Hynde, Chrissie (1951–)
Hynde, Chrissie (1951–)
American rock musician and leader of the rock band The Pretenders. Born Sept 7, 1951 in Akron, Ohio; dau. of Bud Hynde (telephone company employee) and Dee Hynde; attended Kent State University, 1960s; m. Jim Kerr (rock musician), 1984 (div. 1989); m. Lucho Brieva (sculptor), 1997; children: (with Kinks front-man, Ray Davies) Natalie Rae (b. 1983); (with Kerr) Yasmine (b. 1985).
Began career as rhythm guitarist when she took up the baritone ukulele at 16; moved to London to break into music business (1973); bounced between England, US and France, performing with a variety of bands (mid-1970s); formed group The Pretenders (1978), with British musicians Pete Farndon, James Honeyman-Scott, and Martin Chambers; released self-titled debut album to enormous critical acclaim (1980), earning much of the praise for her cutting lyrics and hard-edged guitar riffs; after Honeyman-Scott and Farndon died from drug overdoses (1982 and 1983, respectively), managed to hold things together by adding 2 members, and released 3rd album, Learning to Crawl (1984); remained the center of the group despite more staff changes; released album Get Close (1986), embarked on world tour (1987), and made 3 more albums: Packed! (1991), Isle of View (1995) and ¡Viva El Amor! (1999); was an animal-rights activist long before it became a celebrity cause.
See also Women in World History.