You gotta hand it to \u2018em. The Pretenders waste zero time getting down and dirty on their debut album. The roaring first track \u201cPrecious\u201d sets the tone for all that is yet to come. Chrissie Hynde and Co. clearly know what they\u2019re doing, and mean to take the world by storm. If you ever come across a Greatest Albums Of All Time list, this is sure to be there. Their third album, Learning To Crawl<\/i>, came the closest to matching this distinction, pleasing listeners and critics alike with chart hits, but people always point to this first one as the very best. I, however, beg to differ.<\/p>\n
The second cut \u201cThe Phone Call\u201d keeps up the intensity, but I\u2019ll be damned if I can understand a word Hynde is singing\/saying. No matter, it\u2019s all about guitar bombast here, so either hold on tight or slam dance to your heart\u2019s content. The choice is that simple, though if you\u2019re a diehard fan, you\u2019ll undoubtedly do the latter. The momentum is almost lost on \u201cUp The Neck,\u201d though it too has its moments to rock out. Hynde\u2019s sneering personality and deadpan delivery are in top form here and save the track from ending up as forgettable filler (like the never-ending, vocally challenging ballad \u201cLovers Of Today\u201d).<\/p>\n
I gotta admit, I\u2019ve been something of a passing fan of the Pretenders, only picking up their first four albums. After Get Close<\/i> in 1986, it all started sounding the same. That\u2019s always been the dilemma of guitar-based rock; there\u2019s only so much you can do. The fans won\u2019t allow for any deviation from \u201cthe formula,\u201d so don\u2019t even try to be experimental or God forbid, bring electronic sounds or orchestral arrangements into the mix. So soldier on in the same straightforward direction they did, with increasingly mediocre results. It certainly didn\u2019t help matters losing half the band to drug overdoses. Lineup changes are a risky proposition indeed, just ask Blondie.<\/p>\n
Elsewhere on The Pretenders<\/i>, we have everything from rattle-shaking, manically good time on \u201cTattooed Love Boys\u201d and the mostly instrumental, time-wasting interlude of \u201cSpace Invaders,\u201d before getting on more familiar territory for \u201cThe Wait,\u201d which would\u2019ve made a great single, heavy breathing from Chrissie included. As for those radio-friendly hits, you\u2019ll remember with fondness the Kinks cover \u201cStop Your Sobbing\u201d and the number that grows-on-you, \u201cBrass In Pocket.\u201d If, like me, you\u2019re waiting for the Pretenders to REALLY screw up and include a song that isn\u2019t all it\u2019s cracked up to be, you\u2019ll likely call \u201cPrivate Life\u201d on the carpet. The slow, meandering reggae-ish melody will make you immediately think of the Police. But what\u2019s up with those ridiculous backing vocals on the chorus? Anyhow, it\u2019s a stupid song that drags on far too long. I can just see people now, heading for the exits during their concert for a bathroom break. At least they make up some ground on the terrific thumper of a closing tune \u201cMystery Achievement.\u201d<\/p>\n
Over the years, I\u2019ve been able to understand why this album is so beloved. I think the younger you are when you first hear it, you might not get it. But give it some time and air to breathe. You will hear something different every time you give it a spin. That\u2019s what the best rock \u2018n\u2019 roll should be: timeless.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":57,"featured_media":28958,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"artist":[7670],"rating":[5615],"class_list":["post-43755","review","type-review","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","artist-the-pretenders","rating-rating-b"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/43755","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/review"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/57"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43755"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/43755\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28958"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43755"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=43755"},{"taxonomy":"rating","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rating?post=43755"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}