Concert Review: The Pretenders at Nissan Live Sets

Shaking up the crowd of 400 at the Nissan Live stage on Monday evening, The Pretenders reminded us to pay no heed to the old myth about stars having 15 minutes of fame. No sir. No ma’am. Not Chrissie Hynde (featured right).

The Pretenders, who originated in 1977 and are led by the insatiable US-UK transplant, are still going strong and are the “Talk of the Town” (to throwback to a 1987 favorite) even in 2008.

In fact, though the median age of the crowd probably hovered in the mid-fifties, the group of five original members plus and minus a few, exuded a stage presence and inventive sound that was pure lyrical energy, and the crowd was feeling it.

On tour to promote their upcoming album, the Pretenders played both newbies and oldies, including the likes of “Back on the Chain Gang” and “Don’t Cut Your Hair” songs that, if a bit foreign to the young ear at first, soon revealed themselves as effortlessly enjoyable. And Chrissie was irresistible, sassy, confident, and rocking in knee-high suede boots and a bright red tee.

As one front row groupie exclaimed (he was middle-aged, bearded, clad in slacks),”Chrissie you look great!” Her response: “And what if I didn’t. You would still love me, right?”

Complemented by her powerful stage presences and the mesmerizing quick fingers of guitarist James Welbourne and bassist Nick Wilkinson, the new pedal steel of Eric Heywood, and the drumming of Jim Keltner—Hynde simply rocks, and it looks like the new album will too.

“Break Up the Concrete”will release October 7^th, under Shangri-La Music. In a countdown to the new album, free downloads are available on The Pretender’s official website.

Shortly, the concert will be available for online viewing on Yahoo Live.

Photo courtesy of boston.com.