Pretenders, The

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THE PRETENDERS

Formed: 1978, London, England

Members: Martin Chambers, drums (born Hereford, England, 4 September 1951); Andy Hobson, bass (born Swinton, England, 20 November 1962); Chrissie Hynde, vocals, guitar (born Akron, Ohio, 7 September 1951); Adam Seymour, guitar, vocals (born Leicester, England, 17 January 1961). Former members: Pete Farndon, bass (born Hereford, England, 2 June 1952; died London, England, 14 April 1983); James Honeyman-Scott, guitar (born Hereford, England, 4 November 1956; died London, England, 16 June 1982); Robbie McIntosh, guitar (born Hereford, England, 1 January 1950); Malcolm Foster, bass (born Gosport, England, 13 January 1956).

Genre: Rock

Best-selling album since 1990: Last of the Independents (1994)

Hit songs since 1990: "I'll Stand by You," "Night in My Veins"

The Pretenders emerged from the London music scene in the late 1970s with a personalized style encompassing punk angst, reggae grooves, and pop craftsmanship. The principal songwriter and lead vocalist, Chrissie Hynde, led the group with a forceful and self-assured stage presence. After three successful albums, the group incurred the tragic loss of both guitarist James Honeyman-Scott and bassist Pete Farndon. Hynde continued to record with various studio musicians and by the mid-1990s had recruited a stable group. In this incarnation, the Pretenders reestablished their hard rock aesthetic with critically acclaimed albums and strong performances at the Lilith Fair festival and on tour with the Rolling Stones.

Hynde grew up in Akron, Ohio, and attended Kent State University for three years. In 1973 she moved to London and worked as a music critic for New Musical Express. Dissatisfied with the job and the music scene, she moved back to Akron and joined the group Jack Rabbit. Hynde returned to London three years later and, through the assistance of Malcolm McLaren (manager for the punk band the Sex Pistols), she was hired to play guitar in Masters of the Backside. Although dismissed, she continued to perform with various bands and honed her songwriting skills, eventually recording a demo tape and signing with Real Records.

With the help of producer Nick Lowe, Hynde recruited Farndon, Honeyman-Scott, and session drummer Gerry Mackleduff to form the Pretenders. Their cover version of Ray Davies's (of the band the Kinks) "Stop Your Sobbing" breached the U.K. charts and was followed by the pleasantly melodic "Kid." After the addition of drummer Martin Chambers, the group recorded their eponymous debut album, The Pretenders (1980). The first single, "Brass in Pocket," was an immediate success and hit number one in the United Kingdom and number fourteen in the United States. The song begins with a hypnotic guitar riff in a languid tempo that gradually builds to the chorus. The lyrics present a self-assured woman in pursuit of a man: "I'm gonna have some of your attention. Give it to me." The accompanying music video, which depicts Hynde as a waitress in a diner, was placed in constant rotation by MTV and gained the group a wide American audience.

Due to heavy demand, the group quickly released the aptly titled Extended Play EP (1981) with its single, "Talk of the Town." After a busy touring schedule, the Pretenders moved to Paris and recorded their second album, The Pretenders II (1981). On June 14, 1982, Farndon was asked to leave the group due to his constant use of heroin and cocaine. In a strange twist of fate, Honeyman-Scott died of a drug overdose two days later. The remaining members, Hynde and Chambers, rallied together and produced the wistful "Back on the Chain Gang," dedicated to Honeyman-Scott. Before this album could be completed, the group suffered the news of Farndon's drug-related death in April 1983.

Crawling through the 1980s

Learning to Crawl, which alludes to Hynde's infant daughter with Ray Davies and the band's tentative activity after the tragedies, was finally released in 1984. The album went platinum and featured the raucous "Middle of the Road," with its incendiary guitar and harmonica solos. During this time, Hynde married Jim Kerr of the pop group Simple Minds and gave birth to her second daughter. The relationship soon dissolved and Hynde eventually married Colombian sculptor Lucho Brieva in 1997.

After the album release the group was effectively dismantled and Hynde enjoyed success on her own, recording a cover of Sonny and Cher's "I Got You Babe" with UB40. The next two albums were released under the Pretenders moniker but were largely solo efforts by Hynde with uneven results. In 1994 the group was reinvented with the addition of guitarist Adam Seymour and bassist Andy Hobson, and the subsequent album, Last of the Independents, was hailed as the return of the Pretenders. While songs such as "Hollywood Perfume" and "Rebel Rock Me" recalled the energy of their earlier efforts, the album was significantly marred by innocuous ballads. "Night in My Veins" exhibits a pleasant harmonic progression with a steady drum groove. Although the melody is shapeless, Hynde's performance is memorable with the rapid line, "Even if it's," followed by "just the night in my veins." The surprise hit from the album was the ballad, "I'll Stand by You," with its piano introduction, predictable melodic phrasing, and backing gospel choir.

Renewing Their Rock Aesthetic

The Pretenders released the acoustic live album, The Isle of View (1995), with imaginative arrangements of previous material. With ¡Viva El Amor! (1999), the Pretenders reasserted their rock aesthetic with the biting commentary of "Popstar" and the rugged energy of "Legalize Me" with guitarist Jeff Beck. Hynde reveals outstanding vocal prowess in "One More Time" and a supple intimacy in Silvio Rodriguez's "Rabo de Nube." The ballad, "From the Heart Down," exhibits some of Hynde's most poignant lyrics: "You sink into my flesh like a knife," and "Longing hurts the teeth like something sweet." Although this album went largely unnoticed, it represents one of the band's strongest releases.

In 1999 the group performed at the Lilith Fair, a festival centered around female musicians. As an outspoken crusader for PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), Hynde was arrested in March 2000 in a protest against the Gap clothing store. Although she spent a night in jail, the protest was a success, with the Gap changing its policy toward illegal leather products.

The Pretenders' next album, Loose Screw (2002), highlights the group's signature rock sound merged with reggae beats and textures. The album features imaginative bass lines, varied sonic textures, and an overall clean production. "You Know Who Your Friends Are" begins with a rollicking bass line and guitar delay, sliding subtly into the chorus. The vocal line is relaxed and conversational with gentle melismas. The reggae-saturated single, "Complex Person," exhibits a hypnotic melody centered around certain key notes and concludes with an unexpected harmonic change. The confessional "Nothing Breaks Like a Heart" wistfully describes the complications of human relationships: "I want you more than before, so I conceal it." During this time, the Pretenders reached another milestone by performing with the Rolling Stones in their U.S. concerts.

Hynde's innovative songs fueled the Pretenders through various incarnations. The original quartet presented edgy rock songs coupled with a remarkably melodic approach. With the tragic loss of Honeyman-Scott and Farndon, the group sputtered in the late 1980s and early 1990s, only to reemerge with a powerful new lineup in the mid-1990s. While Hynde generally eschewed the designation of female rock star, she undoubtedly challenged the orthodoxy of rock gender roles through her stalwart persona and performances.

SELECTIVE DISCOGRAPHY:

The Pretenders (Sire, 1980); Extended Play EP (Sire, 1981); The Pretenders II (Sire, 1981); Learning to Crawl (Sire, 1984); Get Close (Sire, 1986); The Singles (Sire, 1987); Packed! (Sire, 1990); Last of the Independents (Warner Bros., 1994); The Isle of View (Warner Bros., 1995); ¡Viva El Amor! (Warner Bros., 1999); Loose Screw (Artemis, 2002).