Pretty Things are an English rock band from London, who originally formed in 1963. They took their name from Willie Dixon’s 1955 song “Pretty Thing”. Their most commercially successful period was the mid-1960s, although they continue to perform to this day. David Bowie covered two of their songs on his album Pin Ups. (More from Wikipedia)
Dick Taylor played bass guitar with the nascent Stones but quit after several months when he was accepted at the London Central School of Art; his replacement in the Rolling Stones was Bill Wyman. While there, Taylor met Phil May; and together they founded the Pretty Things in 1963. The band is still active and still vital, and Dick Taylor and Phil May have been there the whole time as far as I know. Ugly Things magazine, which published my article on Milan year before last, has something on the Pretty Things in almost every issue. The band name – and that of Ugly Things magazine for that matter – is taken from yet another Bo Diddley song that is not so well known, “Pretty Thing” – about as close to a love song as the great man ever got.
