Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers • Greatest Hits

 

www.tompetty.com ...

Tom Petty • Full Moon Fever

 

 

www.tompetty.com ...

 

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers • Echo

 

Review from AllMusic (by Stephen Thomas Erlewine) - 4 Stars:
Although the album is spiked with sadness and regret, nothing on the album feels forced or self-conscious, either lyrically or musically -- and he is one of the few rockers of his generation that can make such a claim.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/echo-mw0000665815

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Reseña de AllMusic (por Stephen Thomas Erlewine) - 4 Estrellas:
Aunque el álbum está marcado por tristeza y arrepentimiento, nada en el álbum se siente forzado o auto-consciente, ni lírica ni musicalmente, y es uno de los pocos rockeros de su generación que puede hacer tal afirmación.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/echo-mw0000665815

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Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers • Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

 

Review
by Stephen Thomas Erlewine  
At the time Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers' debut was released in 1976, they were fresh enough to almost be considered punk. They weren't as reckless or visionary as the Ramones, but they shared a similar love for pure '60s rock and, for the Heartbreakers, that meant embracing the Byrds as much as the Stones. And that's pretty much what this album is -- tuneful jangle balanced by a tough garage swagger. At times, the attitude and the sound override the songwriting, but that's alright, since the slight songs ("Anything That's Rock 'N' Roll," to pick a random example) are still infused with spirit and an appealing surface. Petty & the Heartbreakers feel underground on this album, at least to the extent that power pop was underground in 1976; with Dwight Twilley providing backing vocals for "Strangered in the Night," the similarities between the two bands (adherence to pop hooks and melodies, love of guitars) become apparent. Petty wound up eclipsing Twilley because he rocked harder, something that's evident throughout this record. Take the closer "American Girl" -- it's a Byrds song by any other name, but he pushed the Heartbreakers to treat it as a rock & roll song, not as something delicate. There are times where the album starts to drift, especially on the second side, but the highlights -- "Rockin' Around (With You)," "Hometown Blues," "The Wild One, Forever," the AOR staples "Breakdown" and "American Girl" -- still illustrate how refreshing Petty & the Heartbreakers sounded in 1976.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/tom-petty-the-heartbreakers-mw0000191386

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Reseña
por Stephen Thomas Erlewine  
Cuando Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers publicaron su debut en 1976, eran lo bastante frescos como para ser considerados punk. No eran tan temerarios o visionarios como los Ramones, pero compartían un amor similar por el rock puro de los 60 y, para los Heartbreakers, eso significaba abrazar a los Byrds tanto como a los Stones. Y eso es más o menos lo que es este álbum: una melodiosa melodía equilibrada por una dura fanfarronería de garaje. A veces, la actitud y el sonido anulan la composición, pero no pasa nada, ya que las canciones ligeras ("Anything That's Rock 'N' Roll", por poner un ejemplo al azar) siguen estando impregnadas de espíritu y una superficie atractiva. Petty & the Heartbreakers se sienten underground en este álbum, al menos en la medida en que el power pop era underground en 1976; con Dwight Twilley haciendo coros en "Strangered in the Night", las similitudes entre las dos bandas (adhesión a los ganchos y melodías pop, amor por las guitarras) se hacen evidentes. Petty acabó eclipsando a Twilley porque él rockeaba más fuerte, algo evidente a lo largo de este disco. Por ejemplo, "American Girl" es una canción de los Byrds con cualquier otro nombre, pero él empujó a los Heartbreakers a tratarla como una canción de rock & roll, no como algo delicado. Hay momentos en los que el álbum empieza a flojear, especialmente en la segunda cara, pero los momentos álgidos - "Rockin' Around (With You)", "Hometown Blues", "The Wild One, Forever", los clásicos del AOR "Breakdown" y "American Girl"- siguen ilustrando lo refrescante que sonaba Petty & the Heartbreakers en 1976.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/tom-petty-the-heartbreakers-mw0000191386

www.tompetty.com ...

Tom Petty Biography: How The American Rock and Roll Legend Shaped the Music Industry?

 

Would you like to learn more about Tom Petty?
How he managed to incorporate his personal problems into the greatest music hits of all time?

