| The Pretty Things | ||||
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| Released | March 12, 1965 | |||
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| Length | 35:29 | |||
| Label | Fontana | |||
| Producer | Bobby Graham | |||
| Pretty Things chronology | ||||
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| Singles from The Pretty Things | ||||
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The Pretty Things is the self-titled debut album by the English rock band Pretty Things. Released in 1965 in alternate track listings in the United Kingdom and United States, the album demonstrated the band's raw, loud sound, influenced by American rock and roll musician Bo Diddley.
Fontana Records booked two days worth of recording sessions with Pretty Things for their debut album. [1] 30 minutes into the first recording session, the original producer, Jack Baverstock, the head of the label, quit over the band's behavior and alcoholism, and was subsequently replaced by the more sympathetic Bobby Graham in order to salvage the sessions. [1]
The band's playing was noted for being exceptionally loud for the time period, with their performance on "Road Runner" being described as being "about as raw and loud as British rock & roll ever got up to that time" by AllMusic . [1] The final three minutes of "Mama, Keep Your Big Mouth Shut" is composed of feedback and distortion held together by a repeated bass guitar rhythm; the use of such elements was considered unusual for the time. [2]
A third of the album's compositions were written by American blues and rock and roll musician Bo Diddley, and the rest of the album's performances were inspired by his works, with AllMusic saying that the band's cover of Chuck Berry's "Oh, Baby Doll" sounded like it was performed in Bo Diddley's style. [1] "13 Chester Street", a homage to a house that Pretty Things shared with the Rolling Stones' Brian Jones, is musically a cross between the Stones and a lead influenced by Slim Harpo. [1] The album includes a cover of "Pretty Thing", written by Willie Dixon, which the band was named after. [3]
The album was released in 1965 with alternate track listings in the United Kingdom and United States. [3] The US version included the singles "Rosalyn" and Don't Bring Me Down", both of which were covered by self-professed fan of the band David Bowie on his 1973 album Pin Ups . [3] In 2023, all 13 of the band's studio albums (with The Pretty Things being in its UK version) were released in a box set under the title The Complete Studio Albums 1965-2020. [3] [4]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Select |   [5] |
The album reached number six and spent 10 weeks on the UK Albums Chart in 1965. [6] AllMusic said that the album's raw sound paved the way for garage rock bands like MC5. [1] In a review of The Complete Studio Albums 1965-2020, Mojo said that "May’s lusty Road Runner was a calling card, but the remainder of their self-titled 1965 debut lacks sizzle." [4]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Road Runner" | Ellas McDaniel | 3:14 |
| 2. | "Judgement Day" (adapted and arranged by the Pretty Things) | Bryan Morrison | 2:49 |
| 3. | "13 Chester Street" |
| 2:22 |
| 4. | "Big City" |
| 2:02 |
| 5. | "Unknown Blues" |
| 3:49 |
| 6. | "Mama, Keep Your Big Mouth Shut" | Ellas McDaniel | 3:03 |
| Total length: | 17:15 | ||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7. | "Honey, I Need" |
| 2:00 |
| 8. | "Oh, Baby Doll" | Chuck Berry | 3:01 |
| 9. | "She's Fine, She's Mine" | Ellas McDaniel | 4:24 |
| 10. | "Don't Lie to Me" | Tampa Red | 3:53 |
| 11. | "The Moon Is Rising" | Jimmy Reed | 2:33 |
| 12. | "Pretty Thing" | Willie Dixon | 1:39 |
| Total length: | 17:30 | ||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Honey, I Need" |
| 1:58 |
| 2. | "Rosalyn" |
| 2:20 |
| 3. | "13 Chester Street" |
| 2:20 |
| 4. | "I Can Never Say" |
| 3:00 |
| 5. | "Unknown Blues" |
| 2:35 |
| 6. | "The Moon Is Rising" | Jimmy Reed | 2:30 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7. | "Don't Bring Me Down" | Johnnie Dee | 2:09 |
| 8. | "Road Runner" | Ellas McDaniel | 3:13 |
| 9. | "We'll Be Together" |
| 2:09 |
| 10. | "Judgement Day" |
| 2:45 |
| 11. | "Big City" |
| 2:30 |
| 12. | "Pretty Thing" | Willie Dixon | 1:39 |
The Pretty Things
Additional musicians
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | "Rosalyn" / "Big Boss Man" | UK | 41 |
| 1964 | "Don't Bring Me Down" / "We'll Be Together" | UK | 10 |
| 1965 | "Honey I Need" / "I Can Never Say" | UK | 13 |
Ellas Otha Bates, known professionally as Bo Diddley, was an American guitarist and singer who played a key role in the transition from the blues to rock and roll. He influenced many artists, including Buddy Holly, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Animals, George Thorogood, Syd Barrett, and the Clash.
Manfred Mann were an English rock band formed in London in 1962. They were named after their keyboardist Manfred Mann, who later led the successful 1970s group Manfred Mann's Earth Band. The group had two lead vocalists: Paul Jones from 1962 to 1966 and Mike d'Abo from 1966 to 1969. Other members of various group line-ups were Mike Hugg, Mike Vickers, Dave Richmond, Tom McGuinness, Jack Bruce and Klaus Voormann.
