Chrissie Hynde discusses her early inspirations and “number one hero”
When it comes to inspiring women and young girls aspiring to form bands in the rock and roll scene, there’s one notable figure: Chrissie Hynde, the powerful frontwoman of The Pretenders. With a career spanning various bands, more than you could pack into a punk gig lineup, Hynde is a well-versed authority on fellow luminaries.
Growing up in Ohio, Hynde defied convention in her own unique way. Academic pursuits failed to captivate her, and attending school dances held no interest. She didn’t date either; her admiration for iconic figures such as Brian Jones and Iggy Pop rendered her indifferent to the boys around her at the time. Instead, her sole wellspring of delight lay in attending live performances by bands in Cleveland. “I had bigger things in mind,” Hynde said.
The first album that she ever owned was Meet The Beatles, and being in a band was something she eagerly anticipated. “So I bought a ukulele,” she recalled, “Then I got into the whole hippy band culture thing, listening to bands like Moby Grape, Buffalo Springfield, Jefferson Airplane, The Velvet Underground and some of the British bands like The Rolling Stones and The Kinks.”
While many of her inspirations were discovered locally, they ended up shaping her entire life and career. “I didn’t become a mad-keen Iggy Pop fan ’til I discovered David Bowie,” she says. “I saw the first gig that David did in the States, when he came to Ohio – I was at the soundcheck. He really got me refocused.”
Hynde also cited Jeff Beck as a significant influence: “I hope to play like him”. A real turning point came, however, when she heard Bowie’s Hunky Dory, which put her “right back to where I was when I was 14 again”. Bowie served as the perfect gateway to discovering Pop, who she says could now be described as her “No. 1 hero”.
Then, prepped, ready to go, and armed with a list of favourite musical luminaries, Hynde moved to London to pursue her own dreams in music. However, her departure from Ohio wasn’t solely motivated by her musical ambitions. “I moved out of Akron because there was no downtown area in the 60s,” she told Guitar, “You couldn’t move downtown and get an apartment. It was all mall culture.”
After relocating, she didn’t know anybody or much about the music scene – and a lot of her time was spent attempting to create the next big thing. However, after forming The Pretenders in 1978, the punk movement was in full swing, and Hynde became a prominent figure within the same circles as Johnny Rotten and Sid Vicious.
