The Pretenders released their first album in the year 1979. The self-titled album marked the arrival of a British band that would eventually influence many musicians of the 80s with their new age music. The Pretenders' brand of music is a combination of American Soul, punk music, and their unique new wave renditions.
At the outset, the group comprised of James Honeyman-Scott (lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards), Pete Farndon (bass guitar, backing vocals), Martin Chambers (drums, backing vocals, percussion), and founder songwriter Chrissie Hynde (lead vocals, rhythm guitar). Subsequently, almost all the members of the band were replaced, except Chrissie.
The Who and the Kinks were some of the bands that inspired The Pretenders. Hynde was born in the US, but moved to London to look for a better launching pad for her music career. After several years of struggle, she finally succeeded in putting the band together. When their first album was released, it reached the top of the charts in the UK and climbed to #9 in the US.
The music of the Pretenders contains Hynde's signature dark-timbered alto, along with ravishing tempos of punk music and some trendsetting psychosexual lyrics. From their first album, the soulful cover version of "Stop Your Sobbing" and the sensual track "Brass in Pocket" were big hits in both sides of the Atlantic. The Pretenders followed up their first album with Pretenders II in 1982. This album yielded more hits than the first one, with chart busters such as "Message of Love", "Talk of the Town", and a Kinks cover "I Go to Sleep".
However, tragedy struck the band in 1982 when one of the band-members, bassist Farndon, was discharged on account of excessive drug usage. Within a couple of days, guitarist Honeyman-Scott passed away owing to heroin overdose. As a consequence, the group line-up was overhauled and guitarist Robbie McIntosh and bassist Malcolm Foster were inductees in the revised line-up. They soon released their third album Learning to Crawl (1984), which contained some chart toppers like "Middle of the Road" and "2000 Miles".
Get Close (1986), Packed! (1990), Last of the Independents (1994), Isle of View (1995), and Viva El Amor! (1999) were the albums that followed. Throughout this period of time, the group members kept changing and Hynde was the only constant who anchored the group together with her enterprising spirit and unmistakable musical talent. In 2002, the long-standing relationship between The Pretenders and their record label Warner Bros came to a close. With new partner Armetis Records, the Pretenders released their eighth studio album Loose Screw in 2002. Break Up the Concrete (2008) is their latest album, with Chrissie Hynde spearheading a band that still continues to burn the charts.
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