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.
Road Runner
The Pretty Things Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Well I'm a road runner, honey
I bet you can't keep up with me
Well I'm a road runner, man
I bet you can't keep up with me
Ah, you'll never gonna catch me baby
Well I'm a road runner man
And I'm gonna keep ahead of you
Well I'm a road runner man
And I'm gonna keep ahead of you
Ah, you'll never gonna catch me baby
Doing the things that you do
Ah, here it comes now
Watch me!
Take my hand baby
Gonna show you
I'm a road running man
I'm gonna show you something
I'm the fastest still alive
Now lean you back
Hear I come
Well I'm a road runner, honey
I bet you can't keep up with me
Well I'm a road runner, man
And I bet you can't keep up with me
Well you'll never gonna catch me baby
Baby, baby, you will see
Well I'm a road runner, honey
I'm gonna keep ahead of you
Yeah I'm a road runner, honey
I'm gonna keep ahead of you
You'll never gonna catch me baby
Doing the things that you do
Here, take my hand baby
Didn't think you fast, make it last
I'm going to put you down Yeah!
I'll see you someday
Someday baby hanging around
The lyrics to The Pretty Things's song Roadrunner are about a man who considers himself to be a road runner - fast and free, and someone who cannot be caught or restrained. The repetition of the phrase "I'm a road runner, honey" emphasizes the singer's conviction in his speed and agility. He challenges his partner to try and keep up with him, claiming that they will never catch him no matter how hard they try. The repeated warning of "you'll never gonna catch me baby" expresses the singer's desire for freedom and independence.
The lyrics also include some sexual innuendo, as the singer offers to "take [his] hand baby" and show his partner something. The line "Didn't think you fast, make it last" could be interpreted as a suggestion that the singer is encouraging his partner to keep up with him in a physical sense.
Overall, the song is about the thrill of speed and the desire for freedom and independence, both in a literal and metaphorical sense.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm a road runner, honey
I am a fast runner, my dear
Well I'm a road runner, honey
I am still a fast runner, my dear
I bet you can't keep up with me
I challenge you to catch up with me
Well I'm a road runner, man
I am a man who runs fast
Ah, you'll never gonna catch me baby
You will never be able to catch me, my sweetie
Baby, baby, you will see
Just wait and watch, my dear
And I'm gonna keep ahead of you
I will always be ahead of you
Doing the things that you do
Even if you try copying my style, you can't match up to me
Ah, here it comes now
Watch my speed now
Take my hand baby
Join me, my love
Gonna show you
I am going to demonstrate to you
I'm gonna show you something
I have a unique set of skills
I'm the fastest still alive
I am the fastest runner in the world
Now lean you back
Relax and hold on tight
Well I'm a road runner, man
I'm still a fast runner, my dear
Here, take my hand baby
Don't be scared, hold my hand
Didn't think you fast, make it last
You are faster than I thought, let's keep this pace
I'm going to put you down Yeah!
I will leave you behind, yeah!
I'll see you someday
We will meet again sometime
Someday baby hanging around
Someday, we'll be together again
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Ellas McDaniel
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Staggtastic
Alan Skipper (Skip Alan) on the drums. Absolute legend.👌
VirreFriberg
These unhinged drummers like Skip Alan, Keith Moon and Viv Prince have always been my favorite.
Guillermo Ramirez
His vocals live on forever, rip Phil ❤️
L haley
I can't say they were ahead of everybody else, but they rode the nose of their board and had a raw element to their performance. Tonight is the first I've heard of them and listened to 3 songs. Main stream radio sucks!
Michael Dark
They were much RAWER than most of the other band's of the time.
Larry Carr
We’ll said…
Richard K
Check out their album Silk Torpedo @ mid seventies.
Gerardo P
Los ví actuar en Alicante/Spain hace unos 10 años,con P.May y D.Taylor todavia,esplendidos,electrizantes
Tom C
Their original drummer was Viv Prince, the real inspiration for Keith Moon.
VirreFriberg
This drummer is Skip Alan who played on some of Donovans albums