"Talk of the Town" | ||||
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Single by The Pretenders | ||||
from the album Pretenders II | ||||
B-side |
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Released | March 1980 | |||
Recorded | 1980 | |||
Studio | Pathe Marconi Studios (Paris, France) [1] | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:14 | |||
Label |
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Songwriter(s) | Chrissie Hynde | |||
Producer(s) | Chris Thomas | |||
The Pretenders singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Talk of the Town" on YouTube |
"Talk of the Town" is a song written by Chrissie Hynde and performed by the Pretenders. Released first as a single and then on the Pretenders' 1981 EP Extended Play , a slightly shortened version of the song was included on the band's 1981 album Pretenders II .
Inspired by a London nightclub and a fan of the band, the song was a radio hit and reached number 8 in the United Kingdom. It has since been praised by critics as a highlight of Pretenders II.
"Talk of the Town" was inspired by a fan Chrissie Hynde had encountered on the band's first tour. She explained in a BBC Songwriters' Circle special, "I had in mind this kid who used to stand outside the soundchecks on our first tour... I never spoke to him. I remember that the last time I saw him I just left him standing in the snow, I never had anything to say to him. I kind of wrote this for him, so, in the unlikely event that you're watching this, I did think about you." [3] It was also rumored that the song was written about Kinks frontman Ray Davies, whom Hynde would date and have a child with. [2] The title itself was inspired by a London nightclub of the same name. [2] [3]
"Talk of the Town", one of the first songs written following the Pretenders album, was recorded in Paris. [1] At the time of the creation of Pretenders II , Hynde found confidence in the song's radio success, saying "I knew that people still liked us and we were getting airplay with 'Message of Love', 'Talk of the Town', [and] 'I Go to Sleep '". [1]
"Talk of the Town" was initially released as a single in March 1980. It was a top 10 hit in the United Kingdom, entering the charts at number 21 and peaking at number 8 in its third week on the charts. [4] The B-side of the single in most territories was "Cuban Slide", but in the United States it was the band's previous single, "Stop Your Sobbing".
The song was also released on the band's US release Extended Play in March 1981—alongside "Cuban Slide"—and later that year was included on the band's second studio album, Pretenders II.
"Talk of the Town" has generally received positive reception, often being singled out as a highlight from Pretenders II. Tom Carson of Rolling Stone lauded the song, writing, "What's so wonderful about 'Talk of the Town,' for example, is how beautifully she grasps the rapturousness of success: she's the girl who got left behind, but she's also the boy who's changed his place in the world, and we understand them both". [5] Matthew Greenwald of Allmusic said, "Between the breezy melody and literate, confessional lyrics, this song is head and shoulders above what passed for a pop single at the beginning of the '80s, and remains a classic of Hynde's." [2] Sean Murphy of Pop Matters said that the song, along with fellow Pretenders II singles "Message of Love" and "Day After Day", "richly deserve their rotation on less imaginative DJ's play lists". [6] Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune called it a "fine single" while Dennis Lim of Blender praised it as "tender". [7] [8] Ultimate Classic Rock critic Matt Wardlaw rated it the Pretenders 5th greatest song." [9]
The song was referenced in the Garbage song "Special", where vocalist Shirley Manson sang "We were the talk of the town" as a tribute to Hynde. To avoid legal problems, Manson contacted Hynde by telephone to ask for permission to use the lyric. Hynde agreed to let Garbage use the lyric without even hearing "Special" first (and did not ask for any credit or royalties); Manson then wanted to send Hynde a copy of the song just to be safe, but Hynde sent a fax to Smart Studios giving her written consent before Manson could do so.
Chart (1980) | Peak position |
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Australia (Kent Music Report) [10] | 55 |
Ireland (IRMA) [11] | 14 |
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [12] | 24 |
UK Singles (OCC) [13] | 8 |
The Pretenders are a British-American rock band formed in March 1978. The original band consisted of founder and main songwriter Chrissie Hynde, James Honeyman-Scott, Pete Farndon and Martin Chambers. Following the deaths of Honeyman-Scott in 1982 and Farndon in 1983, the band experienced numerous personnel changes; Hynde has been the band's only consistent member.
Pretenders is the debut studio album by British-American band The Pretenders, released in January 1980. A combination of rock and roll, punk and new wave music, this album made the band famous. The album features the singles "Stop Your Sobbing", "Kid" and "Brass in Pocket".
Christine Ellen Hynde is an American-British musician. She is a founding member and the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of the rock band The Pretenders, and one of the band's two remaining original members alongside drummer Martin Chambers. She is the only continuous member of the band, appearing on every studio album.
