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 Truth The Whole Truth Nuthin' But The Truth
Ian Hunter Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Hoping thing's gonna turn out right
You had me hanging on a string
For you I did most anything
You don't give me no
The truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth
Its a blind mans eye baby ain't no youth
The truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth
Put your face up to my window
Ask me baby what did I see
Well I know I know you ain't right
I know you ain't right for me
You don't give me no
The truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth
Gods little baby's got nothing to shoot
The truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth
Get your kicks on a different route
All I want is the truth
All I want is the truth
All I want is
The truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth
Blind mans eye baby ain't no use
The truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth
Don't need your lies I got nothing to prove
The truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth
Gods little baby's got nothing to shoot
The truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth
Get your kicks on a different route
Don't hurt ya
Don't hurt ya
The truth don't hurt ya
The truth don't hurt ya
Don't hurt ya don't hurt ya
The truth don't hurt ya
In "The Truth The Whole Truth Nuthin' But The Truth," Ian Hunter sings about the pain and disappointment of a relationship in which the other person is not honest. The song is filled with frustration and longing for truth - the singer wants his lover to be upfront with him, to tell him what's really going on. But instead, he feels like he's being strung along, left in the dark about what's really happening. The lyrics "blind man's eye baby ain't no use" and "God's little baby's got nothing to shoot" highlight the futility of trying to move forward in a relationship without honesty.
Hunter's use of imagery is particularly powerful in this song. He talks about the singer looking out the window and seeing something that confirms what he already knew - that the other person isn't right for him. And the repeated lyrics "don't hurt ya, the truth don't hurt ya" suggest that the singer knows that, while the truth might be painful, it's ultimately better than being lied to.
Overall, "The Truth The Whole Truth Nuthin' But The Truth" is a powerful and emotional song about the importance of honesty in relationships.
Line by Line Meaning
Lonely days lonely nights
I'm feeling down and alone during the day and night
Hoping thing's gonna turn out right
I'm hoping that everything will eventually work out for me
You had me hanging on a string
You had me in your control, playing with my emotions
For you I did most anything
I did almost anything for you, just to make you happy
You don't give me no
You're not giving me any honest answers or information
The truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth
I want you to tell me the complete and honest truth with nothing left out
Its a blind mans eye baby ain't no youth
You can't deceive me because I can see clearly and I'm not naive
Don't need your lies I got my proof
I don't want to hear your lies anymore because I already know the truth
Put your face up to my window
Come close to me and listen to what I have to say
Ask me baby what did I see
Ask me what I saw or experienced that made me realize the truth
Well I know I know you ain't right
I understand that you're not the right person for me, despite my past feelings
I know you ain't right for me
I'm aware that we're not meant to be together
Gods little baby's got nothing to shoot
You can't trick me because I have nothing to lose or gain in this situation
Get your kicks on a different route
Find a way to have fun and entertain yourself without hurting others
All I want is the truth
I just want to know the honest and complete truth
Blind mans eye baby ain't no use
You can't deceive me because I'm already aware of the real situation
Don't need your lies I got nothing to prove
I don't need to prove anything to you, so there's no point in hiding the truth
Don't hurt ya
Telling the truth shouldn't cause any harm
The truth don't hurt ya
Being honest and truthful shouldn't cause any lasting harm
The truth don't hurt ya
You shouldn't be afraid of telling the truth because it won't harm you in the long run
Don't hurt ya don't hurt ya
There's no reason for the truth to cause any harm, so don't be afraid to tell it
The truth don't hurt ya
Being truthful and honest is the right thing to do and shouldn't cause any pain
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: IAN HUNTER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind