2000 Miles

@steve10157 This is an interpretation of the song I have just found out about, I can’t believe I never put it together in my head that 2000 Miles is about JH-S (and Pete Farndon)…the Learning To Crawl lp’s songs are, for the most part, about Chrissie’s life at the time, which of course included the double tragedies of the deaths of James Honeyman-Scott and Pete Farndon (including Back On The Chain Gang), so I’d think it would’ve been more obvious to me that 2000 miles wasn’t only about missing someone who’s apart from you at Christmas, it’s also about remembering those who’ve touched your life but aren’t around anymore, anywhere but in your heart…\r\n\r\nThe title ‘Learning To Crawl’, to me, has a double meaning. It refers to the birth of Chrissie Hynde and Ray Davies daughter, as she was literally learning to crawl as the lp was being made… it also speaks of the ability of life to just unexpectedly thrust us into tragedy (or triumph, it must be acknowledged), as Chrissie was floored by the deaths of those two Men who were half of the original membership of the Pretenders, she was, as time came to record again (this time without those two brilliant young men who filled out what was such a promising group), Chrissie was finally pulling herself together, vowing To go on, but just “learning to crawl”…She must have felt like she and her daughter were both just waking up to a new life…

Dead on with that Flyersfan. Growing up in Philly...that's what I think of as well. It's snowing tonight and this song is perfect. Maybe the Flyers will pull out a win too...

@Rickvee great song. If I was picking THE best modern Xmas song, I'd have to go with Fairytale of New York, but 2,000 Miles is definitely in the discussion.

@Rickvee What’s “modern”, when there’s Christmas songs probably a millennium old or more?

I absolutely LOVE 2000 Miles, but I’d maybe go with another song Chrissie covered, the Judy Garland-original Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, as the “best” “modern” (1944) Carol, but to each his own…

@delia17601 yes, The Pretenders’ original lineup was headed for greater things I believe, they’d made the first lp, one of the best debut lps since the dawn of rock n roll/advent of the long-player, and they’d experienced a bit of a “sophomore slump” insofar as the second album wasn’t as good as the first (though it must be said, some of the very best SONGS the Pretenders recorded were done around this time, Message Of Love and Talk Of The Town spring immediately to mind)…\r\n\r\nSo, the band was kinda poised to explode into superstardom when the tragedies struck, as evidenced by how LearningTo Crawl became their biggest lp, Chrissie really stepped up with insanely good songs.\r\n\r\nWould’ve been great if they’d all done the third lp together, I can only imagine how great the Pretenders’ third lp would’ve and could’ve and should’ve been… HOWEVER, as in life, we don’t get what we project will happen, or wish for, what happens is…what happens…and life is what it is, and Learning To Crawl is still a brilliant album, not far off the quality and attitude of the first album. Just very different… and Chrissie is a true artiste…

@Aelumag It's about someone who died, actually. First part of the song is she hopes he'll come back at Christmas, last verse it's Christmas time and he still isn't there. Not sure what you mean about pronouns.

@Aelumag It is about James Honeyman Scott who died of a drug overdose during the early years of the band's success.