Hunter began his musical career on the bass guitar. An early foray into music was as an entrant in a talent competition at one of Butlin's holiday camps, performing "Blue Moon" as part of a skiffle group with Colen York and Colin Broome.
Hunter memorialized how he left his family in a later song, "23A Swan Hill," the address of his teenage home in Shrewsbury above a police station where his father was the Station Sergeant. He notes in concert that "my Dad was real mean" and did not approve of his son's artistic direction, in contrast to his "grand dad", referenced in "Cleveland Rocks", as "he was a rocker and I am, too".
So Hunter took off for Butlin's and "never looked back". Bandmates York and Broome came from Northampton, and were in a band called The Apex, which Hunter soon joined to play rhythm guitar. In 1963, while living in Northampton, he formed his own band, Hurricane Henry and the Shriekers. With Tony Marriott and guitarist Julian Coulter, the Shriekers worked steadily in Northampton, and by 1965 had picked up Freddie 'Fingers' Lee as a pianist and frontman. In a 2004 DVD interview Hunter volunteers Lee and their gigs in Hamburg as a major turning point, when he first began to "actually think maybe I could do this instead of working in factories".
In 1966 Hunter moved to London, where he joined The Scenery with guitarist Miller Anderson, drummer Dave Dufort, and keyboard player Dante Smith. By 1967 Smith and Dufort had left the band while John Vernon Smith joined on drums. The Scenery recorded some material with Bill Farley at Regent Sound, which was released without the band's knowledge in France and Japan. In early 1968, The Scenery had run its course and Miller Anderson joined Dave Dufort in Paper Blitz Tissue.
Also in 1968 Hunter remained in the band to back up Freddie Lee in the At Last The 1958 Rock and Roll Show, along with drummer Pete Philips and guitarist Chris Mayfield. The group got a regular booking at The Angel in Edmonton, and drew interest from both Chrysalis and NEMS but the group was never signed by them. Mayfield was soon replaced by the ever traveling Miller Anderson, and the group released a single on CBS called "I Can't Drive." As the short-lived rock and roll revival began to wane, At Last the 1958 Rock and Roll Show changed its name to Charlie Woolfe and released a final single, "Dance, Dance, Dance".
Hunter played sporadically in various other bands throughout the 1960s, including The New Yardbirds, and backed Billy Fury, The Young Idea and David McWilliams. He also worked as a journalist and staff songwriter for the firm Francis, Day & Hunter (no relation). Other jobs he took during these years included road-digging for a local council, and reporting for a local newspaper.
By 1969 Hunter was married and had two children, but was still hoping for a return to making music full time. That year he auditioned for and joined yet another band, Silence. Silence soon renamed themselves after a novel by Willard Manus, published in 1966: Mott The Hoople. By this time Hunter had taken to wearing the sunglasses that have long since become his trademark (photos of him without his "shades" are rare). The band was a live smash in England although their early U.S. tours on the coasts were slow in building a following. Whilst a critical success and despite being renowned for being an excellent live act, Mott the Hoople did not achieve sustained commercial success. After a dreary 1972 concert in a "gas cylinder" in Switzerland, they announced their disbandment.
David Bowie, a longtime fan of the band, was upset and offered them a song he had just written. As Ian recalls in a 2004 DVD interview, "He offered us 'Suffragette City', which I didn't think was good enough. And then he sat down on the floor, Regent Street it was in a publisher's office and plays 'All The Young Dudes' on an acoustic guitar." It shot to No. 3 in the UK singles chart and Mott had new life.
Mott the Hoople then had considerable commercial success with the albums All the Young Dudes (1972, produced by Bowie); Mott (1973) and The Hoople (1974). The band began to score financially with songs such as "Roll Away The Stone," "Golden Age Of Rock ´N´ Roll," "Honaloochie Boogie," "All The Way From Memphis," "Saturday Gigs," and especially "All The Young Dudes." When in 1973 original lead guitarist Mick Ralphs left to form Bad Company, Hunter began to play guitar until a replacement could be found but at the same time he was increasingly pressured to write hits for the band. Luther Grosvenor took over as lead guitarist, Grosvenor, aka Ariel Bender, was briefly replaced by Mick Ronson after the release of a live album following The Hoople. However, Hunter left the band in December 1974. The remaining members carried on under the names Mott and British Lions. Hunter has written a memoir, Diary of a Rock'n'Roll Star, detailing a U.S. tour with Mott the Hoople.
In March 1975 Ian Hunter joined forces with Mick Ronson, formerly the leading member of David Bowie's backing band The Spiders from Mars and a member of Mott the Hoople for a brief time. Hunter's first single from his eponymous solo album was the UK Top 40 hit "Once Bitten Twice Shy". Hunter's best selling solo album was You're Never Alone With A Schizophrenic. It was released in 1979 with Ronson and several members from Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band. Two songs from You're Never Alone with a Schizophrenic became successes for other artists. "Cleveland Rocks" was covered by the Presidents of the United States of America, whose version was used as the theme song for The Drew Carey Show. Also, "Ships" became a No. 9 pop hit in the USA in late 1979 for Barry Manilow.
