Happy 40th Anniversary to The Pretenders’ eponymous debut album Pretenders, originally released December 27, 1979. (Note: Select resources cite January 19, 1980 as the album’s official release date.)
The Pretenders self-titled LP has appeared on numerous lists of the best debut albums over the last forty years. I would even go further to say that it belongs on the list of 200 best albums—debut or otherwise—of all-time.
The group was formed in 1978 by Chrissie Hynde (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), who had spent the previous few years bouncing around with different bands, including early incarnations of The Clash and The Damned (note: those bands went by different names when she was a member). Determined to form her own band, Hynde recorded some tracks for a demo using a variety of musicians including drummer Phil Taylor, whom she originally wanted in her band, but couldn't bring herself to try and steal from her friend Lemmy's band Motorhead.
Hynde brought Pete Farndon (bass) into the fold, and he convinced her to tryout his friend from Hereford, James Honeyman-Scott (lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards). At first Honeyman-Scott was reluctant to join the group because his musical interest leaned toward the Nick Lowe/Elvis Costello type of sound and it was in stark contrast to Hynde's harder, edgier style of playing.
Hynde and Farndon somehow managed to get their demo in the hands of Lowe and he agreed to produce their first single, a cover of The Kinks' "Stop Your Sobbing." That was enough to convince Honeyman-Scott to join the band and soon after, Martin Chambers (drums) came on board. The original lineup was set by the summer of 1978.
After recording the single "Stop Your Sobbing" with the Pretenders, Lowe ended their working relationship, stating “This group’s not going anywhere.” Time has not been kind to Lowe's declaration. While the song has Hynde’s signature vocal, it almost sounds like a record Lowe himself would record, not that there's anything wrong with that. Producer Chris Thomas, who had worked with Pink Floyd, Roxy Music and was uncredited on the Beatles’ "Birthday" and "Happiness Is A Warm Gun,” took over the sessions, producing "Kid" and "Brass in Pocket.”
With the three singles being released in 1979, the Pretenders’ eagerly anticipated debut album hit the stores during the final week of 1979. The album's first track, "Precious," is a frenetic, high-speed car chase of a song highlighted by Hynde's vocal, which I can best describe as controlled, sexual ferocity. This ode to Cleveland lets it be known right away that Hynde is the real deal and she gave rock a strong female voice that was desperately needed at the time, with memorable lines such as, “I like the way you cross the street 'cause you're precious / Moving through the Cleveland heat, how precious / You're taking nights and all the kicks, you're so precious / But you know I was shittin' bricks 'cause I'm precious.”
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By the time you get through the next three songs—"The Phone Call," "Up the Neck," and "Tattooed Love Boys"—you can't help but be in awe of how the band can switch gears without losing any of their intensity. At this point in the album, you're pleasantly surprised by how good the album is and you haven't even heard the previously released three singles.
The aforementioned "Stop Your Sobbing," which closes out side one, has a different energy than the other songs on the album. It fits in nicely with the other tracks, but it certainly reflects a different Hynde than the one we met on the previous six songs. Side two opens with "Kid," a song that is a good follow-up to "Stop Your Sobbing." I wouldn't necessarily call it a ballad, but it expresses a tenderness and vulnerability that was not present on side one, but ultimately surfaced quite often throughout Hynde's ensuing career.
"Private Life" and "Brass in Pocket" are, for me, the highlights of the album that cements its status as one of the greatest debut LPs. The voice and tone established on side one are still there, but delivered in a completely different way. "Private Life" is a slow burning ballad that just builds into a scathing rebuke of someone that Hynde clearly has no use for and you're glad you're not that person. The song was famously covered by none other than Grace Jones. Hynde stated in the liner notes to Jones' 1998 compilation Private Life: The Compass Point Sessions, "Like all the other London punks, I wanted to do reggae, and I wrote ‘Private Life.’ When I first heard Grace's version I thought ‘Now that's how it's supposed to sound!’”
"Brass in Pocket," co-written by Hynde and Honeyman-Scott, was the band's first big hit and a song she would have preferred to have never seen the light of day. She hated the song and in 2004, she told the Observer, "When we recorded the song I wasn't very happy with it and told my producer that he could release it over my dead body, but they eventually persuaded me. So I remember feeling a bit sheepish when it went to #1 (in the UK)." Despite Hynde's feelings about the song, it remains one of those timeless tunes that will always be a fan favorite and a staple of their concerts.
When I first heard this album and especially "Brass in Pocket,” I knew I was hearing something special that would resonate with me for a long time. There's the old saying, "you only get one chance to make a first impression." The Pretenders certainly made the most of their opportunity.
The band’s next album, Pretenders II (1981), would be the last with the original lineup. Within a two-year span, Honeyman-Scott and Farndon were dead as a result of drug use. It's a shame because what made the original lineup so special was the brilliant and underrated playing of Honeyman-Scott, the solid rhythm section of Farndon and Chambers and a once-in-a-generation lead singer in Hynde. Her singing and phrasing throughout the group’s debut album immediately put her in a category all her own. Not only a great debut album, Pretenders is an all-time classic LP and its greatness has not diminished since its release four decades ago.
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