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Rating: Tom Petty is someone who has never missed a beat in his career. He is someone who has always lived (perhaps unjustly) in the shadow of Bruce Springsteen. He is someone who, like the Boss, sang of America, sang of the adolescent dreams of an entire generation. He is someone who has always produced great music.
Here we are at the dawn, the official debut of Tom Petty together with those who would become his inseparable companions in adventure for a full 30 years, the Heartbreakers. Legend has it that Petty left Florida with guitarist Mike Campbell to seek success in Hollywood. During the journey, he met those who would forever shape his future: in New Orleans, faithful keyboardist Benmont Tench, and in Oklahoma, the so-called “English Wizard” and producer Denny Cordell.
Yes, it all seems to come out of a Kerouac novel, but that’s how it happened. In Los Angeles, Petty achieved what he wanted since his departure: to become a rock star. This album somewhat represents the prelude to success, with its imperfections and its songs that seem to be played on the spot. It seems indeed that nothing is planned, you listen to these 10 songs all at once without stopping to reflect: “This passage is great... The voice is excellent...”. It's unpretentious rock and roll, which has in “Rockin’ around (with you)” its logical calling card and in “American girl” its worthy conclusion.
But the moments of euphoria are numerous: from the nostalgic blues of “Hometown blues” to the declaration of intent in “Anything that’s rock’n’roll.” There is room for dreamy ballads like “Luna” or “The wild one, forever." In “Mystery man,” Petty seems to have learned the lesson of Lynyrd Skynyrd, while here and there emerge echoes of the Beatles and Bob Dylan that will become even more evident in the subsequent albums.
This is an album recommended for those who want to listen and discover the rougher and more direct Tom Petty, who makes rock without compromises. It's hard to find anything out of place, although it can be said that there are no great chart hits, except for the magnificent “American girl.” But it will be in the following years that fame and popularity (especially in the States) will grow enormously.
In the end, Tom Petty, just like the Boss, is an old American heart that continues still today not to disappoint those who love him or simply appreciate his music and who perhaps will never find himself in that “free fall” he sang about...
Tracklist Lyrics and Samples
02 Breakdown (02:44)
It's alright if you love me,
It's alright if you don't
I'm not afraid of you runnin' away honey,
I get the feeling you won't
Say there ain't no sense in pretending,
Your eyes give you away
Something inside you is feeling like I do,
We said all there is to say
Baby..
Chorus
Breakdown, go ahead and give it to me
Breakdown, take me through the night
Breakdown, I'm standin here can't you see,
Breakdown, it's alright,
It's alright, it's alright
Chorus
09 Luna (03:59)
White light cut a scar in the sky
Thin line of silver
The night was all clouded with dreams
Wind made me shiver
Black and yellow pools of light
Outside my window
Luna come to me tonight
I am a prisoner
Luna glide down from the moon
The clouds are all silver and black
Floating around me
Luna come into my eyes
Luna surround me
With black and yellow pools of light
Fall by my window
Luna come to me tonight
I am a prisoner
Luna glide down from the moon
The clouds are all silver and black
Floating around me
Luna come into my eyes
Luna surround me
With black and yellow pools of light
Fall by my window
Luna come to me tonight
I am a prisoner
Luna glide down from the moon
10 American Girl (03:30)
Well, she was an American girl,
Raised on promises
She couldn't help thinking that
there was a little more to life
Somewhere else
After all it was a great big world
With lots of places to run to
And if she had to die
Tryin', she
Had one little promise she was gonna keep
Chorus:
Oh yeah, alright,
Take it easy, baby
Make it last all night
She was an American girl.
Well, it was kind of cold that night,
She stood alone on the balcony
Yeah, she could hear the cars roll by,
Out on four forty one like
Waves crashing on the beach,
And for one desperate moment there
He crept back in her memory
God, it's so painful when something that's so close
Is still so far out of reach
Chorus
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