AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Pretty Things

Artist:The Pretty Things

Song:Rainin' in My Heart

Album:Come See Me: The Very Best of the Pretty Things

In their early days, the British band The Pretty Things were probably too similar to The Rolling Stones to be successful. Later when they switched to psychedelia, personnel changes and record company shuffles killed them. But they are worth a listen. Phil May was the lead singer of The Pretty Things. He named them after the 1955 Bo Diddley song Pretty Thing. May was from Kent, England. He was attending Sidcup Art College in London in 1963 when he formed the band with guitarist Dick Taylor. He had been with The Rolling Stones before they recorded. He was squeezed out when Brian Jones joined the band as there were too many guitarists. Taylor was also from Kent and the two attended the same college. Both were blues fans. Other members were Brian Pendleton on guitar, John Stax on bass and Viv Prince on drums. Prince was known for his antics behind the drums. Fellow art college student Bryan Morrison became the band's manager and he got The Pretty Things a record deal with Fontana Records in 1964. The single Don't Bring Me Down reached #10 and Honey I Need reached #13 on the British Singles chart. They never charted in the US. The Pretty Things recorded three albums for Fontana. Rainin' in My Heart is from the 1965 album Get the Picture?. That was the second album. Rainin' in My Heart is a 1961 Slim Harpo song. Glyn Johns produced with Bobby Graham. May and Taylor wrote a few songs. But they liked to do blues covers. As I said, very similar to The Rolling Stones. Prince's antics behind the drums were getting so bad that he was replaced by Skip Alan. Then the rest of the band left leaving May and Taylor. The replacements were Wally Waller on bass, Jon Povey on bass and Twink on drums. They signed with EMI's Columbia label and Norman Smith produced the 1968 album S.F. Sorrow. This had more of a psychedelic sound. And though it didn't sell at the time, today it is highly regarded as a classic. It was released in the US on Motown's Rare Earth label. At this point, Taylor left The Pretty Things and was replaced by Victor Unitt from The Edgar Broughton Band. For most of the 70s, The Pretty Things recorded for Led Zeppelin's Swan Song label. Jimmy Page was a big fan. May continued the band for decades and Taylor returned in the 80s. They continued until May died on May 15, 2020 at age 75. This SHOUT! Factory comp is probably the most complete Pretty Things comp available. Here's The Pretty Things performing Rainin' in My Heart on the German TV show Beat-Club 1966.