Settling the Mick-in-Mott Question?

Let’s put this “who was the Mick in Mott the Hoople” controversy to rest.

On Sept. 24, Patrick Goldstein wrote in the Pop Eye column that Mick Ronson was Mott’s guitarist. Then, on Oct. 8, letter writer Michael Beltramo said that it was, in fact, Mick Ralphs.

Guess what? They’re both right.

Ralphs was Mott’s original guitarist but left to form Bad Company with Paul Rodgers.

Ronson was the lead guitarist of Mott the Hoople in its 1974 incarnation and played on such Mott singles as “Saturday Gigs.”

For the record: Between the regimes of the two Micks, Mott’s lead guitarist was Luther Grosvenor of Spooky Tooth, who went by the name of Ariel Bender while in Mott the Hoople.

If there is anyone out there who would like to know more about any of this, I would be astonished.

I await correction.

ANDY BOROWITZ

Los Angeles