Song · The Pretenders
“Precious” by The Pretenders
From the album Pretenders (1980)
“Precious” by The Pretenders appears on 8 radio countdowns from 6 stations between 1989 and 2024. It was first released in 1980 on the album Pretenders. Its best result is #68 on the WFNX Top 101 Songs of the Decade (December 1989). In the combined RockLists rankings it is #3,131 alternative song of all time.
Watch
Video from YouTube (The Pretenders - Topic). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube
"Precious" kicks down the door on Pretenders, the band's first album, and it was the first thing Chrissie Hynde, bassist Pete Farndon and guitarist James Honeyman-Scott ever played with newly recruited drummer Martin Chambers at their first rehearsal together. You can hear that jolt of discovery all over it.
Hynde wrote a punk-fired snarl and spits the words in a jittery rush of slang, stutters, baby talk and growls, caught somewhere between desire and contempt, while Honeyman-Scott's woozy, phase-shifted guitar slashes across a pounding beat. Chris Thomas produced and Bill Price engineered and mixed, keeping it raw and close. Critics have since held it up as the song that announced exactly who Hynde was.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Indie & Adult Alternative
All Rock Formats
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 68 | WFNX | WFNX Top 101 Songs of the Decade (December 1989) | 101 |
| 1989 | 214 | WOXY 97X | WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1989) | 500 |
| 1991 | 228 | WOXY 97X | WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1991) | 500 |
| 1999 | 312 | CFNY 102.1 The Edge | CFNY Top 1002 Songs of All-Time (November 1999) | 1002 |
| 2003 | 1600 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) | 2044 |
| 2009 | 518 | WXPN | WXPN 885 Desert Island Songs (2009) | 885 |
| 2020 | 734 | WXPN | WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time | 2020 |
| 2024 | 155 | KEXP | The Best Opening Tracks of All Time | 738 |
Comments
Log in or create a free account to join the conversation about "Precious" by The Pretenders.
No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.