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.
The Ballad Of Little Star
Ian Hunter Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Do you have to pretend to be older than you are
Beads and mirrors by your body
And in some roadside bar you feel the pain
Little star
Lost on a merry go round, on the game
You can never be found cause you don't know who you are
And in some tourists car you feel the pain
Little star
You know you know
We grow and grow
We never slow
We always win
And you feel lost
And you feel crossed
And you feel tossed
Just like the wind
Your father will have told you of the wind
Bowed those fine heads that, once proud, roamed the plains
They sought nothing to gain 'til our fathers civilised
And broken hearted arrows roamed the skies
Then you were born to feel the pain
Little star
You know you know
We grow and grow
We never slow
We always win
And you feel lost
And you feel crossed
And you feel tossed
Just like the wind
You know you know
We grow and grow
We never slow
We always win
And you feel lost
And you feel crossed
And you feel tossed
Just like the wind
Your father will have told you of the wind
The lyrics of Ian Hunter's folk-influenced song "The Ballad Of Little Star" paint a picture of a young girl who appears younger than her actual age, but is forced to pretend to be older in a seedy roadside bar. The girl, referred to as "Little Star" throughout the song, is lost and confused about her identity and struggles with the pain brought on by her experiences. The lyrics suggest that the girl's ancestors were once proud and free, but were subdued and broken by the arrival of outsiders who claimed their land. The song suggests that the girl's sense of displacement, marked by pain and confusion, is directly linked to these historical events.
The choice to call the girl "Little Star" is significant in the song. Stars are usually a symbol of hope or goodness, but in this song, the star is associated with confusion and pain. The use of an age discrepancy is also crucial because it highlights society's unrealistic expectations of young girls to appear older than they are.
Overall, the lyrics suggest a sense of cultural loss, pain and displacement, which can be seen as a commentary on colonialism and its impact on Indigenous peoples. The song creates an evocative narrative that forces us to confront the continued legacy of colonization and the impact of historical trauma on Indigenous peoples.
Line by Line Meaning
You don't look a day over ten so why be
You're young and shouldn't have to act older than you are
Do you have to pretend to be older than you are
Are you forced to act more mature than your age?
Beads and mirrors by your body
Decorative items adorn your young body
And in some roadside bar you feel the pain
You're suffering in a lonely, unfamiliar place
Lost on a merry go round, on the game
You're trapped in a cycle you can't escape- like a amusement park ride
You can never be found cause you don't know who you are
You lack a sense of identity and are difficult to locate
The reservation killed your nation
Native American communities were destroyed by forced relocation
And in some tourists car you feel the pain
You're in agony while tourists drive past indifferent to your plight
You know you know
You're aware of what's happening
We grow and grow
We constantly develop and progress
We never slow
Our progress never slows down
We always win
We emerge victorious in the end
And you feel lost
You're aimless and unsure
And you feel crossed
You're angry and betrayed
And you feel tossed
You're adrift and helpless
Just like the wind
You're at the mercy of forces beyond your control
Your father will have told you of the wind
Your ancestors have passed on wisdom of dealing with uncontrollable forces
Bowed those fine heads that, once proud, roamed the plains
Proud Native Americans were forced to submit and abandon their way of life
They sought nothing to gain 'til our fathers civilised
Native Americans didn't need 'civilizing' until colonizing forces imposed it on them
And broken hearted arrows roamed the skies
Injury and death caused by violent conflict was widespread
Then you were born to feel the pain
You inherited the burden of your forefathers' suffering and trauma
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: IAN HUNTER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind