Stevie Nicks, Chrissie Hynde in fine form on double bill
It was a fitting close to International Women’s Day as two of rock’s iconic female figures, Stevie Nicks and the Chrissie Hynde, took the stage of FedExForum on Wednesday. Appearing with her solo band, Fleetwood Mac star Nicks was the ostensible headliner, but it was Hynde and her group The Pretenders who stole the show, with both women presenting district and distinctly different visions of musical and personal empowerment.
Resuming her work with the Pretenders last summer after a four-year break, Hynde and the band — which includes founding drummer Martin Chambers and new-era additions James Walbourne on guitar, Nick Wilkinson on bass and Eric Heywood on pedal steel — sounded sharp and inspired during a 15-song set that covered the expected hits as well as material from the band’s recent album, “Alone.”
Hynde was in classically cantankerous form early on, rightfully berating a couple of audience members down front who were popping off cell phone camera flashes in her face. After apologizing — on their behalf — Hynde settled down and found both the aggression and nuance of songs like “My City Was Gone” and “Stop Your Sobbing.”
Thirty-five years after the implosion of the original Pretenders lineup — following the death of guitarist James Honeyman Scott and the firing and subsequent death of bassist Pete Farndon — Hynde and Chambers have somehow managed to keep the group a compelling force, with the new members, particularly flash guitarist Walbourne, providing a fresh spark.
One of rock’s most stylish singers, Hynde also showed a depth of emotional range on the spare ballad “I’ll Stand by You,” while one of her rare solo songs, “Down the Wrong Way,” seemed to take on new life in the Pretenders context.
Ohio native Hynde took the opportunity to rave about Memphis, having visited several local haunts — Graceland, Shangri-La Records and Imagine Vegan Café — on a day off before the concert. She noted that she skipped a return to the local jail, where she stayed during the Pretenders' first tour on disorderly conduct charges after kicking out the windows of a police car. “They didn’t want me back,” she quipped.
After a brief break, Nicks and her big band — which included longtime guitarist/musical director Waddy Wachtel on guitar — emerged, sounding strong, if somewhat measured during their 18-song performance.
Nicks presented the set as part storyteller’s session, part deep dive into her catalog. Vocally, she was in fine form, but the somewhat awkward pacing — songs broken up by Nicks’ long narrative interludes — meant that musical momentum was hard to sustain.
Still, Nicks’ tremendous personal charm — part girl next door, part witchy woman, part mother figure — was hard to resist, and the crowd of devotees were held rapt by her, expressing their devotion vocally and visually, with many dressing in homage to her (sartorially speaking, the audience at a Nicks concert could double for a renaissance fair crowd).
The liveliest moment of Nicks' set came during an early version of the Tom Petty-penned “Stop Dragging My Heart Around” as Hynde emerged from the wings and the women, along with Wachtel, presented the song as a three-way romantic drama.
Ultimately, amid all the stories and banter, Nicks managed to cover all the expected ground, delivering strong versions of her solo hits (“Stand Back,” “Edge of Seventeen”) and closing with a flourish of Fleetwood Mac favorites (“Rhiannon,” “Gold Dust Woman,” “Landslide”) that were impossible to resist.
http://www.commercialappeal.com/stor...bill/98878154/