Rehearsals for Mott’s debut album began in June in Islington, London. Songs rehearsed, according to Campbell Devine, include:

The Rebel
Laugh at Me
At the Crossroads
Little Christine
Rabbit Foot and Toby Time
Half Moon Bay
If the World saluted You (became Backsliding Fearlessly)
The Wreck
Back in the States again
Lavender Days
Desolation Row
Little Queenie
Yma Sumac
The Parrot and the Cat
Jekyll and Hyde
When my Mind’s Gone

Pete Watts said, “Ian … was the only one trying. We didn’t realise the significance of what was going on with the record deal, it seemed easy for us.”

Studio recording began 11 days later, at Morgan Recording Studios in London.

Apparently producer Guy Stevens went “way over budget”, spending £5,000 rather than the normal £2,000.