Pretty Things were an English rock band formed in September 1963 in Sidcup, Kent, taking their name from Bo Diddley's 1955 song "Pretty Thing", and active in their first incarnation until 1971. They released five studio albums, including the debut The Pretty Things and S. F. Sorrow, four EPs and 15 UK singles, including the Top 20 UK Singles Chart "Don't Bring Me Down" and "Honey I Need". They reformed later in 1971 and continued through to 1976 issuing three more studio albums, and reformed once again from 1979 to 2020 releasing another five studio albums finalising with Bare as Bone, Bright as Blood.
The Shadows of Knight were an American rock band from Chicago, Illinois, that played a version of British blues influenced by their native city. When they began recording in 1965, the band's self-description was "the Stones, Animals and the Yardbirds took the Chicago blues and gave it an English interpretation. We've taken the English version of the Blues and re-added a Chicago touch," to which rock critic Richie Unterberger commented: "The Shadows of Knight's self-description was fairly accurate."
Five Live Yardbirds is the live debut album by the English rock band the Yardbirds. It features the group's interpretations of ten American blues and rhythm and blues songs, including their most popular live number, Howlin' Wolf's "Smokestack Lightning". The album contains some of the earliest recordings with guitarist Eric Clapton.
Having a Rave Up with the Yardbirds, or simply Having a Rave Up, is the second American album by the English rock group the Yardbirds. It was released in November 1965, eight months after Jeff Beck replaced Eric Clapton on guitar. It includes songs with both guitarists and reflects the group's blues rock roots and their early experimentations with psychedelic and hard rock. The title refers to the driving "rave up" arrangement the band used in several of their songs.
Bo Diddley is the debut album by American rock and roll musician Bo Diddley. It collects several of his most influential and enduring songs, which were released as singles between 1955 and 1958. Chess Records issued the album in 1958. In 2012, it was ranked number 216 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list alongside his second album, Go Bo Diddley (1959). The ranking of the album pair dropped to number 455 in the 2020 update of the list.
"I Wish You Would" is a song recorded by Chicago blues musician Billy Boy Arnold in 1955. It was developed while Arnold was performing with Bo Diddley and incorporates a Diddley-style rhythm. Called "a timeless Chicago blues classic", "I Wish You Would" is Arnold's best-known song and has been recorded by several artists, including the Yardbirds, who recorded it for their debut single in 1964.
"19th Nervous Breakdown" is a song recorded by the English rock band the Rolling Stones. Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, it was recorded in late 1965 and released as a single in February 1966. It reached number 2 on both the US Billboard Hot 100 and Britain's Record Retailer chart, while topping the charts compiled by Cash Box and NME.
"I'm a Man" is a rhythm and blues song written and recorded by Bo Diddley in 1955. Inspired by an earlier blues song, it was one of his first hits. "I'm a Man" has been recorded by a variety of artists, including the Yardbirds, who adapted it in an upbeat rock style.
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"Road Runner" is a 12-bar blues song performed by American rock and roll performer Bo Diddley, originally released as a single by Checker Records in January 1960, and later released on the LP record Bo Diddley in the Spotlight. The song reached #20 on Billboard magazine's Hot R&B Sides chart, and #75 on the Hot 100. The song has since been recorded by many artists.
Have Guitar Will Travel is the third studio album by rock and roll musician Bo Diddley. It was released on the Checker Records label in 1960.
Get the Picture? is the second album by the English rock band Pretty Things, released in 1965.
"Diddley Daddy" is a song by Bo Diddley. The song was issued as a single on Checker Records in June 1955. His second single, it followed on the heels of the success of the eponymous "Bo Diddley." The song spent four weeks on the Billboard R&B chart in the summer of 1955, peaking at No. 11.
"Pretty Thing" is a 1955 song written by Bo Diddley and Willie Dixon and performed by Bo Diddley. The song was Diddley's third single release through Checker Records after "Diddley Daddy". In 1963, the song was released in the United Kingdom where it became Diddley's first of only two songs appearing on the UK Singles Chart, the other single being "Hey Good Lookin'".
The Yardbirds are an English rock band formed in London in 1963. The band started the careers of three of rock's most famous guitarists: Eric Clapton (1963–1965), Jeff Beck (1965–1966) and Jimmy Page (1966–1968), all of whom ranked in the top five of Rolling Stone magazine's list of 100 greatest guitarists. The band's other members during 1963–1968 were vocalist/harmonica player Keith Relf, drummer Jim McCarty, rhythm guitarist Chris Dreja, and bassist Paul Samwell-Smith, with Dreja switching to bass when Samwell-Smith departed in 1966. The band had a string of hits throughout the mid-1960s, including "For Your Love", "Heart Full of Soul", "Shapes of Things", and "Over Under Sideways Down".
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Another Dimension is the 15th studio album by musician Bo Diddley recorded in 1971 and released by the Chess label.
Big Bad Bo is the 18th studio album by musician Bo Diddley released by the Chess label in 1974.
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| Singles | |
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