Pretenders II is the second studio album by British rock band the Pretenders, issued on Sire Records in August 1981. It incorporates two songs that had been released as singles in the UK and placed on an EP in the US. It peaked at #7 on the UK Albums Chart and #10 on the Billboard 200, and has been certified a gold record for sales by the RIAA. It is the final album by the original line-up, as the following year bassist Pete Farndon was dismissed and guitarist James Honeyman-Scott died in the same week. Farndon died in 1983, and a new line-up would make the band's next album, Learning to Crawl.
"My City Was Gone" is a song by the rock group The Pretenders. The song originally appeared in October 1982 as the B-side to the single release of "Back on the Chain Gang"; the single was the first release for the band following the death of founding bandmember James Honeyman-Scott. The song was included on the album Learning to Crawl, which was released in early 1984, and it became a radio favorite in the United States. It is sometimes referred to as "The Ohio Song" for its constant reference to the state.
"Special" is song by American rock band Garbage from their second studio album, Version 2.0 (1998). It was released as the album's third single. The track contains a vocal interpolation of a lyric taken from "Talk of the Town" by the Pretenders.
Learning to Crawl is the third studio album by British-American rock band the Pretenders. It was released on 13 January 1984 by Sire Records after a hiatus during which band members James Honeyman-Scott and Pete Farndon died of drug overdoses. The album's title of "Learning to Crawl" was given in honour of Chrissie Hynde's then-infant daughter, Natalie Rae Hynde. She was learning to crawl at the time that Hynde was trying to determine a title for the album.
Extended Play is a 1981 EP released by new wave band The Pretenders. "Message of Love" and "Talk of the Town" featured on this EP were also included on their second album Pretenders II released later the same year. "Porcelain" and "Cuban Slide", outtakes from their Pretenders debut album, were included on disc two of the 2006 and 2021 remastered editions of their debut album and on the Pirate Radio box set. The live version of "Precious" on this EP, recorded at their New York Central Park performance on 30 August 1980, was finally released on CD on November 5, 2021. The booklet for disc one of the Pretenders debut album from the 2015 UK Edsel/Rhino Records box set 1979–1999 incorrectly states "Precious" is from that Central Park performance. Instead, the box set version is from their Boston performance of 23 March 1980; it is also included on disc two of the 2006 remastered edition of Pretenders.
"Brass in Pocket", also known as "Brass in Pocket (I'm Special)", is a song by English–American rock band the Pretenders, released in 1979 as the third single from their self-titled debut album. It was written by Chrissie Hynde and James Honeyman-Scott, and produced by Chris Thomas. Originating as a guitar lick written by Honeyman-Scott, the song's lyrics were explained by Hynde to be about the cockiness that one needs to effectively perform. The song's title derives from a phrase she overheard after a show.
"Back on the Chain Gang" is a song written by American-British musician Chrissie Hynde, originally recorded by her band the Pretenders and released as a single by Sire Records in September 1982. The song was included on The King of Comedy soundtrack album in March 1983 and was later included on the Pretenders' third album, Learning to Crawl, in January 1984.
"Middle of the Road" is a song by the Pretenders, released as the third single from the album Learning to Crawl. The single was released in the US in November 1983, then in the UK in February 1984.
"2000 Miles" is a song by British-American rock band Pretenders. Written by lead vocalist Chrissie Hynde and produced by Chris Thomas, it was released on 18 November 1983 as the second single from their third studio album, Learning to Crawl (1984). It was most popular in the UK, where it peaked at No. 15 on the UK Singles Chart in December 1983. In the US, it was released as the B-side of both the 7-inch single and 12-inch single remix of the band's hit "Middle of the Road".
"Don't Get Me Wrong" is a song by British-American alternative rock group the Pretenders. It was the first single released from the group's fourth studio album, Get Close (1986). It was also included on the band's The Singles album, released in 1987. Frontwoman Chrissie Hynde said she was inspired to write the song for her friend John McEnroe.
"I Go to Sleep" is a song written by Ray Davies which has been covered by numerous artists. Peggy Lee, the Applejacks and Cher recorded covers in 1965 without chart success. The Pretenders released a cover in 1981 which reached number seven on the UK Singles Chart.
"Stop Your Sobbing" is a song written by Ray Davies for the Kinks' debut album, Kinks. It was later covered by the Pretenders as their first single.
"Kid" is a song written by Chrissie Hynde that was released on the Pretenders 1979 debut album Pretenders. Hynde wrote the song about a fictional boy discovering that his mother is a prostitute. The song's melodicism was attributed by guitarist James Honeyman-Scott to Hynde's growing interest in pop music. Honeyman-Scott wrote the song's solo, which he had designed over a couple of days.
"Precious" is a song written by Chrissie Hynde and performed by her band the Pretenders. First released on the band's self-titled debut album in late 1979, the song features punk-inspired music and aggressive lyrics.
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