Music to Tom Petty was not just money and fame. It was a way to express himself through difficult times, challenges and struggles. Somehow he found a way to channel personal problems into the music and broadcast it to fans around the world - creating unbelievable experience. That's because personal problems are universal and many people can associate with what Tom Petty is channelling through. In order to do this, takes guts and genius. Tom Petty is indeed one of the rock legends this world will know for centuries to come.

Tom Petty, an accomplished writer and musician has set the standard for what rock and roll was and is. Being able to reflect personal challenges with divorce, loneliness and drug addictions into music is something not many people can do in a way Tom Petty does. It advocates artistic freedom and paves the path for other musicians to tap into the industry. Perry's collaborations with other musical legends like Stevie Nicks, Del Shannon, Johnny Cash and many others, have given the world a standard to what rock and roll music should be like.

This is a book for those who know the songs, from "American Girl" and "Refugee" to "Free Fallin'" and "Mary Jane's Last Dance," and for those who want to see the classic rock and roll era embodied in a single biography.

Tom Petty inspired people to not back down and not give up in the face of challenges with his music, especially when it comes to personal struggles, because no matter the circumstances one can rise and succeed.

 

Chris Dicker  (Author) 

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers • The Live Anthology

 

The collection brings together material from 1978-2007 culled from hundreds of hours of live concert recordings.


www.tompetty.com ...
tompetty.com/Live Anthology ...
 

Tom Petty • The Last DJ

Biography
by AllMusic
Upon the release of their first album in the late '70s, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers were shoehorned into the punk/new wave movement by some observers who picked up on the tough, vibrant energy of the group's blend of Byrds riffs and Stonesy swagger. In a way, the categorization made sense. Compared to the heavy metal and art rock that dominated mid-'70s guitar rock, the Heartbreakers' bracing return to roots was nearly as unexpected as the crashing chords of the Clash. As time progressed, it became clear that the band didn't break from tradition like their punk contemporaries. Instead, they celebrated it, culling the best parts of the British Invasion, American garage rock, and Dylanesque singer/songwriters to create a distinctively American hybrid, recalling the past without being indebted to it.

The Heartbreakers were a tight, muscular, and versatile backing band that provided the proper support for Petty's songs, which cataloged a series of middle-class losers and dreamers. While his slurred, nasal voice may have resembled Dylan and Roger McGuinn, Petty's songwriting was lean and direct, like the simple, unadorned style of Neil Young. Throughout his career, Petty & the Heartbreakers never departed from their signature rootsy sound, but they were able to expand it, bringing in psychedelic Southern rock and new wave influences; they were also one of the few of the traditionalist rock & rollers who embraced music videos, filming some of the most inventive and popular videos in MTV history. His willingness to experiment with the boundaries of classic rock & roll helped Petty sustain his popularity well into the 21st century.

Born and raised in northern Florida, Petty began playing music while he was still in high school. At the age of 17, he dropped out of school to join Mudcrutch, which also featured guitarist Mike Campbell and keyboardist Benmont Tench. By 1970, Mudcrutch had moved to Los Angeles with hopes of finding a record contract. The fledgling Shelter Records, founded by Leon Russell and Denny Cordell, offered the group a contract. However, Mudcrutch splintered apart shortly after relocating to L.A. Cordell was willing to record Petty as a solo act, but the singer's reception to the idea was tentative. Over the next few years, Petty drifted through bands, eventually hooking back up with Campbell and Tench in 1975. At the time, the duo were working with bassist Ron Blair and drummer Stan Lynch; soon, Petty became involved with the band, which was then named the Heartbreakers. Petty was still under contract to Shelter, and the group assumed his deal, releasing Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers in 1976.

Initially, the band's debut was ignored in the United States, but when the group supported it in England with a tour opening for Nils Lofgren, the record began to take off. Within a few months, the band was headlining its own British tours and the album was in the U.K. Top 30. Prompted by the record's British success, Shelter pushed the album and the single "Breakdown" in the U.S., this time with success; "Breakdown" became a Top 40 hit and "American Girl" became an album-oriented radio staple. You're Gonna Get It, the Heartbreakers' second album, was released in 1978 and it became the group's first American Top 40 record. Petty & the Heartbreakers were poised to break into the big time when they ran into severe record company problems. Shelter's parent company, ABC, was bought by MCA, and Petty attempted to renegotiate his contract with the label. MCA was unwilling to meet most of his demands, and halfway through 1979, he filed for bankruptcy. Soon afterward, he settled into an agreement with MCA, signing with their subsidiary Backstreet Records. Released late in 1979, Damn the Torpedoes was his first release on Backstreet.

