Attack of the Killer Track! is a series that explores tracks from artists from a variety of genres. Some of the tracks were singles, some of them were obscure b-sides or long forgotten album tracks. One thing is certain – all of them are killer tracks.
The Pretty Things unfairly owe a bit of their fame to associations – bassist Dick Taylor was the original bassist for The Rolling Stones and David Bowie covered two gems by The Pretty Things for his 1973 covers record, Pin Ups. A shame they aren’t more of a household name – each of their albums from across their career offer up highlights that most bands would die for. 1968 saw the band releasing the very first Rock Opera with their S.F. Sorrow album – released a full year before The Who’s Tommy. As with most story based rock albums, the details can get a little confusing over the course of a record (though the gaps in the story were printed in the albums liner notes by way of paragraph like chapters). The story is very sad, involving a young man named Sebastian F. Sorrow whose dreams and aspirations do not turn out as planned. The album’s closing track, “Loneliest Person” is an acoustic masterpiece that just may be one of the saddest songs ever recorded. Phil May’s vocals are simply perfect, allowing the listener to empathize with the character’s plight by tapping into the universal feeling of wanting to be loved. Haven’t we all felt like S.F. Sorrow at some point? The track was released in 1969 as the flip side of “Baron Saturday”, also taken from the S.F. Sorrow album. The lyrics are simple but to the point, the chorus laying it all out there: “Yes, you might be the loneliest person in the world / You’ll never be as lonely as me”
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNFiZCmQdtM&w=640&h=480]