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Let's Hear It For The Girl!

G. David Billingsley | Hartford | 08/06/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The obvious dilemma facing any female who fronts an otherwise all-male group is that she can easily be classified as nothing more than eye candy either onstage or on the subsequent CD covers. Such is not the case with Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders anymore than it is the case with Debbie Harry of Blondie or Theresa Starr of the Echoes. All three ladies plainly govern their groups with their musical partners often being interchangeable, save for Martin Chambers of the Pretenders, Chris Stein of Blondie, or Mark Alexander of the Echoes. Just as behind every great man there stands a great woman, each of the aforementioned males lends both moral support and strong instrumental backing behind the stellar seductresses who front their acts. On the Pretenders' debut disc, Hynde finds herself backed by expert musicianship and two ready-made hits with "Brass In Pocket" and the Kinks' classic "Stop Your Sobbing," produced by none other than Nick Lowe. Hynde would try to mine the Ray Davies' catalog yet again on the group's second release, but it would be this remake that garnered the most attention and that Hynde would sing at Wembley Stadium during her Live Aid set several years hence."

The "original" Pretenders at their Best.

G. Merritt | Boulder, CO | 03/15/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"When the Pretenders' self-titled album was released in January 1980, it immediately captured my attention with the single, "Brass in Pocket (I'm Special)," and with the hard-rocking vocals of the woman leading the band in her schoolgirl bangs, scary dark eyeliner, and tight jeans. The "original" Pretenders (1978-1982) consisted of Chrissie Hynde on vocals and guitar, James Honeyman-Scott on guitar, vocals, and keyboards, Pete Farndon on bass guitar and vocals, and Martin Chambers on percussion and vocals. (In 1982 Honeyman-Scott died of a cocaine overdose, and in 1983 Farndon overdosed on heroin.) The album is a seamless mix of hard rock, post-punk and New Wave, and not only set a benchmark for '80s music, but is one of the greatest albums of all time (in my opinion). It sounds just as good today (particularly in this remastered edition) as it did in the early '80s. Tracks include:



1. Precious

2. The Phone Call

3. Up The Neck

4. Tattooed Love Boys

5. Space Invader

6. The Wait

7. Stop Your Sobbing

8. Kid

9. Private Life

10. Brass In Pocket

11. Lovers of Today

12. Mystery Achievement



Disc: 2

1. Cuban Slide (outtake)

2. Porcelain

3. The Wait (demo)

4. I Can't Control Myself (demo)

5. Nervous But Shy

6. Swinging London

7. Brass In Pocket (demo)

8. Kid (demo)

9. Stop Your Sobbing (demo)

10. Tequila (demo)

11. I Need Somebody (live BBC)

12. Mystery Achievement (live BBC)

13. Precious (live)

14. The Phone Call (live)

15. Tattooed Love Boys (live)

16. Sabre Dance (live)



G. Merritt





"

Thank you Chrissie !

Christopher Barone | Cleveland, OH USA | 02/23/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"After I caught the Pretenders at the House of Blues in Cleveland, I immediately went out to purchase the CDs which I had lost sometime ago to a love interest in college.

These are absolutely the best CD re-releases that I have ever owned ! The CDs cases are not plastic, but small fold out booklets with an additional remove-able booklet for lyrics and liner notes tucked inside.

Plus the demo tracks are AMAZING !!! I actually prefer Chrissie's vocals on some of the demos much better than they actually came through on the final mixes.

I bought all three of the CDs (Pretenders 1, Pretenders 2, and Learning to Crawl) for about $50. All have demos and previously unreleased material. It was the best $50 I had spent on music in quite a long time.

Great band. She is the pride of Akron and Northeast Ohio."