Damn the Torpedoes was Petty's breakthrough release, earning uniformly excellent reviews, generating the Top Ten hit "Don't Do Me Like That" and the number 15 "Refugee," and spending seven weeks at number two on the U.S. charts; it would eventually sell over two million copies. Though he was at a peak of popularity, Petty ran into record company trouble again when he and the Heartbreakers prepared to release Hard Promises, the 1981 follow-up to Damn the Torpedoes. MCA wanted to release the record at the list price of $9.98, which was a high price at the time. Petty refused to comply to their wishes, threatening to withhold the album from the label and organizing a fan protest that forced the company to release the record at $8.98. Hard Promises became a Top Ten hit, going platinum and spawning the hit single "The Waiting." Later that year, Petty produced Del Shannon's comeback album Drop Down and Get Me and wrote "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" as a duet for himself and Stevie Nicks. Featured on her album Bella Donna, which was recorded with the Heartbreakers' support, "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" became a number three hit. Petty & the Heartbreakers returned late in 1982 with Long After Dark, which became their third Top Ten album in a row. Following its release, bassist Ron Blair left the band and was replaced by Howie Epstein, who previously played with John Hiatt.

Petty & the Heartbreakers spent nearly three years making Southern Accents, the follow-up to Long After Dark. Hiring Eurythmics' Dave Stewart as a producer, the band attempted to branch out musically, reaching into new territories like soul, psychedelia, and new wave. However, the recording wasn't easy -- at its worst, Petty punched a studio wall and broke his left hand, reportedly in frustration over the mixing. Southern Accents was finally released in the spring of 1985, preceded by the neo-psychedelic single "Don't Come Around Here No More," which featured a popular, pseudo-Alice in Wonderland video. Southern Accents was another hit record, peaking at number seven and going platinum. Following its release, Petty & the Heartbreakers spent 1986 on tour as Bob Dylan's backing band. Dylan contributed to the lead single "Jammin' Me," from the Heartbreakers' next album, Let Me Up (I've Had Enough), which was released to mixed reviews in the spring of 1987. Just after the record's release, Petty's house and most of his belongings were destroyed by fire; he, his wife, and two daughters survived unscathed.

In 1988, Petty became a member of the supergroup the Traveling Wilburys, which also featured Dylan, George Harrison, Roy Orbison, and Jeff Lynne. The Wilburys released their first album at the end of 1988 and its sound became the blueprint for Petty's first solo effort, 1989's Full Moon Fever. Produced by Lynne and featuring the support of most of the Heartbreakers, Full Moon Fever became Petty's commercial pinnacle, reaching number three on the U.S. charts, going triple platinum, and generating the hit singles "I Won't Back Down," "Runnin' Down a Dream," and "Free Fallin'," which reached number seven. In 1990, he contributed to the Traveling Wilburys' second album, Vol. 3. Petty officially reunited with the Heartbreakers on Into the Great Wide Open, which was also produced by Jeff Lynne. Released in the spring of 1991, Into the Great Wide Open sustained the momentum of Full Moon Fever, earning strong reviews and going platinum.

Following the release of 1993's Greatest Hits, which featured two new tracks produced by Rick Rubin, including the Top 20 hit "Mary Jane's Last Dance," Petty left MCA for Warner Bros.; upon signing, it was revealed that he negotiated a $20 million deal in 1989. Drummer Stan Lynch left the Heartbreakers in 1994, as Petty was recording his second solo album with producer Rubin and many members of the Heartbreakers. Like Full Moon Fever before it, 1994's Wildflowers was greeted by enthusiastic reviews and sales, tying his previous solo album for his biggest-selling studio album. In addition to going triple platinum and peaking at number eight, the album spawned the hit singles "You Don't Know How It Feels," "You Wreck Me," and "It's Good to Be King." Petty & the Heartbreakers reunited in 1996 to record the soundtrack for the Edward Burns film She's the One. The resulting soundtrack album was a moderate hit, peaking at number 15 on the U.S. charts and going gold. Echo followed three years later, becoming the first Heartbreakers record to make the Top Ten in almost 15 years.

