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Break Up the Concrete
Studio album by the Pretenders
Released	7 October 2008
Recorded	April 2008
Studio	Sage and Sound Studios (Hollywood, California)
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	36:49
Label	Shangri-La Music
Producer	The Pretenders
The Pretenders chronology
Pirate Radio (2006) Break Up the Concrete (2008) Alone (2016)

Break Up the Concrete is the ninth studio album by rock group the Pretenders. It is their first studio album since Loose Screw in 2002. Several "exclusive" editions of the disc exist (see track listing below); each appends a new countrified version of a vintage Pretenders song, in keeping with the general sound of the album. The title song "Break Up the Concrete" was used in the opening scene of an episode of House M.D. ("5 to 9", season 6, episode 14).

The first edition of Break Up the Concrete also includes a small sheet of "handmade seed paper", which can be planted, and if cared for, promise to sprout within a few weeks. The cover art parodies the sleeve of fellow power-popper Joe Jackson's 1979 debut Look Sharp!

Break Up the Concrete was the first Pretenders album since 1994's Last of the Independents not to feature Martin Chambers on drums. In an interview, Chrissie Hynde said that she was looking for a different style, one she did not believe Chambers was capable of playing to her satisfaction. Session drummer Jim Keltner took his place in the studio, although Chambers would return for the tour in support of the album.

There were conflicting reports about Chambers' temporary ouster. Hynde claims that Keltner was actually recommended by Chambers and that he was fully aware of his replacement. Chambers, however, claimed in an interview that Hynde had not told him about being replaced by Keltner; in fact, he was unaware that an album was even being made until after the sessions were well underway. In a 2016 interview, Chambers said that he gave Hynde his blessing to record the album without him, citing his reluctance to record and Hynde's reluctance to compromise on songwriting and production.

Reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	74/100
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
Billboard	(favorable)
Blender
Entertainment Weekly	B
Paste	(8.6/10)
Pitchfork	(6.4/10)
PopMatters
Robert Christgau
Rolling Stone
Spin	(7/10)

The album has a score of 74 out of 100 from Metacritic based on "generally favorable reviews". Mojo gave the album four stars out of five and said that it was "looser and more organic, and a different sonic palette for Hynde." Q also gave it four stars out of five and said, "It's Hynde who steals the show with her lip-curling vibrato, part Elvis, part Dusty, never more intoxicating than on the seductive 'Almost Perfect.'" The Boston Globe gave it a positive review and said that the album "just might be most congenial, and certainly rootsiest, collection yet."

Other reviews are average or mixed: Under the Radar gave the album six stars out of ten and said it had "a few throwaway tunes", but that it was "probably the best Pretenders album since Get Close." Uncut gave it three stars out of five and said that the album might be "a bargain... but the triumphs of yore tend to expose the new album's low-fi rockabilly and country strums." The Observer also gave it three stars out of five and said that Chrissie Hynde was "reinvestigating her roots with some rockabilly and a Dylan vibe." The Austin Chronicle, however, gave it two-and-a-half stars out of five and asked, "Why not take the five really good tracks... and offer a stellar EP for download?"

Track listing

All tracks are written by Chrissie Hynde, except where noted

UK and Brazilian versions track listing

Disc one – The Best of Pretenders

All tracks are written by Chrissie Hynde, except where noted

Disc two – Break Up the Concrete

Personnel

Adapted from the album's liner notes.

Musicians

• Chrissie Hynde – rhythm guitar, vocals
• James Walbourne – lead guitar, piano (6), accordion (8), background vocals
• Eric Heywood – pedal steel guitar, background vocals
• Nick Wilkinson – bass guitar, background vocals
• Jim Keltner – drums, background vocals

Technical

• The Pretenders – producer
• Don Smith – engineer (2–10), mixing
• Martin Pradler – engineer (1, 11)
• Alex Pavides – assistant mixing engineer
• Stephen Marcussen – mastering
• Jeffrey Kent Ayeroff – art direction
• Lawrence Azerrad – art direction, graphic design
• Getty Images – cover and back cover image

Charts

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Break Up the Concrete" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (January 2019) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Break Up the Concrete debuted at number 32 on Billboard's album chart in the issue dated 25 October 2008 and it stayed on the chart for three weeks. The album was issued with a 'best of' in a double-disc edition in the UK and charted at number 35 on the UK Albums Chart.

Certifications

References

1. "NUVO News – Indianapolis, IN". Retrieved 19 September 2016.
2. "Pretenders drummer Martin Chambers on Chrissie Hynde, Live Aid and playing with a Beatle". Herefordshire Live. Archived from the original on 23 October 2017. Retrieved 22 October 2017.
3. ^ "Critic Reviews for Break Up The Concrete". Metacritic.
4. Allmusic review
5. Blender review Archived 7 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine
6. "Billboard review". Archived from the original on 3 April 2009. Retrieved 11 November 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
7. "Break Up the Concrete - EW.com". Entertainment Weekly's EW.com.
8. "The Pretenders: Break Up The Concrete". pastemagazine.com.
9. "The Pretenders". Pitchfork.
10. "The Pretenders: Break Up the Concrete". Retrieved 19 September 2016.
11. "Robert Christgau: CG: pretenders". robertchristgau.com.
12. "Rolling Stone review". Archived from the original on 2 October 2008. Retrieved 14 October 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
13. "The Pretenders, 'Break Up the Concrete' (Shangri-La)". Spin.
14. "Hynde gets to the roots". boston.com.
15. "Break Up The Concrete". undertheradarmag.com.
16. "CD: Pop review: The Pretenders, Best/Break Up the Concrete". The Guardian.
17. "Review: The Pretenders – Music – The Austin Chronicle". austinchronicle.com.
18. Break Up the Concrete (Media notes). The Pretenders. Shangri-La Music. 2008.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
19. "British album certifications – Pretenders – The Best Of/Break Up The Concrete". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 23 October 2022.

External links

• Break Up the Concrete at Metacritic

• The Pretenders albums
• 2008 albums
• Shangri-La Music albums