The Pretty Things was preceded by Little Boy Blue and the Blue Boys which consisted of Dick Taylor, fellow Sidcup Art College student Keith Richards, and Mick Jagger. When Brian Jones joined Little Boy Blue and the Blues Boys as guitarist, Taylor was pushed from playing guitar to bass and the Rolling Stones were formed.
Several months later Dick Taylor (born Richard Clifford Taylor, 28 January 1943, in Dartford, Kent) quit the newly formed Rolling Stones to pursue his schooling when he was accepted at London Central School of Art, where he met up with Phil May (born Phillip Arthur Dennis Kattner, on 9 November 1944, in Dartford, Kent: died 15 May 2020) and they formed Pretty Things.
Taylor was once again playing his preferred guitar with May singing and playing harmonica. They recruited Brian Pendleton (born 13 April 1944 in Wolverhampton–died 16 May 2001 in Maidstone, Kent) on rhythm guitar; John Stax (born John Edward Lee Fullegar, 6 April 1944 in Crayford, Kent) on bass; and, after trying a couple of different drummers, including Pete Kitley and Viv Andrews, stuck with Viv Prince (born Vivian St John Prince, 9 August 1944, in Loughborough, Leices).
Early career
They caused a sensation in England, and their first three singles — "Rosalyn" #41, "Don't Bring Me Down" #10, and the self-penned "Honey I Need" at #13 — appeared in the UK singles chart in 1964-1965. They never had a hit in the United States, but had considerable success in their native United Kingdom and in Australia, New Zealand, Germany, and the Netherlands in the middle of the decade. However, in the U.S. they, along with The Yardbirds and Van Morrison's Them, were a huge influence on hundreds of garage bands, including the MC5 and The Seeds.
Their early material was hard-edged blues-rock influenced by Bo Diddley (they took their name from Diddley's 1955 song "Pretty Thing" in humorous contrast to their unkempt long-haired appearance) and Jimmy Reed, much like that of their contemporaries The Stones and The Yardbirds. They were known for wild "rock and roll" behaviour and shocking the establishment; their song "Midnight to Six Man" defined the mod lifestyle. Around this time, the first of what would be many personnel changes over the years also began, with Prince the first to go late in 1965. He was replaced by Skip Alan. Pendleton left late in 1966, and was not initially replaced. Then, Stax quit early in 1967 and Jon Povey and Wally Waller joined to make the band a five piece once again.
After an uncomfortable flirtation with mainstream pop on the Emotions album in 1967, they embraced psychedelia, producing the groundbreaking concept album S.F. Sorrow during 1967-68. This album, released in late 1968, is arguably one of the first rock operas, preceding The Who's Tommy by about a year. It was recorded in the legendary Abbey Road Studios six months after The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and Pink Floyd's The Piper at the Gates of Dawn. Each album shares a similar forward-thinking late-1960s psychedelic sound (as well as sharing the same record producer, Norman Smith, as the Floyd). S.F. Sorrow was followed by the highly-acclaimed record album Parachute, which continued the psychedelic sound and was named "Album of the Year" in 1970 by Rolling Stone Magazine. During this period they also recorded an album for a young French millionaire, Philippe DeBarge, which was intended only to be circulated among the man's social circle. The acetate has since been bootlegged.
Later career
From this point on, the group enjoyed less in the way of commercial success, but the devotion of a strong cult following, especially with critics and other rock musicians. Their material in the early 1970s tended towards more the hard rock and early heavy metal end of the spectrum, although still blues-based, on albums like Silk Torpedo. 1980's Cross Talk saw them incorporating influences of punk and New Wave into their hard rock sound; like most of their records, it was an artistic but not a commercial success.
With a new manager, Mark St John, they gigged sporadically during the 1980s. By the end of the decade their profile had almost disappeared, when founder members Phil May and Dick Taylor reformed the band for a successful European blues tour in late 1990 with Stan Webb's Chicken Shack and Luther Allison. This gigging outfit included drummer Hans Waterman (formerly of Dutch rock group Solution), bassist Roelf ter Velt and guitarist/keyboardist Barkley McKay (Waco Brothers and Pine Valley Cosmonaut's with Jon Langford of Mekon Fame). This line up regularly toured the European mainland playing a revitalised set that show cased their earlier, rootsy blues and r'n'b materiel, until late 1994. By 1995, they reformed the Cross Talk line-up and added Frank Holland on guitar in place of Peter Tolson. Their label, Snapper Music, issued remastered CDs with many bonus tracks, plus a DVD of a re-recording of S.F. Sorrow at Abbey Road Studios (with Dave Gilmour & Arthur Brown guesting). They toured more frequently, including a tour of the U.S. for the first time in decades
Original rhythm guitarist Brian Pendleton died of lung cancer on May 16, 2001.
In the early 2000's, they released new recordings, including a live album and the studio album Rage Before Beauty.
In 2003, Alan Lakey's biography of the band, Growing Old Disgracefully, was published by Firefly. The book dealt with the long and involved history of the band, and paid special attention to the legal proceedings issued against EMI in the 1990s.
The band did their final tour in 2018.
