Take Five: The Pretty Things

When The Pretty Things came on the music scene in 1965, they quickly earned a reputation as being “harder than the Rolling Stones.” The London group had an actual connection to the Stones: both groups came from London suburb Sidcup, Kent. And guitarist Dick Taylor had been in one of the Stones’ earliest lineups. But on their own, the Pretties – with lead vocalist Phil May – created some of the era’s most enduring music.

The Pretty Things were one of only a handful of high profile British groups that wouldn’t find Stateside success, but they left behind an impressive body of work nonetheless. Working as themselves, under pseudonyms and even as a backing group for a playboy millionaire, The Pretty Things deserved far wider success than they received. In celebration of the 60th anniversary of the release of their self-titled debut LP, here are five must-hear tunes from The Pretty Things.

“Road Runner” from The Pretty Things (1965)
The Pretties’ reputation as a rougher, rawer Rolling Stones was built in part upon their first single. “Road Runner” was a cover by the group’s hero and major inspiration, Elias “Bo Diddley” McDaniel. (The group took its name from Bo’s 1955 song “Pretty Thing.”) Released as a single, the song reached #11 in the Netherlands, but its influence far outpaced its chart action. The clip below captures a wild performance of the song for the influential and landmark West German TV program Beat-Club.

“She Says Good Morning” from S.F. Sorrow (1968)
It may never be settled whether or not The Pretty Things’ S.F. Sorrow influenced or inspired the Who’s Tommy. What is known is that The Pretty Things made the first rock opera, though its release would be delayed until after Tommy was on record store shelves. The song cycle chronicling the life of Private Sorrow received tepid reviews on its release – reviewers felt the band was bandwagon-jumping on Tommy’s success! – but it’s now recognized as a pioneering and important work.

“The Good Mr. Square” from Parachute (1970)
Among serious fans of the group, Parachute is sometimes described as The Pretty Things’ own Abbey Road. It did find the band on the crest of a creative wave, with top-notch songs and superb production. “The Good Mr. Square” is among the album’s most well-known tracks, but the entire album is classic and worthy of rediscovery. This track showcases The Pretty Things’ way with a subtle melody and arrangement.

“Alexander” from Philippe DeBarge’s Rock St. Trop (2017)
Exactly how it all happened remains a bit vague, but at some point The Pretty Things were put in contact with French tycoon Philippe DeBarge. This gent, it seemed, had rock star aspirations as well as the funds needed to finance a kind of “fantasy rock camp” project for himself years before such a thing became commonplace. The Pretty Things played along, showing up with a fistful of great songs. And as it happened, DeBarge could actually sing. The session tapes circulated for decades as a bootleg, but received official release – and reissue – in the 21st century. “Alexander” eventually found its way into The Pretties’ own set list; it was too good to give away completely.

“It’ll Never be Me” by The Electric Banana (1969)
To pay the bills, The Pretty Things took on yet another side hustle. Writing and recording songs for the deWolfe Film Library, the group created four albums’ worth of music for use in motion pictures. On at least one occasion, the band – having adopted the pseudonym The Electric Banana for the project – was also called upon to mime onscreen to one of those tracks. The Norman Wisdom comedy vehicle What’s Good for the Goose featured The Pretties onstage in their late-sixties finery, cranking out a wonderful slice of hard rock-meets-psychedelia.