Viva El Amor

Viva El Amor

Chrissie Hynde is back to kick some ass. Â¡Viva el Amor!, the Pretenders' first studio album since 1994's Last of the Independents, provides a reading on the singer's state of mind and relationships. Hynde and company--stalwart drummer Martin Chambers and an assortment of complementary players--take the energy level to breathtaking heights, especially on "Legalise Me," which matches Jeff Beck's incendiary guitar work against our heroine's rapid-fire delivery. Hynde shows that she can still sneer with the best of them on "Popstar," her biting send-up of late-'90s girl singers (and reportedly a roman Ã clef aimed in part at Patsy Kensit, who was once married to Hynde's former husband, Simple Minds' Jim Kerr). "Baby's Breath" skewers a young lover and showcases her sangfroid vocals at their chilling best. Hynde pours on more vitriol in "Biker," the record's final cut, which pairs steel-hard lyrics with an incongruously sweet string section. Nearly two decades after the release of the Pretenders' landmark debut, the Great Pretender is still feeling feisty. --Jaan Uhelszki
Country USA
Manufacturer Warner Records
Binding Audio CD
ItemPartNumber MFR093624734222#N
ReleaseDate 1999-06-22
UnitCount 1
UPCs 093624734222
EANs 0093624734222

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