating with CBS Records to sign the band, Bowie met with Watts a few days later and performed “All the Young Dudes” on acoustic guitar. “He didn’t have all the lyrics,” Watts observed, “but the song blew me away, especially when he reached the chorus.” Watts then brought Bowie to the rest of the band in a Regent Street, London, office, where Bowie sat cross-legged on the floor and performed the song for the band.
The band was overjoyed. According to Ian Hunter, “He simply performed it on acoustic guitar. I knew immediately that it would be a hit. My spine was chilled. It’s only occurred to me a few times in my life, but when you understand how serious this is, it’s a rare occurrence “‘. Dale Griffin, the drummer, stated: “We couldn’t believe what we were hearing. He’s strumming it on his guitar in his Regent Street office, and I’m thinking, does he want to offer us that? He has to be insane! We risked our necks in order to say yes! You couldn’t deny that it was a fantastic tune.”
Following the performance, Bowie informed them that he would produce the tune for distribution as a single and that his manager, Tony Defries, would take over as their manager. Recognizing the track’s potential success, the band resolved not to disband.
Mott the Hoople produced “All the Young Dudes” at London’s Olympic Studios on 14 May 1972. Keith Harwood engineered and mixed the tune, which included handclaps from Nicky Graham and security guard Stuey George. “It was high,” Hunter says of the session, “because we knew we were singing a smash.” Bowie recorded a guiding voice for Hunter, which was remixed and included in the 1998 box set All the Young Dudes: The Anthology.
