Chrissie Hynde has released a second song from her upcoming covers album Duets Special, following the release of a version of Always On My Mind with Rufus Wainwright last month.
The Pretenders star has now released a smoky cover of Billy Paul’s Philly soul classic Me And Mrs Jones, with Canadian singer k.d. lang sharing the vocal duties.
“I met k.d. on a tour we did,” says Hynde. “Very early days. It was up in Canada and we bonded right from the start because of our mutual interest in animal welfare.”
In addition to Wainwright and Lang, the album includes duets with Mark Lanegan, Lucinda Williams, Dave Gahan, Cat Power, Carleen Anderson, Brandon Flowers, Julian Lennon, Debbie Harry, Alan Sparhawk, Shirley Manson and Dan Auerba.
“I never thought about doing a Duets album before,” says Hynde. “I think the idea came about in 2023. I was talking to Jörn, Rufus Wainwright’s husband, on the phone. I think we were recommending novels to each other and for some reason I said hey, maybe Rufus and I should do something, and quickly scribbled out 10 songs off the top of my head.
“So Jörn asked Rufus, who was up for it, and that’s how it started. A spontaneous and what I thought would be a fun thing.”
Duets Special is Hynde’s fourth solo album, and will be released via Parlophone on October 17. Full tracklist below.
Chrissie Hynde: Duets Special tracklist
Me & Mrs Jones (feat. k.d. lang)
Can’t Help Falling In Love (feat. Mark Lanegan)
Sway (feat. Lucinda Williams)
Dolphins (feat. Dave Gahan)
First of the Gang to Die (feat. Cat Power)
Always on My Mind (feat. Rufus Wainwright)
Every Little Bit Hurts (feat. Carleen Anderson)
I’m Not in Love (feat. Brandon Flowers)
It’s Only Love (feat. Julian Lennon)
Try to Sleep (feat. Debbie Harry)
County Line (feat. Alan Sparhawk)
Love Letters (feat. Shirley Manson)
(You’re My) Soul and Inspiration (feat. Dan Auerbach)