Chrissie Hynde has announced a new album of collaborations, Duets Special, to be released on 17 October via Parlophone. Credited to ‘Chrissie Hynde & Pals’, the record comprises 13 duet performances with an eclectic group of guest vocalists, including k.d. lang, the late Mark Lanegan, Dave Gahan, Cat Power, Brandon Flowers, Debbie Harry, Shirley Manson and Alan Sparhawk. The first single, a version of Always On My Mind featuring Rufus Wainwright, was issued on Wednesday.
Hynde, 73, said the project grew out of a spontaneous idea in 2023 after a conversation with Jörn, Rufus Wainwright’s husband, and that she quickly sketched a list of songs she thought might work as duets. The album’s arrangements are described in the press material as stripped-back and intimate, with minimal instrumentation intended to foreground the melodies and the guest voices.
Duets Special will be Hynde’s fourth studio album released under her own name; it follows The Pretenders’ 2023 studio record Relentless and a subsequent world tour that produced the live album Kick ’em Where It Hurts. The new release includes a contribution from Mark Lanegan, who died in 2022, and thus features both contemporary and posthumous collaborations.
Hynde has been active beyond music in recent years. Her paintings have been shown in London, New York and Massachusetts and have been used on album artwork and in fashion collaborations, including with Vivienne Westwood. Her most recent exhibition, Hynde Sight II, is on display at Harvey & Woodd in Edinburgh until 23 August.
The album announcement continues a creative run for Hynde that has attracted positive critical attention for both her work with The Pretenders and her solo endeavours. Duets Special will be available digitally and on physical formats from 17 October.
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