Packed!

Packed!
Studio album by
Released14 May 1990
StudioAIR Studios (London)
Mayfair Studios (London)
Abbey Road Studios (London)
Sunset Sound Factory (Los Angeles)
GenreAlternative rock, new wave
Length38:38
LabelSire
WEA Records
ProducerMitchell Froom
Pretenders chronology
The Singles
(1987)
Packed!
(1990)
Last of the Independents
(1994)
Singles from Packed!
  1. "Never Do That"
    Released: May 1990
  2. "Sense of Purpose"
    Released: October 1990

Packed! is the fifth studio album by rock group Pretenders, released in 1990.

Besides band leader Chrissie Hynde, no other person is pictured anywhere within the album package. At the time the album was recorded, the only other remaining official member from the band's previous album was drummer Blair Cunningham, who plays on all tracks, though he is not credited as part of the band. As all other musicians appearing on the album are session musicians, some observers have characterized the album as a Hynde solo recording using the Pretenders name to satisfy contractual obligations.[1] However, the lineup that recorded the album has some consistency with past studio lineups of the band: guitarist Billy Bremner, who had previously played with the band as a session musician on their "Back on the Chain Gang"/"My City Was Gone" single, appears on most of the tracks, as does bassist John McKenzie, who had played some bass on the band's previous studio album, Get Close (1986).

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Chicago Tribune[3]
Robert ChristgauA−[6]
Entertainment WeeklyB−[4]
Los Angeles Times[5]
Rolling Stone[7]
  1. ^ "Happy 25th: Pretenders, Packed! – Rhino". rhino.com.
  2. ^ AllMusic Review
  3. ^ "Pretenders Packed! (Sire) (STAR)(STAR)(STAR) In..." chicagotribune.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
  4. ^ "Packed!". Entertainment Weekly. 1 June 1990. Archived from the original on 31 March 2007.
  5. ^ CROMELIN, RICHARD (20 May 1990). "*** PRETENDERS "Packed!" Sire/Warner Bros. : Albums are rated from one star (poor) to five stars (a classic)". Los Angeles Times.
  6. ^ "Robert Christgau: CG: pretenders". robertchristgau.com.
  7. ^ "Pretenders: Packed : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone". archive.org. 1 October 2007. Archived from the original on 1 October 2007.