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.
No Future
The Pretty Things Lyrics
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Do you remember last night
It was a party, down on the block,
Honey do you think that was right
Is it so easy for married women to hide their
Rings in their coat pocket
Take out a youth from some scene, and really
Think they really got it.
Take it, eat it, put it in your pocket
Honey leave the rest of me behind
Take it, eat it, put it in your pocket
Handbag or something of that kind.
Is that your old man on the dresser,
Honey turn his face to the wall
I can't perform, perform in these conditions,
Honey I can't perform at all
I can't believe that someone like you
Could really take someone like me
Can you believe in grandsons or grandchildren,
Honey can this really be
You got no future.
Is it so easy to take me to your country home
Is it so easy to leave
What do you think I do for a living,
Honey won't you look at my sleeve
Hole is there it's poking right through,
Elbows and even the bone
Don't you believe someone like me
Really has some kind of home
You like her a lot, you need some more,
But then pour me a drink, and close that door,
I'm dressed real sharp, sharp enough for you,
I can see the place we're going to.
No future.
The Pretty Things's song "No Future" tells a story of a man who is used by a married woman for her own pleasure without any regard for his feelings or future. The woman seems to be living a life of deception, hiding her wedding ring and taking advantage of the man's naive love for her. She takes him to her country home with no intention of building a future with him or considering the consequences of her actions. She shows no empathy or compassion for his struggles, such as his poverty and ill-fitting clothing.
The lyrics also touch on themes of power dynamics and class struggle, as the woman is seen as superior due to her wealth and status, while the man is seen as inferior due to his poverty and lower class. The woman seems to be using him as a form of escapism from her mundane married life and perhaps even to boost her ego. The man, on the other hand, is hopelessly in love and willing to overlook these red flags.
Line by Line Meaning
Honey remember me, I'm the one you brought home
Addressing a married woman, the singer reminds them of their last encounter where they were taken to their home.
Do you remember last night
The singer questions if the married woman recollects the events of their previous meeting.
It was a party, down on the block,
The singer describes the last encounter as a party that happened in a nearby area.
Honey do you think that was right
The artist asks the married woman if she thinks it was appropriate to bring them to her home.
Is it so easy for married women to hide their
The artist asks if it's convenient for married women to hide their wedding rings in their coat pockets to pursue extramarital affairs.
Rings in their coat pocket
The singer is referring to the act of hiding wedding rings in coat pockets.
Take out a youth from some scene, and really
The singer talks about the temptation of middle-aged married women to associate with younger men and believe that they have 'got it.'
Think they really got it.
The artist is skeptical of the belief of married women that they can compete with younger women.
Take it, eat it, put it in your pocket
The artist addresses the married woman to take what they want from the relationship and keep it for themselves.
Honey leave the rest of me behind
The artist is asking the married woman not to become emotionally attached to them.
Handbag or something of that kind.
The singer suggests the married woman could use their handbag to store whatever they want from the affair.
Is that your old man on the dresser,
The artist inquires about the picture of the married woman's husband placed on the dresser.
Honey turn his face to the wall
The singer requests the married woman to turn her husband's picture around to avoid any unpleasant feelings during their interaction.
I can't perform, perform in these conditions,
The singer implies their inability to engage in any physical activity in the current setting.
Honey I can't perform at all
The singer is explicitly stating that they can't indulge in sexual activity under current circumstances.
I can't believe that someone like you
The artist expresses disbelief that someone as attractive as the married woman would notice them.
Could really take someone like me
The artist is doubtful about the married woman's motives and intentions towards them.
Can you believe in grandsons or grandchildren,
The singer wonders if the married woman has the intelligence to think about future generations in their actions.
Honey can this really be
The singer is questioning the authenticity of the married woman's feelings towards them.
You got no future.
The artist tells the married woman that they have no future together.
Is it so easy to take me to your country home
The artist is enquiring if it's convenient for the married woman to take them to their home away from the city.
Is it so easy to leave
The artist is questioning if the married woman has no attachment to their current place of stay or life.
What do you think I do for a living,
The singer asks the married woman if they have any idea about their profession.
Honey won't you look at my sleeve
The artist is requesting the married woman to have a closer look at their shirt sleeve.
Hole is there it's poking right through,
The singer is showing the holes in their shirt sleeve, indicative of their poor financial status.
Elbows and even the bone
The singer is using hyperbole to indicate the dire state of their clothes.
Don't you believe someone like me
The singer is questioning if the married woman can genuinely believe in them, considering their poor appearance.
Really has some kind of home
The artist is wondering if the married woman can comprehend their living condition.
You like her a lot, you need some more,
The artist is questioning the emotional and sexual void in the married woman's life hence, their need to have affairs.
But then pour me a drink, and close that door,
The singer is asking the married woman for intimacy while also ensuring discretion.
I'm dressed real sharp, sharp enough for you,
The singer emphasizes their physical appearance, trying to lure the married woman into a relationship.
I can see the place we're going to.
The artist senses the direction of the future of their relationship.
No future.
The artist indicates that their relationship has no future or direction.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: PHILIP MAY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind