The Pretender: Chrissie Hynde Turns 75

Chrissie Hynde, Akron, Ohio's first lady of London punk and one of the greatest voices in pop music, turns 75 today.

She landed in London in '73 knowing nobody, and she didn't wait around. Clerked at Westwood and McLaren's SEX shop, got tangled up in the punk scene before it even had a name, wrote songs with Mick Jones right before he went off and formed The Clash. Had a fling with Steve Jones. Asked Johnny Rotten to marry her just to stay in the country, and when he passed, Sid Vicious said yes, only the register office was closed that day.

Photo: Chrissie Hynde, photograph by Scarlet Page, personally signed by Chrissie Hynde at the London launch of Resonators at Proud Camden in 2015. She was kind to me.

Then Lemmy, a close friend from those broke years, pointed her to a drummer named Gas Wild that led her to Pete Farndon, who brought in James Honeyman Scott. Martin Chambers rounded it out. That was the band. Thanks Lemmy.

1978, The Pretenders. By January '80, 'Brass in Pocket' was number one in Britain.

Around then, she started a relationship with Ray Davies of The Kinks. Their daughter Natalie was born in 1983.

Then Honeyman Scott and Farndon were both dead within ten months of each other. She kept going anyway.

75 years old and still not giving a damn.

Her autobiography, Reckless: My Life as a Pretender, is one of the greatest music books you'll ever read, trust me.