Pretenders - Pretenders (1980)

Artist:  Pretenders
Title:  Pretenders
Release:  1980
Format:  LP
Label:  Warner Bros.
Catalog#  WBN 56774

“Pretenders” is the debut studio album by the British-American new wave band The Pretenders, released on 27 December 1979. A combination of rock, punk, and pop music, this album made the band famous.  Nick Lowe produced the Pretenders' first single, "Stop Your Sobbing", but decided not to work with them again as he thought the band "wasn't going anywhere". Chris Thomas took over on the subsequent recording sessions.
Few rock & roll records rock as hard or with as much originality as the Pretenders' eponymous debut album. A sleek, stylish fusion of Stonesy rock & roll, new wave pop, and pure punk aggression, Pretenders is teeming with sharp hooks and a viciously cool attitude. Although Chrissie Hynde establishes herself as a forceful and distinctively feminine songwriter, the record isn't a singer/songwriter's tour de force -- it's a rock & roll album, powered by a unique and aggressive band. Guitarist James Honeyman-Scott never plays conventional riffs or leads, and his phased, treated guitar gives new dimension to the pounding rhythms of "Precious," "Tattooed Love Boys," "Up the Neck," and "The Wait," as well as the more measured pop of "Kid," "Brass in Pocket," and "Mystery Achievement." He provides the perfect backing for Hynde and her tough, sexy swagger. Hynde doesn't fit into any conventional female rock stereotype, and neither do her songs, alternately displaying a steely exterior or a disarming emotional vulnerability. It's a deep, rewarding record, whose primary virtue is its sheer energy. Pretenders moves faster and harder than most rock records, delivering an endless series of melodies, hooks, and infectious rhythms in its 12 songs. Few albums, let alone debuts, are ever this astonishingly addictive.
The album features the singles "Stop Your Sobbing" "Kid" and "Brass in Pocket".


Side one
1.  Precious  (3:36)
2.  The Phone Call  (2:29)
3.  Up the Neck  (4:27)
4.  Tattooed Love Boys  (2:59)
5.  Space Invader  (3:26)
6.  The Wait  (3:35)
7.  Stop Your Sobbing  (2:38)

Side two
1.  Kid  (3:06)
2.  Private Life  (6:25)
3.  Brass in Pocket  (3:04)
4.  Lovers of Today  (5:51)
5.  Mystery Achievement  (5:23)

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