Health reasons force singer Phil May to step considerably shorter, as guitarist Dick Taylor explains in an interview with eclipsed. He himself, however, is not thinking of retiring. Nevertheless, the last act of the band, founded by May and Taylor in 1963, is within reach. And again not: seventy-five year old Taylor, who plucked the bass of the Stones for a moment ago, wants to keep his own glorious formation alive in some way.
eclipsed: A world without Pretty Things concerts is hard to imagine. Why did you decide to end the band right now?
Dick Taylor: I didn't decide that at all. Phil's health is not well, he suffers from a chronic lung disease. This has become a problem on our tours. This is a tricky situation, and the Pretty Things will certainly put an end to the intensive tours after the performance in the Indigo. But I wouldn't call that the end of pretty things. I'm gonna go on, Phil's gonna keep singing with me, maybe we'll do some acoustic stuff.
eclipsed: Your "Final Bow" presents illustrious guests like David Gilmour, Van Morrison or actor Bill Nighy. Is that an indication that your"S.F. Sorrow" is playing completely again?
Taylor: No, we're definitely not going to perform it completely. We just did it on the Isle of Wight. It wouldn't make sense at this show, but we will present a good excerpt from the album. Bill Nighy will host the concert.
eclipsed: How did"S.F. Sorrow" come about anyway? Who had the idea for the album, which is considered by many to be the first rock opera?
Taylor: When we switched to EMI, we recorded a few singles and were ready to start working on an album. I'm pretty sure we recorded "Bracelets Of Fingers" first, which became the second track on the LP. We then talked about finding a common theme and Phil started writing a story. As far as I remember, story and songs were written simultaneously, i.e. side by side.