The Last DJ, a scathing attack on the corporate greed inherent in the music business, was released in 2002, followed in 2006 by a solo album, Highway Companion; both albums reached the Top Ten, and Highway Companion went gold in the U.S. After this, Petty reunited his original band Mudcrutch for a 2008 album and tour. Mojo, credited to Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, appeared from Reprise in 2010. The band toured fairly regularly over the next four years, then returned in the summer of 2014 with Hypnotic Eye, the first number one album in their career. Two years later, Petty reconvened Mudcrutch for their second album, appropriately entitled 2. On October 2, 2017, Petty was found at his home in cardiac arrest, and he died at a hospital in Santa Monica later that day. Nearly a year later, his family and band released the box set An American Treasure as a tribute to the departed rocker. A double-disc hits collection, The Best of Everything, followed in March 2019.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/tom-petty-the-heartbreakers-mn0000614137/biography

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Biografía
por AllMusic
Tras la publicación de su primer álbum a finales de los 70, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers fueron incluidos con calzador en el movimiento punk/new wave por algunos observadores que captaron la energía dura y vibrante de la mezcla de riffs de los Byrds y la fanfarronería de los Stones del grupo. En cierto modo, la categorización tenía sentido. En comparación con el heavy metal y el art rock que dominaban el rock de guitarras de mediados de los 70, el vigoroso retorno a las raíces de los Heartbreakers era casi tan inesperado como los estruendosos acordes de los Clash. Con el paso del tiempo, quedó claro que la banda no rompía con la tradición como sus contemporáneos del punk. Por el contrario, la celebraban, recogiendo lo mejor de la Invasión Británica, del garage rock americano y de los cantautores dylanescos para crear un híbrido distintivamente americano, recordando el pasado sin estar en deuda con él.

Los Heartbreakers eran una banda de acompañamiento muy compacta, musculosa y versátil que proporcionaba el apoyo adecuado a las canciones de Petty, que catalogaban a una serie de perdedores y soñadores de clase media. Si bien su voz nasal y arrastrada puede recordar a Dylan y Roger McGuinn, la composición de Petty era esbelta y directa, como el estilo sencillo y sin adornos de Neil Young. A lo largo de su carrera, Petty & the Heartbreakers nunca se apartaron de su característico sonido arraigado, pero fueron capaces de ampliarlo, aportando influencias del rock sureño psicodélico y de la nueva ola; también fueron uno de los pocos rockeros tradicionalistas que abrazaron los vídeos musicales, filmando algunos de los vídeos más inventivos y populares de la historia de la MTV. Su voluntad de experimentar con los límites del rock & roll clásico ayudó a Petty a mantener su popularidad hasta bien entrado el siglo XXI.

Nacido y criado en el norte de Florida, Petty empezó a tocar música cuando aún estaba en el instituto. A los 17 años, dejó la escuela para unirse a Mudcrutch, que también contaba con el guitarrista Mike Campbell y el teclista Benmont Tench. En 1970, Mudcrutch se trasladó a Los Ángeles con la esperanza de encontrar un contrato discográfico. La incipiente Shelter Records, fundada por Leon Russell y Denny Cordell, ofreció al grupo un contrato. Sin embargo, Mudcrutch se separó poco después de trasladarse a Los Ángeles. Cordell estaba dispuesto a grabar a Petty como solista, pero la recepción de la idea por parte del cantante fue vacilante. Durante los años siguientes, Petty pasó por varias bandas, hasta que volvió a unirse a Campbell y Tench en 1975. En ese momento, el dúo estaba trabajando con el bajista Ron Blair y el baterista Stan Lynch; pronto, Petty se involucró con la banda, que entonces se llamaba los Heartbreakers. Petty aún tenía contrato con Shelter, y el grupo asumió su acuerdo, publicando Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers en 1976.