A House in the Country
The Pretty Things Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
At work he is invariably unpleasant and unkind.
Why should he care if he is hated in his stately home,
'Cause he's got a house in the country, yeah,
And a big sports car.
He's got a house in the country,
And a big sports car.
And he's as wicked as he can be,
He's got a house in the country
Where he likes to spend his weekend days.
He likes to drive people in his office 'round the bend
[???] his secretary's mopping [???]
He's got the cash, he can afford just what he likes
He's got a house in the country, yeah
And a big sports car
He's got a house in the country,
And a big sports car
But he's socially dead, oh no,
It doesn't matter much to him,
He's got a house in the country
Where he likes to spend his weekend days.
Oh yeah, oh yeah, all right!
Well, he got his job when drunken Daddy tumbled down the stairs.
From that day this boy is having more than his share.
One of these days I'm gonna knock him off his throne,
See, he's got a house in the country, yeah,
And a big sports car.
He's got a house in the country, yeah
And a big sports car.
And he's oh so smug, oh yeah,
It doesn't matter much to him
'Cause he's got a house in the country
Where he likes to spend his weekend days.
Oh yeah, oh yeah, well all right
House in the country
A house in the country
A house in the country
A house in the country
The lyrics of The Pretty Things’s song “A House in the Country” revolve around a rich and obnoxious man who finds solace in his house in the country and expensive sports car. The opening lines, “He don't need no sedatives to ease his troubled mind. At work he is invariably unpleasant and unkind” set the tone for the rest of the song. The subject is portrayed as someone who is unhappy and troubled. He uses his wealth and status to belittle those around him, which is apparent in the line “Why should he care if he is hated in his stately home”. It further emphasises how disconnected he is from the people in his life, including family and coworkers.
The chorus, “He's got a house in the country, yeah, and a big sports car” is repeated several times, suggesting that the material possessions are his only sources of happiness. However, the songs also shows how he does not have a “home”. Despite living in luxury, the man is internally unfulfilled, which is evident in the line, “But he ain't got a home, oh no, and he's as wicked as he can be”. The line “He's socially dead, oh no” captures the theme of loneliness and isolation, which he blankly accepts in return for his lavish lifestyle. The song concludes with hints of a potential uprising when the singer sings “One of these days I'm gonna knock him off his throne”, suggesting that people around him are fed up with his behaviour and looking for a way to take him down.
Line by Line Meaning
He don't need no sedatives to ease his troubled mind.
He doesn't need any medication to calm him down, even though he has a lot on his mind.
At work he is invariably unpleasant and unkind.
He's always in a bad mood while working and tends to treat others poorly.
Why should he care if he is hated in his stately home,
He doesn't care if people dislike him at his fancy house.
'Cause he's got a house in the country, yeah,
And a big sports car.
He's satisfied with the fact that he has a house in the countryside and owns a luxurious car.
But he ain't got a home, oh no,
He may have a house, but he doesn't have a real home since he lives alone or doesn't have a warm family environment.
And he's as wicked as he can be,
He's behaving as wickedly as possible without feeling any remorse.
He's got a house in the country
Where he likes to spend his weekend days.
He loves spending his weekend days in his home in the countryside.
He likes to drive people in his office 'round the bend
He delights in irritating and upsetting his coworkers.
[???] his secretary's mopping [???]
Probably an obscure or unclear line, so it's hard to tell its intended meaning.
He's got the cash, he can afford just what he likes
He can afford to buy anything he wants because he has enough money.
But he's socially dead, oh no,
Even though he's wealthy and has everything he wants, he's not socially engaged and doesn't have a strong social circle.
Well, he got his job when drunken Daddy tumbled down the stairs.
Probably an allusion to how he got his job due to a family connection or a fortunate event.
From that day this boy is having more than his share.
He has been living a life of excess since the day he got his job, probably due to the salary and benefits he receives.
One of these days I'm gonna knock him off his throne,
Someone who dislikes him intends to oust him from his powerful position.
And he's oh so smug, oh yeah,
He's feeling extremely self-satisfied and pleased with himself.
'Cause he's got a house in the country
Where he likes to spend his weekend days.
The main reason behind his smugness is because he enjoys spending his weekends at his luxurious country house.
House in the country
Repeating the song's title.
A house in the country
Repeating the song's title.
A house in the country
Repeating the song's title.
A house in the country
Repeating the song's title.
Contributed by Audrey W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@armjos1
Brilliant band
@losgirosbanda
Great cover
@gaskellr44
Ime finding more and more great songs that have been written by R D, awsome social commentator.
@maximumrnb66
Quality đź‘Ś
@kinkybeatle6740
Great track, penned by a great guy, played by a great band !
@shorelineboy
brilliant, i saw these guys the last time was in 1968 over the Isle of Wight during their phycadelic years brilliant and crazy) but i loved their earlier stuff also. thanks
@ALANT4T
LOVED THIS SINCE THIS FIRST CAME OUT R/B AT ITS BEST GREAT BAND
@merseymain
Superb
@merseymained
@ModZeb1967- EXCELLENT
@thiaanthony
Good!!