Pirate Radio (Bonus Dvd) [Original recording remastered]

The Pretenders | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 14, 2006)
• Number of Discs: 5
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Rhino
• ASIN: B000E1ZBHC
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #101,365 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Precious (Regent Park Demo)*

2. Stop Your Sobbing

3. The Wait (Single Version)

4. Kid

See all 20 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Back On The Chain Gang

2. Thumbelina

3. Thin Line Between Love And Hate

4. My City Was Gone

See all 20 tracks on this disc

Disc: 3

1. Sense Of Purpose

2. Downtown (Akron)

3. How Do I Miss You

4. Bold As Love

See all 20 tracks on this disc

Disc: 4

1. Everyday Is Like Sunday

2. Human (Class Mix)

3. Popstar

4. Back Down*

See all 20 tracks on this disc

Disc: 5

1. Talk Of The Town

2. The Adultress

3. The Wait

4. Hollywood Perfume

See all 19 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Holding the Pretenders' Pirate Radio box set in your hand, you may be tempted to ask: What took you so long? Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005, the Pretenders' impact on popular music goes without saying, and for a quarter century Chrissie Hynde has remained one of the smartest, sassiest, sexiest, and shaggiest women in rock. So this in-depth collection seems, if not overdue, at least a long time in coming.

At 81 tracks, Pirate Radio will satisfy die-hard fans with more fully remastered big hits and deep cuts than the earlier Singles and Greatest Hits compilations, as well as some previously unreleased gems--covers of "Angel of the Morning" and Warren Zevon's "Reconsider Me" are both standouts. The career-spanning live DVD is also a treat, with many performances featuring the original lineup. Add in a 60-page booklet jammed with chronological liner notes and reflections from band members, and you've got a powerful package. What's striking is how coherent this set sounds throughout all four discs, largely due to Hynde's unmistakable voice: From the punk swagger of their immortal 1979 debut to the reggae-informed sounds of 2003's Loose Screw, and after more personnel changes than Spinal Tap's percussion section, it all sounds like no one other than the Pretenders. --Ben Heege

Product Description

On "Brass in Pocket," one of the pretenders earliest singles-and their first to chart in the U.S., scoring #14 in Billboard-Chrissie Hynde sings, "I'm special, so special, I gotta have some of your attention, give it to me." Formed in London in '78 with Hynde, James Honeyman Scott, Martin Chambers, and Pete Farndon, the band received massive attention for that hit and other stellar songs from their 1980 self-titled debut album. Via impeccable musicianship and Hynde's charismatic persona-equal parts cool swagger, tough-but vulnerable lyrics and vocals, and idiosyncratic rhythm guitar-the Pretenders reinvented the concept of a woman in rock 'n' roll and became one of the most popular and distinctive acts in the world. Chrissie Hynde's singular presence has never ceased to build on their artistic legacy, chronicled now for the first time in Pirate Radio.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent overview of a rock 'n' roll survivor 4 1/2 stars, March 24, 2006

By 

WTDK "If at first the idea is not absurd, the... (My Little Blue Window, USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Pirate Radio (Bonus Dvd) (Audio CD)

The Pretenders catalog has needed to be upgraded for CD for a long time. They finally get their due with this sprawling but terrific boxed set. Although it is flawed (giving equal weight to all versions of the band doesn't do the band or Chrissie Hynde's songs justice. The first three albums are essential while later ones can be a bit hit or miss), these minor flaws are more than made up for by the collection of rarities included as well as the DVD performance of the band.

Disc 1 opens with songs recorded for their first two albums as the main focus. Their first album is well represented although some classic songs are overlooked. The rarities are terrific including the demo for "Precious", the single version of "The Wait" and a rare demo of "Watching the Clothes Go Round" which would eventually show up on the retooled line up's third album. "Cuban Slide" has always been a favorite of mine and this is only its second appearance on CD to the best of my knowledge (it appeared on a UK budget priced compilation a couple of years ago). The sound quality is stellar.

Disc 2 opens with the terrific ode to survival "Back on the Chain Gang" and goes through the highlights of their third album including "My City Was Gone" and "2000 Miles". We get an alternate version of "When I Change My Life" as well as "Worlds Within Worlds". We also get the cr?me of the crop from the fourth and fifth albums. This disc closes out with a superb cover of The Beatles' "Not a Second Time".

Disc 3 continues on with the stronger tracks from the fifth album by which point The Pretenders was Hynde and a group of session musicians. The sixth album found a solid band beyond Hynde including Adam Seymour (one of the songwriters and guitarist for the short lived English band The Katydids) original drummer Martin Chambers back in the fold after being dismissed and/or leaving with the band's fourth album. We also get a nice solid group of rarities/unreleased tracks including a cover of "Angel in the Morning" (which was a big hit for Juice Newton), "Every Mother's Son" a previously unreleased demo, "Private Life", "Revolution" (not The Beatles song) and "Lovers of Today" live.

Disc 4 takes us through to the band's last recordings for Warner Brothers/Sire and includes material from their post-Sire Cds as well. The last disc 5 is a DVD of the band performing their hits live and lip synching throughout the years. It's a nice companion piece to the CD. The booklet has great rare photos from throughout the band's career. As to another reviewers concerns about these rarities/unreleased tracks being re-released as part of their original albums upgraded, that's more than likely going to happen as that is exactly what Rhino did with the Talking Heads set from a couple of years ago. The good news is that this is a strong compilation of material and does have the highlights of the band's later, weaker albums as well as their stronger ones. If you can hold out wait for the re-releases so you can pick which ones you'd like to buy and then supplement them with a greatest hits package for the highlights of the lesser albums.

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Pretenders In A Box, March 14, 2006

By 

Thomas Magnum (NJ, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Pirate Radio (Bonus Dvd) (Audio CD)

Pirate Radio is a sprawling four disk box set (with a DVD also included) that has all the major hits plus rarities, demos and oddities expected from such a release. The music on the first two disks is classic stuff but the set wavers in the last two disks because it pays equal attention to all aspects of the band's career. That's not to say it is bad music, it pales to the band's glory days from 1979-1984. But the 1990's version of the band, which is still good, gets equal representation as the band's first two lineups which were among the greatest groups of the late 70's and mid 80's. The DVD contains live television performances and seeing the original lineup perform classics like "Tattooed Love Boys" and "Stop Your Sobbing" is well worth the viewing.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars FINALLY!, April 21, 2006

By 

Daniel L. Mohs (St. Louis, Missouri United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pirate Radio (Bonus Dvd) (Audio CD)

It takes record companies and/or bands so very long to condense a body of work into its greatest offerings. Not many go for these large disc sets, but they have proved to be well worthwhile in the long haul (see e.g. Tom Petty's "Rewind" and Stevie Windwood's similar box set).

If for nothing else, buy this for the distinctive mix of "Precious" --- Chrissie Hynde at her snarling, pissed off best --- "Porcelain" and the phenomenal "Cuban Slide." How these last two missed making the cut on at least one of their first three LPs beats me, but I've been waiting YEARS to find them on disc --- they were released on an EP that I believe was originally sold in the UK to promote their first LP.

Well worth the expense, not only for a good overview of the band through its many transitions and phases, but also for the rare cuts that prove they are/were one of the most important bands bridging punk rock to alternative music in the 1980s. Moreover, for you fans of distinctive female vocals and solo female artists, almost all owe a great deal to Chrissie Hynde for blazing a scorching path for their success.