During his solo career Hunter frequently worked with Ronson until the latter's death in 1993, but he has also had musical connections with many other artists, including Queen, Mick Jones (The Clash), Clarence Clemons of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, Jaco Pastorius, Dennis Elliot (Foreigner), and David Bowie.
His album, Rant (2001), received wide critical acclaim and he won Classic Rock Magazine Songwriter's Award in October 2005.
In 2007 his latest album "Shrunken Heads" was released and it clearly shows that Ian Hunter is still very much alive.
Shades Off
Ian Hunter Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But the time isn't right and there's things to be done
And you're trapped half-way up, you don't want to go back
So you keep going on - compromising the land
And you see the green fields as you travel on by
And you look at the things you'd forgotten to try
And you wish you were young and you wish you were old
And you thought you were different but what did it mean
For you tricked yourself trying - life's still unseen
As it is, as it was, as it always will be
Will you find out at all what it is to be free
See it never was easy to live with a head
So I kept to the back room and I live there instead
What comes from the front-room is only for "Friends"
I have a bay window but that's where it ends
And it's here I see pictures and my madness is clear
And there's no longer logic so therefore no fear
And I've always said, with uncontrollable light
Sometimes when I've written a song - it's alright...
In Ian Hunter's "Shades Off," the singer reflects on the difficulties of trying to find freedom when caught between responsibilities and desires. The song begins with an image of feeling trapped and unable to move forward, yet also unwilling to go back. The line "compromising the land" suggests that this feeling of being stuck is not just about the singer's personal dilemma but also about larger issues of social and environmental compromise. As the singer travels through the countryside, he/she reflects on missed opportunities and the tension between youth and age. There is a sense of regret for not having tried certain things, and a longing to be both young and old at the same time. The line "For the songs always sung and the stories been told" can be interpreted as a recognition that some experiences are universal, and that we all share a common legacy of human experience.
The second half of the song shifts to a more introspective perspective. The singer describes living in a back room, isolated from the world. The line "what comes from the front-room is only for 'Friends'" suggests that the singer is keeping a distance from others in order to protect themselves. However, in this space of solitude, the singer is able to find clarity and self-expression through creative work. Through the act of writing songs, the singer is able to find a sense of peace and affirmation.
Overall, "Shades Off" is a song about the struggles of trying to find one's place in the world. It touches on themes of compromise, regret, isolation, and creativity. The song is notable for its beautiful and introspective lyrics and its haunting melody.
Line by Line Meaning
Where do you go when you've somewhere to run
When you have to escape somewhere but can't decide where to go
But the time isn't right and there's things to be done
But you can't leave at that very moment because there are things to be finished
And you're trapped half-way up, you don't want to go back
You are stuck in the middle of your journey, don't know if you should go back or move forward
So you keep going on - compromising the land
You decide to move forward despite the doubts, but with some conflicts and obstacles along the way
And you see the green fields as you travel on by
You notice the beauty of the nature around you as you continue your journey
And you look at the things you'd forgotten to try
You realize that you missed out on some things that you should have tried out
And you wish you were young and you wish you were old
You ponder upon life, and the different stages of it, and contemplate whether things could have turned out differently
For the songs always sung and the stories been told
You perceive that there are some aspects of life that are constant and unchanging
And you thought you were different but what did it mean
You believed that you were unique but didn't know what that actually implied
For you tricked yourself trying - life's still unseen
You attempted to deceive yourself while trying to figure out what life is all about, but still don't have a clear answer
As it is, as it was, as it always will be
That's how things are, how they have been, and how they will stay
Will you find out at all what it is to be free
You are questioning whether you would ever know what truly being free means
See it never was easy to live with a head
Living with a mind that questions everything is never simple
So I kept to the back room and I live there instead
Therefore, you chose to spend more time alone to figure things out rather than being in the spotlight
What comes from the front-room is only for "Friends"
You believe that not everything that people share publicly is true or sincere - some things are only shared with close ones
I have a bay window but that's where it ends
You may appear outgoing from the outside, but that's not entirely true
And it's here I see pictures and my madness is clear
Spending time in solitude helps you clear your mind and understand yourself better
And there's no longer logic so therefore no fear
As you delve deeper into yourself, you shatter logical thinking, which eliminates fear-related thoughts
And I've always said, with uncontrollable light
You have always talked about something that you can't control or prevent, which is inspiration
Sometimes when I've written a song - it's alright...
Sometimes you manage to articulate your thoughts and emotions adequately and turn them into a form of art - music
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: IAN HUNTER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind