Favorite Live Bands #7 - Pretenders

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1,2, check, check. I am a live music freak, so let's continue with my Favorite Live Bands series. We are at #7: the Pretenders. Led by American vocalist/guitarist Chrissie Hynde, Pretenders formed in Hereford, England, in 1978. Despite numerous lineup changes (Hynde is the group's only constant) and the drug related deaths of two original members, the band is still at it. The Pretenders, in fact, are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Unlike the last three bands in this countdown, I've seen the Pretenders more than once. I've seen them four times, to be exact. And not once did they disappoint. In fact, they rock out pretty hard, no matter who is in the band at the time. The first time I saw the band was in 1981, when, after they had opened for The Kinks at Red Rocks, in Denver, the Pretenders made the trip down to Colorado Springs the next night to headline their own show at our ancient City Auditorium. Ray Davies even came out and did the encores with them, which, as a junior in high school, was about the coolest thing I'd seen up to that point in my life. I am, to this day, so glad that I went. This was the original lineup, and both guitarist James Honeyman-Scott and bassist Pete Farndon died of drug overdoses shortly thereafter. Hynde regrouped with a new band and a monster album, Learning to Crawl. It was 1984, and instead of opening, the band headlined two sold out shows at Red Rocks (ironically, Denver wasn't even on that tour's itinerary. We were added as an afterthought.) This was back when they would open the gates at noon so you could party. Despite a day of heroic drinking, I do remember the show. I specifically remember being blown away by their performance of "Precious," which they burned through with the white hot energy of a punk band. (The last time I saw the band was in 2003. Chrissie was much older and wiser, yet rocked the hell out of the song as if she were still the young woman I had seen in 1981.) In 1986, the band walked onstage at Denver's old McNichols Arena, and set the tone with a high octane version of Jimi Hendrix's "Room Full of Mirrors," which more than matched the sheer energy of opening act Iggy Pop. They could literally do no wrong after that opening tune (yeah, I was loaded, but I was in the front row, and unless Hynde had forgotten the lyrics to "Tattooed Love Boys" or something, there was nothing they could have done to screw that night up.) Each time has been a fantastic show, a great concert experience. It's been fun watching them grow from a young opening act headlining a convenient next-night show at a small venue that most around here consider a dump, to selling out amphitheaters and arenas. And yes, even with a drop to theater-sized venues, it's still been a good time (they played Denver's Paramount Theater in 2003, and it was a much more intimate show.) A favorite? Let's just say I've never walked out of a Pretenders concert thinking, "Gee, I sure wish I hadn't gone to THAT." Nope. I've more than gotten my money's worth all four times.