Inicialmente, el debut de la banda fue ignorado en Estados Unidos, pero cuando el grupo lo apoyó en Inglaterra con una gira abriendo para Nils Lofgren, el disco empezó a despegar. En pocos meses, la banda encabezaba sus propias giras británicas y el álbum estaba en el Top 30 del Reino Unido. Impulsados por el éxito británico del disco, Shelter impulsó el álbum y el sencillo "Breakdown" en Estados Unidos, esta vez con éxito; "Breakdown" se convirtió en un éxito en el Top 40 y "American Girl" se convirtió en un elemento básico de la radio orientado al álbum. You're Gonna Get It, el segundo álbum de los Heartbreakers, se publicó en 1978 y se convirtió en el primer disco del grupo en el Top 40 estadounidense. Petty & the Heartbreakers estaban a punto de triunfar cuando tuvieron graves problemas con la compañía discográfica. La empresa matriz de Shelter, ABC, fue comprada por MCA, y Petty intentó renegociar su contrato con el sello. MCA no estaba dispuesta a satisfacer la mayoría de sus demandas y, a mediados de 1979, se declaró en bancarrota. Poco después, llegó a un acuerdo con MCA y firmó con su filial Backstreet Records. Publicado a finales de 1979, Damn the Torpedoes fue su primer lanzamiento con Backstreet.

Damn the Torpedoes fue el lanzamiento más importante de Petty, que obtuvo excelentes críticas, generó el éxito del Top 10 "Don't Do Me Like That" y el número 15 "Refugee", y pasó siete semanas en el número dos de las listas de Estados Unidos; con el tiempo vendería más de dos millones de copias. A pesar de estar en su punto álgido de popularidad, Petty volvió a tener problemas con la compañía discográfica cuando él y los Heartbreakers se prepararon para lanzar Hard Promises, la continuación de Damn the Torpedoes en 1981. MCA quería lanzar el disco al precio de lista de 9,98 dólares, que era un precio elevado en aquella época. Petty se negó a cumplir sus deseos, amenazando con retener el álbum de la discográfica y organizando una protesta de los fans que obligó a la compañía a publicar el disco a 8,98 dólares. Hard Promises se convirtió en un éxito del Top Ten, llegando a ser platino y generando el exitoso single "The Waiting". Ese mismo año, Petty produjo el álbum de regreso de Del Shannon, Drop Down and Get Me, y escribió "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" a dúo con Stevie Nicks. Incluida en su álbum Bella Donna, que fue grabado con el apoyo de los Heartbreakers, "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" se convirtió en un éxito número tres. Petty & the Heartbreakers volvieron a finales de 1982 con Long After Dark, que se convirtió en su tercer álbum Top Ten consecutivo. Tras su publicación, el bajista Ron Blair dejó la banda y fue sustituido por Howie Epstein, que anteriormente había tocado con John Hiatt.

Petty & the Heartbreakers pasaron casi tres años preparando Southern Accents, la continuación de Long After Dark. Contratando a Dave Stewart, de Eurythmics, como productor, la banda intentó diversificarse musicalmente, llegando a nuevos territorios como el soul, la psicodelia y la nueva ola. Sin embargo, la grabación no fue fácil: en el peor momento, Petty dio un puñetazo a la pared del estudio y se rompió la mano izquierda, supuestamente por la frustración de la mezcla. Southern Accents se publicó finalmente en la primavera de 1985, precedido por el single neopsicodélico "Don't Come Around Here No More", que contaba con un popular vídeo, pseudo-Alice in Wonderland. Southern Accents fue otro disco de éxito, alcanzando el número siete y consiguiendo el platino. Después de su lanzamiento, Petty & the Heartbreakers pasaron 1986 de gira como banda de acompañamiento de Bob Dylan. Dylan colaboró en el single principal "Jammin' Me", del siguiente álbum de los Heartbreakers, Let Me Up (I've Had Enough), que se publicó con críticas mixtas en la primavera de 1987. Justo después del lanzamiento del disco, la casa de Petty y la mayoría de sus pertenencias fueron destruidas por un incendio; él, su esposa y sus dos hijas sobrevivieron ilesos.

