The reaction to the LP was mixed at best. Hunter feels that it was quite an accomplishment to have written about both rape and God on one record fueled by his manager's supply of Colombian Red. He proved he could hold more than his own with top-notch musicians but really no one came close to brilliance of his lyrics.
The marketing of the cover was in stark contrast to his first LP and consisted of a stark white sleeve with wonderfully detailed paintings of Hunter by artist Philip Hays. He captured a moody looking Ian clad in black leather.
In the first week of its American release the LP sold 56,000 copies and it entered the UK at #47 on 29 May and stayed for four weeks, rising to #29. In America, the LP peaked at #177 on Billboard. With promotion and critical acclaim the LP would have expected to sell more. Two singles from the LP All American Alien Boy and You Nearly Did Me In died in sales terms.
Ian recognized that his ranting manifesto might leave fans behind and he philosophically exclaimed that he hoped people who liked his music would come along on his musical journey. As a commercial effort it flopped but on a personal level it was a total success. He consistently has refused to be boring and this record was the first indication that Hunter was always going to listen to the beat of his own drummer. Ian's fan base consisted largely of young males and it was quite a leap to think that most young guys were going to come along for the ride. It would take some time but the record stands as an early achievement of the grand themes and intelligent lyrics that would come to fruition later in his recordings. It is only by hindsight that the LP was acclaimed as the classic that it was and reissues helped the reevaluations by revealing additional versions of the original release. Intelligence and interesting rock does not always sell but it confirms that Hunter is an artist first and foremost.
Consider the timing of the record's release as well. As Ian was hitting the heights of lyricism with first-rate musicians what was all the rage in rock? The do it yourself, seat of your pants, simplicity of punk was exploding and the original mixed-up kid had moved in a different direction. To go on the road to support the release there were rehearsals with soulful, funky R&B group The Fabulous Rhinestones but nothing came of it. Hunter had had first-rate jazz-rock session musicians and could have gone in that direction or with mellow songs from All American Alien Boy he could continue in that vein. However, Ian was neither Jeff Beck nor the Moody Blues so neither direction appeared promising. Hunter had already recorded proto-punk with songs such as Violence and Crash Street Kidds and that was also a possibility. Ian had no supporting band to go on the road to promote the album or Hunter could pick up a trendy space he had already explored in Mott The Hoople; in short he was in a bind. In what direction should he go?
Ian Hunter On Track for Sonicbond Publishing, TheDoctorOfDigital@pm.me
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