Pretenders are:

A whole new perspective on the songs and significance of the Pretenders comes into focus on The Isle Of View, the group's eighth album in 15 years and a startling stylistic change-up from a band known for routinely defying expectations.

14 classic Pretenders tracks Ñ ranging from such perennials as "Brass In Pocket," "2000 Miles" and "Back On The Chain Gang," to rarer gems like "The Phone Call," "Chill Factor" and "Criminal", are treated to all-acoustic arrangements and backed by the acclaimed Duke Quartet, a classical ensemble that takes the quintessential rock 'n' roll of the Pretenders into a lush, elegant and resonant new realm. Ably assisting in this remarkable stylistic foray are producer Stephen Street, on hand for tracks from the group's 1994 release Last of The Independents, keyboardist Damon Albarn of the group Blur and percussionist Mark Smith.

The result is an album that emphatically underlines the songwriting art that has always been at the heart of the Pretenders' enduring appeal. Material that seemed to spring, fully-formed, from the electric exchange of bass-drums-guitar, suddenly takes on new dimensions and unexpected nuances in this acoustic setting; lyrics and melody emerge to make the most familiar song fresh again and the interplay between these gifted musicians has whole new territories in which to stretch and grow. Simply put, The Isle Of View, on Warner Bros. Records, is an ear-opening new take on one of the most influential groups in modern music.

The impetus for The Isle of View first emerged during sessions for the above-mentioned Last Of The Independents, the triumphant return-to-form that marked the Pretenders' first consistent line-up since their formation. "We cut a version of 'Angel Of The Morning,' to use as a B-side," explains Chrissie Hynde, "and Stephen Street, who produced the track, suggested we use the Duke Quartet, whom he'd worked with in the past. I loved the results. The sound of the strings meshed with the band so well that the idea of working with that kind of instrumentation just stayed with me."

The Merrilee Rush/Juice Newton classic was, it turned out, just the beginning. After touring in support of Last Of The Independents, including select club dates and a turn through Spain, Chrissie and the group, sparked by the energy of the road, wanted to keep working. "We were really having fun," Chrissie explains, "and wanted to keep it going. That's when the idea of an acoustic album came up. Not only would we get the chance to keep playing, but it gave us an excuse to work with the Duke Quartet again."

It was in January of this year that Chrissie and Pretenders guitarist Adam Seymour began culling the group's extensive catalog for material best suited to an unamplified approach. "We originally had in mind to do more obscure tracks," Chrissie explains. "But, in the end, the criterion was what worked best for the instruments and that turned out to include some hits."

The process yielded interesting, and unexpected, results. Chrissie: "A song like 'I Hurt You,' was a natural for strings, while 'Chill Factor,' which was originally on our third album, was not an obvious choice, but worked very well in this context. It was great to strip back these songs to their bare essentials, to take away all the studio touches and refinements and hear them in their most basic form. I think that's a good test of any song, to see if it stands on its own."

Following rehearsals with the full band, "sitting around my living room in a circle," explains Chrissie, the next step was incorporating the Duke Quartet into the mix. "John Metcalfe, the quartet's viola player, worked with us in writing the arrangements," she continues. "There was a lot of interaction. We kind of elaborated on each other. The Pretenders are not the most experimental group around. In many ways we're very traditional. But we were very drawn to the acoustic idea and I think the music reflects that."

It does indeed. Recorded before a live audience in May at London's Jacob Street Studios, The Isle of View captures the Pretenders making up in the pure pleasure of performance what they've sacrificed in sheer volume. "Instead of sticks, Martin at one point was playing drums with two ball point pens," Chrissie reveals. "Everybody had fun, doing whatever it took to make the music work."

That fun, and the full impact of the music, have also been captured on a special long-form video of the concert, to be released in conjunction with the audio version by Warner Video. At the same time, No Turn Left Unstoned, an hour-long documentary chronicling the tumultuous life and times of the Pretenders, and featuring interviews with everyone from Elvis Costello and Rosanna Arquette to the surviving members of the original line-up, is set to air on both sides of the Atlantic. Meanwhile, the song that started it all, "Angel Of The Morning," has turned up as a featured track on the just-released soundtrack to the hit NBC-TV series Friends, where Chrissie herself made a recent guest appearance to perform the cut.

"I like to think of the Pretenders as a group somewhere in mid-career," says Chrissie of the outfit she has fronted for fifteen years and who recently graced the stage at the opening of the Rock 'N' Roll Hall Of Fame in her home state of Ohio. "We've got time to try all sorts of things. I don't think of this album as some kind of drastic departure. We'll always be a rock 'n' roll band. This is just a way of keeping things fresh."

Other sites:

• Warner Bros. Records: Pretenders
• Jiblet's Pretenders Place
• Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders
• The Pretenders/Lyrics/Info