En 1988, Petty se convirtió en miembro del supergrupo Traveling Wilburys, en el que también estaban Dylan, George Harrison, Roy Orbison y Jeff Lynne. Los Wilburys publicaron su primer álbum a finales de 1988 y su sonido se convirtió en el modelo para el primer trabajo en solitario de Petty, Full Moon Fever, de 1989. Producido por Lynne y con el apoyo de la mayoría de los Heartbreakers, Full Moon Fever se convirtió en la cima comercial de Petty, alcanzando el número tres en las listas de Estados Unidos, llegando a ser triple platino y generando los exitosos singles "I Won't Back Down", "Runnin' Down a Dream" y "Free Fallin'", que alcanzó el número siete. En 1990, colaboró en el segundo álbum de los Traveling Wilburys, Vol. 3. Petty se reunió oficialmente con los Heartbreakers en Into the Great Wide Open, que también fue producido por Jeff Lynne. Publicado en la primavera de 1991, Into the Great Wide Open mantuvo el impulso de Full Moon Fever, recibiendo buenas críticas y alcanzando el disco de platino.

Tras el lanzamiento de Greatest Hits en 1993, que incluía dos temas nuevos producidos por Rick Rubin, incluido el éxito del Top 20 "Mary Jane's Last Dance", Petty dejó MCA por Warner Bros.; al firmar, se reveló que negoció un acuerdo de 20 millones de dólares en 1989. El batería Stan Lynch dejó los Heartbreakers en 1994, cuando Petty estaba grabando su segundo álbum en solitario con el productor Rubin y muchos miembros de los Heartbreakers. Al igual que Full Moon Fever, Wildflowers, de 1994, fue recibido con críticas y ventas entusiastas, y empató su anterior álbum en solitario con el más vendido de su estudio. Además de ser triple platino y alcanzar el número ocho, el álbum dio lugar a los exitosos singles "You Don't Know How It Feels", "You Wreck Me" y "It's Good to Be King". Petty & the Heartbreakers se reunieron en 1996 para grabar la banda sonora de la película de Edward Burns She's the One. El álbum de la banda sonora resultante fue un éxito moderado, alcanzando el número 15 en las listas de Estados Unidos y llegando a ser disco de oro. Echo le siguió tres años después, convirtiéndose en el primer disco de los Heartbreakers que entraba en el Top Ten en casi 15 años.

The Last DJ, un mordaz ataque a la avaricia corporativa inherente al negocio de la música, se publicó en 2002, seguido en 2006 por un álbum en solitario, Highway Companion; ambos álbumes alcanzaron el Top Ten, y Highway Companion se convirtió en disco de oro en EE.UU. Después de esto, Petty reunió a su banda original Mudcrutch para un álbum y una gira en 2008. Mojo, acreditado a Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, apareció de la mano de Reprise en 2010. La banda salió de gira con bastante regularidad durante los siguientes cuatro años, y luego regresó en el verano de 2014 con Hypnotic Eye, el primer álbum número uno de su carrera. Dos años más tarde, Petty volvió a reunir a Mudcrutch para su segundo álbum, apropiadamente titulado 2. El 2 de octubre de 2017, Petty fue encontrado en su casa en paro cardíaco, y murió en un hospital de Santa Mónica más tarde ese mismo día. Casi un año después, su familia y su banda lanzaron el box set An American Treasure como homenaje al rockero fallecido. Una colección de éxitos de doble disco, The Best of Everything, siguió en marzo de 2019.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/tom-petty-the-heartbreakers-mn0000614137/biography

Tom Petty • Highway Companion

Review:

Tom Petty's concept for his third solo album is laid bare in its very title: it's called Highway Companion, which is a tip-off that this record was made with the road in mind. As it kicks off with the chugging Jimmy Reed-via-ZZ Top riff on "Saving Grace," the album does indeed seem to be ideal music for road trips, but Petty changes gears pretty quickly, down-shifting to the bittersweet acoustic "Square One." Although the album ramps back up with the '60s-styled pop of "Flirting with Time" and the swampy, Dylan-esque "Down South," the quick move to the ruminative is a good indication that for as good as Highway Companion can sound on the road, Petty looks inward on this album just as frequently as he looks outward. Perhaps this is the best indication that this is indeed a solo affair, not a rock & roll record with the Heartbreakers. Petty of course doesn't go it completely alone here: his longtime guitarist Mike Campbell is here as is producer/co-writer Jeff Lynne, who helmed Petty's 1989 solo debut, Full Moon Fever, and the Heartbreakers' 1991 Into the Great Wide Open and now returns to the fold 15 years later. Lynne's previous Petty productions were so bright, big, and shiny, they would have been suitable for an ELO album, and given that track record, it would be easy to assume that he would follow the same template for Highway Companion, but that's not the case at all. Highway Companion has as much in common with the rustic, handmade overtones of 1994's Wildflowers as it does with the pop sheen of Full Moon Fever -- it is precise and polished, yet it's on a small scale, lacking the layers of overdubs that distinguish Lynne's production, and the end result is quite appealing, since it's at once modest but not insular. But Highway Companion also feels a little off, as if Petty is striving to make a fun rock & pop record -- a soundtrack for the summer, or at least a good drive -- but his heart is in making a melancholy introspective album, where he's grappling with getting older. This gives the album a sad undercurrent even at its lightest moments, which makes it ideal for driving alone late at night. Since it arrives after the bombastic The Last DJ, it's refreshing to hear Petty underplay his themes here, and it also helps that Lynne helps toughen up his songcraft. All this makes Highway Companion at the very least another typically reliable collection from Petty, but at its core, it's moodier than most of his records. It has a lot in common with Petty's divorce album, Echo, but it's coming from a different place -- one that's content, yet still unsettled. That may mean that this album isn't quite as fun as it initially seems on the surface, but that bittersweet undercurrent does indeed make Highway Companion a good partner for long nights on the road.

