Day After Day #338: 2000 Miles

Day After Day is an ambitious attempt to write about a song every day in 2024 (starting on Jan. 4).

2000 Miles (1983)

The Pretenders had a meteoric rise in the early '80s, bursting out of the gate with a near-perfect debut album. They followed that up with a strong second album in August 1981, but the problems started soon afterward. Bassist Pete Farndon was fired in June 1982 for excessive drug use, and just two days later, guitarist James Honeyman-Scott died of heart failure because of cocaine intolerance. Less than a year after that, Farndon was found dead in his bathtub after taking cocaine and passing out. 

Before Farndon's death, bandleader Chrissie Hynde and drummer Martin Chambers had chosen to move forward with the band and teamed with Big Country bassist Tony Butler and ex-Rockpile guitarist Billy Bremner to release the excellent single "Back on the Chain Gang" and its B-side "My City Was Gone," both of which became popular ("Chain Gang" went all the way to #5 on the Billboard Hot 100). They brought in guitarist Robbie McIntosh and bassist Malcolm Foster as permanent members and recorded their third album, Learning to Crawl, in late '82. 

The first single from the album, "Middle of the Road," was released in November 1983, with "2000 Miles" as its B-side; in the U.K., "2000 Miles" was released as a single. Ostensibly about two lovers missing each other at Christmas, "2000 Miles" could also be interpreted as a tribute to Honeyman-Scott.

"He's gone/2000 miles/Is very far/The snow is falling down/Gets colder day by day/I miss you/The children were singing/He'll be back at Christmastime."

McIntosh wrote a lilting guitar riff that gives the song a timeless and dare I say Christmas-y feel.

"In these frozen and silent nights/Sometimes in a dream, you appear/Outside under the purple sky/Diamonds in the snow sparkle/Our hearts were singing/It felt like Christmastime/Two thousand miles is very far in the snow/I'll think of you/Wherever you go."

The song was a bigger hit in the U.K., where it reached #15 on the Singles chart, but it has also become a holiday staple here in the U.S. "2000 Miles" has been included on many Christmas music compilations and periodically returns to the U.K. charts every Christmas.

Learning to Crawl was released in January 1984 and was a hit. Hynde and the Pretenders have released nine more albums in the 40 years since with various lineup configurations. The band's long career is a testament to Hynde's talent and perseverance, and "2000 Miles" is nothing less than a holiday classic.

Day After Day #17: Mystery Achievement

Day After Day is an ambitious attempt to write about a song every day in 2024 (starting on Jan. 4).

Mystery Achievement (1980)

It's not easy to achieve perfection right off the bat, but Chrissie Hynde did it. The Akron native has lived an interesting life, that's for sure, even before she founded the Pretenders. She was a student at Kent State University, playing in a band with Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo, when the Kent State massacre happened in 1970; the boyfriend of one of her friends was one of the four shooting victims. She moved to London a few years later, wrote for NME and worked at Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne Westwood's clothing store Punk. There were some failed attempts at joining bands and bouncing around the London punk scene before she formed the Pretenders in 1978.

Teaming with guitarist James Honeyman-Scott, bassist Pete Farndon and drummer Martin Chambers, Hynde released the first Pretenders single, a cover of the Kinks' "Stop Your Sobbing," in January 1979. "Kid" followed in June and then "Brass In Pocket" in late '79, with the album released in January 1980. "Brass In Pocket" was a huge hit, reaching #1 in the U.K. and #14 in the U.S. In Canada, where I was living at the time, it hit #5.

It was an interesting time for me, because my parents took me out of school for six weeks so we could visit relatives in India. I was in 7th grade and I had a bunch of homework with me, but it's awkward to just be plucked out of school for so long. December to March is the ideal time to visit India because it's not too hot there then. Things really start heating up in March and the summer is monsoon season. So off we went and it was good and all (also the last time I've been over there), but when I returned in late January/early February, I felt like a stranger in some respects. It was just weird to miss whatever was going on socially. One of the things I missed a lot was popular music. At the time, India was a little behind on pop, so I remember hearing a lot of ABBA, disco and stuff like that, but none of the rock music I was into. 

I was unfamiliar with the first two Pretenders singles, so "Brass In Pocket" was my introduction to the band. It was everywhere in early 1980, especially on radio. Hynde conveys confidence and attitude that was in short supply from women in the rock world. The album had more of the same, but it also revealed a wide range of musical styles, from punk to new wave to pure pop. Start to finish, the album is incredible, especially considering it was a debut. I could have gone with any number of songs from this release, but I chose the album closer "Mystery Achievement."

Driven by a pulsing bass line from Farndon, the song features Hynde singing about being on the cusp of fame. "Mystery achievement/Don't breathe down my neck, no/I got no trophies on display/I sign them away/I mean what the heck." Honeyman-Scott elevates the song with incredible lead guitar work, ripping inventive solos throughout the song. A truly exhilarating way to end a record.

The band released its second album, Pretenders II, in August 1981, but it wasn't long before trouble set in. Farndon was fired for excessive drug use in June 1982; two days later, Honeyman-Scott died of heart failure because of cocaine intolerance. Less than a year later, Farndon was found dead in his bathtub after taking heroin and passing out. Hynde and Chambers regrouped and added new members, including guitarist Robbie McIntosh, and released Learning to Crawl in January 1984. The album was a worthy successor to the first two, featuring "Back on the Chain Gang," "My City Was Gone" and "Middle of the Road." 

Hynde has released nine Pretenders albums with varying lineups since 1986. There have been highs and lows, but she has soldiered on, with the latest album coming out last fall. Still, Hynde and the Pretenders can't be faulted for getting it right the first time out. That first album is a masterpiece. Mystery achievement unlocked.