How Chrissie Hynde pursued her dream of becoming a guitar hero
For most people, having a definite vision of their future career path typically develops later in life. However, for Chrissie Hynde, her passion and calling were evident from the very beginning: she was determined to immerse herself in the music scene and lead a life in the spotlight.
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.”
Hynde was also a huge James Brown fan due to her love for rhythm guitar. However, most of her influences at the time were ones that she discovered locally. “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.”
In 1973, Hynde moved to London to pursue her dreams in music. Nevertheless, 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.
As a guitar player, Hynde recalls being “alone in my room most of the time”, which led to her writing songs just so she would have something to play along to. “Then I realised that I liked to sing,” she adds, “And with just a few chords there are possibilities for melodies – and I kind of stuck there.” In fact, her prowess as a guitarist and lyricist mostly came to the fore later in her work with The Pretenders, with the two closely intertwining to create their signature sound.
Before forming The Pretenders, however, Hynde was already developing her guitar prowess within a couple of bands while trying to make her way as a musician – but, after meeting Pete Farndon and forming a band with James Honeyman-Scott and Martin Chambers, history essentially wrote itself. Her style became more refined, and their songs often incorporated a funk-inspired guitar sound. As the band’s lead vocalist and guitarist, her work also frequently features a jangly and clean sound, which is a hallmark of the band’s music.
Although she isn’t typically discussed in the context of the world’s most revered guitar virtuosos, her guitar playing complements the melodies and lyrics of her songs, adding depth and texture to the music. Her talent as a guitarist also stems from an inherent confidence and ability to be yourself, no matter what.
As a woman in the punk scene, it might have been difficult to stake your claim in male-dominated spaces, but Hynde handled it with grace. As she once put it: “I had good tunes, and I always brought out the best performances in the people around me. […] Anyone can pick up a guitar and go. I never felt any discrimination. Actually, I think it was easier back then for me, being that I was the odd one out, or the ‘novelty’.”
