The Pretenders: The Lillywhite Session

The Pretenders performed in Avatar Studios for a session produced by Steve Lillywhite. Courtesy of the artists hide caption

toggle caption

Courtesy of the artists

In the early '80s, The Pretenders ranked among the biggest bands around. The group has existed in various incarnations since then, all fronted by Chrissie Hynde, and now displays its new sound in an acoustic Lillywhite Session with producer Steve Lillywhite.

The band's latest release, Break Up the Concrete, was inspired by Hynde's Akron, Ohio, homecoming; she chats in this session about American society's renewed interest in the regional and local. On Break Up the Concrete, the new tunes owe more to rockabilly and Americana than does the band's essential pop catalog, but Pretenders fans should be thrilled with the fresh songs and Hynde's return to lead songwriting duties.

This segment originally ran Nov. 6, 2008.