The Pretty Things

Emerging from the Beat and British Invasion period, the Pretty Things ranked among the most formidable and acclaimed acts, placing them with the foremost British R&B outfits of the 1960s. On the commercial side, observers often treated them as also-rans, discussed more than heard, particularly beyond Great Britain, because many key albums stayed unavailable in other markets until years later. Devotees gravitated either to their ferocious early sides, which at times positioned them as a harsher counterpart to the Rolling Stones, or to their 1968 psychedelic landmark S.F. Sorrow. Initially the Pretty Things appeared positioned as competitors to the Rolling Stones, an association that followed logically: guitarist Dick Taylor had played bass in the Stones’ earliest lineup before joining Phil May to establish the Pretties in 1963. Adopting their name from a Bo Diddley song, the Pretty Things cultivated an intentionally rough image, delivering a raw sound, sporting hair longer than most peers, and projecting a disheveled appearance. Their opening singles “Rosalyn” and “Don’t Bring Me Down” reached the charts in 1964, while the self-titled debut LP climbed into the U.K. Top Ten the following year, marking the height of their mainstream performance. Although the Pretty Things rarely appeared on charts, their following proved influential: accounts credit S.F. Sorrow with prompting Pete Townshend to create Tommy for the Who, and David Bowie included covers of both “Rosalyn” and “Don’t Bring Me Down” on his 1973 album Pin Ups. The Pretty Things endured, persisting through the 1970s as a tougher, weightier unit that achieved modest U.S. traction when 1974’s Silk Torpedo and 1976’s Savage Eye entered the lower chart reaches; they also delivered a credible new-wave set, Cross Talk, in 1980. The group disbanded shortly afterward, yet their following stayed loyal, and they resumed activity on an occasional basis at the start of the new millennium, reuniting at intervals for tours and recordings. Their opening pair of albums, 1965’s The Pretty Things and Get the Picture?, represent the peak of their R&B phase; 1968’s S.F. Sorrow serves as their psychedelic milestone; 1970’s Parachute blends psychedelia, pop, and hard rock; 1999’s Rage… Before Beauty marked a return demonstrating continued credible rocking; and 2020’s Bare as Bone, Bright as Blood offered a bluesy acoustic exploration that showed them testing fresh approaches to the close.

Such staying power would have appeared improbable when Dick Taylor and Phil May assembled the band in 1963. Taylor had performed with Mick Jagger in the London group Little Boy Blue & the Blue Boys since school days and later encountered Keith Richards at Sidcup Art School. In 1962, Taylor, Jagger, and Richards resumed playing under the Little Boy Blue & the Blue Boys name, adding Brian Jones and Ian Stewart, and that ensemble evolved into the Rolling Stones, though Taylor grew weary of bass duties and departed to focus on art. Soon afterward, fellow Sidcup Art School student Phil May persuaded him to launch the Pretty Things. The pair recruited bassist John Stax, guitarist Brian Pendleton, and drummer Pete Kitley; Kitley soon gave way to Viv Prince. Bryan Morrison, also studying at the art school with Taylor and May, managed the band and secured their Fontana contract.

“Rosalyn,” the first single, reached number 41 in 1964, yet “Don’t Bring Me Down” climbed to number ten and “Honey I Need” peaked at number 13 in 1965. These three releases propelled the self-titled debut to number six on the U.K. album charts, though success brought instability. Drummer Prince exited near the end of 1965 and was replaced by Skip Alan, while the 1966 album Get the Picture? found the raw, ragged rock & roll outfit assuming a mild pop-art stance.

Further personnel shifts followed: Pendleton and Stax departed by early 1967, with John Povey and Wally Waller stepping in, and Fontana steered the group toward a gentler, string-laden sound for that year’s Emotions. The album failed to chart, after which the Pretty Things lost drummer Alan and moved to EMI’s Columbia, where they cut what many regard as their masterpiece, S.F. Sorrow. Released at the close of 1968, S.F. Sorrow stands in several respects as the first rock opera, attracting a devoted cult audience without large sales.

Dick Taylor departed after S.F. Sorrow, guitarist Victor Unitt, formerly of the Edgar Broughton Band, taking his spot, and Alan rejoined. This lineup first supported French playboy Philippe DeBarge in his rock & roll venture, recordings long unreleased until 2010; they also recorded anonymously for the music library company De Wolfe, producing film music later reissued as Electric Banana. Amid these projects, the next major Pretty Things release arrived with 1970’s Parachute, which earned praise yet little commercial return.

Lack of success prompted a temporary split, yet they reformed under a Warner contract that began with Freeway Madness in 1972. They then partnered with manager Peter Grant, the force behind Led Zeppelin, and landed on Swan Song, which issued Silk Torpedo in 1974 and Savage Eye in 1976. These tougher, heavier albums achieved greater American success than any earlier Pretty Things LP, though not enough to sustain the group, which dissolved in 1976.

A complete reunion of Phil May and Dick Taylor occurred in 1980 when they recorded Cross Talk, a respectable new-wave effort that failed to sell. They parted again, yet May and Taylor began performing regularly under assorted names, including a collaboration with Yardbirds drummer Jim McCarty during the 1990s. Approaching the new millennium, they undertook special projects such as a revival of S.F. Sorrow, then cut the new album Rage… Before Beauty in 1999. Reissues and biographies appeared in the 2000s, along with one further album, 2007’s Balboa Island, while the band continued touring.

The Pretty Things marked their 50th anniversary with European and U.K. tours in 2013 and the career-spanning box Bouquets from a Cloudy Sky in 2015. The box appeared during a challenging period, as Phil May faced a serious health scare in 2014 with a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease diagnosis that affected breathing. After quitting smoking and improving his lifestyle, May recovered sufficiently to begin a new Pretty Things album with Taylor, guitarist Frank Holland, bassist George Woosey, and drummer Jack Greenwood; late 2015 brought enthusiastic reviews for The Sweet Pretty Things (Are in Bed Now, Of Course…) and accompanying European and U.K. tours.

In 2018 the Pretty Things declared retirement, citing touring demands and May’s continuing health issues. On December 13, 2018, they performed what was announced as their final concert at Indigo at the O2 Arena in London. Special guests David Gilmour and Van Morrison appeared onstage, joined by former members Skip Alan, John Povey, and Wally Waller. The event was preserved in the elaborate box The Final Bow, containing two CDs, two DVDs, a 10" vinyl EP, and a 52-page hardback book. Despite the apparent closure, Dick Taylor remarked during the preceding tour that the band might accept festival offers “if anyone twists our arm enough and offers us enough cash, basically.” Phil May died on May 15, 2020, at a hospital in King’s Lynn, Norfolk, England, from complications after hip surgery; he was 75. At the time of his death the Pretty Things had finished their first all-acoustic album, and the bluesy, reflective Bare as Bone, Bright as Blood appeared in September 2020.