by Stephen Thomas Erlewine

https://www.allmusic.com/album/highway-companion-mw0000573384

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Revisión:

El concepto de Tom Petty para su tercer álbum en solitario está al descubierto en su propio título: se llama Highway Companion, lo que es un indicio de que este disco fue hecho con la carretera en mente. Al comenzar con el riff de Jimmy Reed-via-ZZ Top en "Saving Grace", el álbum parece ser la música ideal para los viajes por carretera, pero Petty cambia de marcha muy rápidamente, cambiando a la acústica agridulce "Square One". Aunque el álbum retrocede con el pop de los años 60 de "Flirting with Time" y el pantanoso "Down South", el rápido movimiento hacia lo rumoroso es un buen indicio de que, por muy bien que suene Highway Companion en la carretera, Petty mira hacia adentro en este álbum con la misma frecuencia que hacia afuera. Tal vez esta es la mejor indicación de que esto es en realidad un asunto solitario, no un disco de rock & roll con los Heartbreakers. Petty, por supuesto, no está completamente solo aquí: su guitarrista Mike Campbell está aquí, así como el productor y co-escritor Jeff Lynne, que dirigió el debut en solitario de Petty en 1989, Full Moon Fever, y el de los Heartbreakers en 1991 Into the Great Wide Open y ahora vuelve al redil 15 años después. Las anteriores producciones de Petty de Lynne eran tan brillantes, grandes y relucientes, que habrían sido adecuadas para un álbum de ELO, y dado ese historial, sería fácil suponer que seguiría el mismo modelo para Highway Companion, pero no es así en absoluto. Highway Companion tiene tanto en común con los matices rústicos y hechos a mano de Wildflowers de 1994 como con el brillo pop de Full Moon Fever - es preciso y pulido, pero a pequeña escala, sin las capas de sobregrabado que distinguen la producción de Lynne, y el resultado final es bastante atractivo, ya que es a la vez modesto pero no insular. Pero Highway Companion también se siente un poco fuera de lugar, como si Petty se esforzara por hacer un divertido disco de rock & pop - una banda sonora para el verano, o al menos un buen viaje - pero su corazón está en hacer un melancólico álbum introspectivo, donde está luchando con el envejecimiento. Esto le da al álbum un trasfondo triste incluso en sus momentos más ligeros, lo que lo hace ideal para conducir solo a altas horas de la noche. Como llega después del bombástico The Last DJ, es refrescante escuchar a Petty tocar sus temas aquí, y también ayuda a que Lynne ayude a endurecer su arte de cantar. Todo esto hace de Highway Companion al menos otra colección típicamente fiable de Petty, pero en el fondo, es más mood mood que la mayoría de sus discos. Tiene mucho en común con el álbum de divorcio de Petty, Echo, pero viene de un lugar diferente... uno que está contento, pero aún no se ha resuelto. Eso puede significar que este álbum no es tan divertido como parece a primera vista, pero ese trasfondo agridulce hace que Highway Companion sea un buen compañero para las largas noches en la carretera.

por Stephen Thomas Erlewine

https://www.allmusic.com/album/highway-companion-mw0000573384

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