On American Spy the rhythm section is really tight here as they were coming together as a band. It is a mid-tempo rocker that never lets up and it has a strong bridge of intermixed lead and rhythm guitar. The harmony vocals are also a standout of the tune as the voices are in unison behind Ian's lead vocals.
Hunter has reflected on and written about his experiences as both a Brit and as an American outsider and this song uniquely reflects on his Hamilton, Scotland background. As he identifies as an almost Scot is clearer in his song Comfortable (Flyin' Scotsman) from When I'm President. The song continues his thoughts and contrasts on his British-American life.
An American audience would not understand his reference to the "bovver boys" and that remark would take a bit of explanation. It represents a nonstandard or dialectal (in particular Cockney) pronunciation of bother and is British slang for violence, especially that associated with youth gangs; in particular, in the UK it is a hooligan who creates bother (trouble), specifically a member of a skinhead gang.
Hunter deliberately contrasts America ("I left home on the 4th of July") and now he is a spy or "pirate with a patch over one eye." A good number of Ian's songs are biographical and he refers to his "fourteen years on the factory floor" as he was an apprentice or worker who kept getting fired or he left jobs as he pursued music. He apprenticed on the "Centre Lathe" which is used to manufacture cylindrical shapes from a range of materials including steel and plastic. Many of the components that go together to make an engine work have been manufactured using lathes.
Ian has a clever phrase explaining his disenchantment with lathe work but seeking a better life:
Tryin' to get it done quick
I was always in the red - never in the black
You make a little money 'n they take it all back
This ain't the way to spend the rest of my lifeHunter indicates mixed feelings about the USA remarking that "Englishmen don't commit suicide - they move to the USA" and they have They got "big back yards, "Platinum cards," and a "holiday" but he strenuously indicates they are "Seedy little snobs - I don't wanna know 'em." Although he went West moving is just casting your fate to the winds!
The song was inspired by a story from long time mate Miller Anderson. He knew a spy who joined the Army and went to a bar in Cuba proclaiming: `Do you wanna' buy a drink for an America spy?' The authorities took him away never to return. The line stayed in Hunter's mind for years thinking it would be a great title for a song. Ian has never been to a Cuban bar but since he left England in 1975 he wrote the story with a twist and used the same line. Of course no one wanted to buy a drink but the idea provided good fun for a song.
A live version of the song is available from 2002 on Bag of Tricks Vol. 1 (box set only).
Cockney) pronunciation of bother and is British slang for violence, especially that associated with youth gangs; in particular, in the UK it is a hooligan who creates bother (trouble), specifically a member of a skinhead gang.
American Spy
(Ian Hunter)
Neon lights in the pouring rain - it's just another Saturday
Avoid the bovver boys comin' out the Indian - looking for a fray
I left home on the 4th of July - in nineteen hundred and seventy five
I'm just a pirate with a patch over one eye
Wanna buy a drink for an American Spy?
I spent fourteen years on the factory floor
I never took a day off sick
I was workin' away all day on the Centre Lathe
Tryin' to get it done quick
I was always in the red - never in the black
You make a little money 'n they take it all back
This ain't the way to spend the rest of my life
Wanna buy a drink for an American,
Wanna buy a drink for an American Spy?
Englishmen don't commit suicide - they move to the USA
They got big back yards and Platinum cards
'N everyday's a holiday
Seedy little snobs - I don't wanna know 'em
I don't trust them fuckers as far as I can throw 'em
Cast your fate to the winds say I
Wanna buy a drink for an American Spy?
Don't ask me - sounded like a plan
Go west, go west, go west young man
I've had enough of that old school tie
Wanna buy a drink for an American
Do ya wanna buy a drink for an American (Spy)?
Do ya wanna buy a drink for an American Spy?| American Spy | 4:30 | Originally issued on Rant. |
| American Spy (live 19th May 2002) | 5:06 | This live version (recorded Life Cafe, Manchester England) can be found on Bag Of Tricks (Vol 1) (box set only). |
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