Like the shark, Tom Petty has spent his life in perpetual motion, touring, observing, gaining wisdom.
September 16, 2006 (Press Release) --
Like the shark, Tom Petty has spent his life in perpetual motion, touring, observing, gaining wisdom.
His songs have always revolved around the journey, usually accompanied by longing for some unattainable pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Granted, this makes for the easiest of metaphors, but in Petty's case it's honest and heartfelt, reflective of his rock icon status.
Now, with the release of "Highway Companion," his 15th studio album, the waiting is no longer the hardest part, but something to savor. The rocker has turned inward, looking for that "Saving Grace," as the CD's first single and central theme so eloquently states.
It would have been immensely satisfying if he'd delved into that new disc Thursday night at Charter One Pavilion, but instead he played a greatest-hits and blues-rock cover set, with only three songs from "Companion."
Petty's hamstrung for two reasons. First, the tour is being billed as a 30th anniversary celebration of the release of the eponymous debut album by Petty & the Heartbreakers, so a career retrospective set list is fitting and proper. More to the point, "Companion" is not a Heartbreakers album, but a collaboration with Jeff Lynne, who produced. Petty and Lynne, his old Traveling Wilburys companion, played almost all of the instruments, with Petty serving as the drummer. Lead guitarist Mike Campbell was the lone Heartbreaker, and he's featured primarily on slide.
The man from Gainsville, Fla., via Los Angeles is secure in his stardom, complete with first-ballot Rock and Roll Hall of Fame membership for his band in 2002 and a raft of other accolades, including Thursday's "Tom Petty Day" proclamation by Mayor Daley. "The mayor just gave me a joint backstage -- just kidding," Petty proclaimed before launching into the defiant "I Won't Back Down."
Source: http://www.yahoo.com
Posted BY JEFF JOHNSON
His songs have always revolved around the journey, usually accompanied by longing for some unattainable pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Granted, this makes for the easiest of metaphors, but in Petty's case it's honest and heartfelt, reflective of his rock icon status.
Now, with the release of "Highway Companion," his 15th studio album, the waiting is no longer the hardest part, but something to savor. The rocker has turned inward, looking for that "Saving Grace," as the CD's first single and central theme so eloquently states.
It would have been immensely satisfying if he'd delved into that new disc Thursday night at Charter One Pavilion, but instead he played a greatest-hits and blues-rock cover set, with only three songs from "Companion."
Petty's hamstrung for two reasons. First, the tour is being billed as a 30th anniversary celebration of the release of the eponymous debut album by Petty & the Heartbreakers, so a career retrospective set list is fitting and proper. More to the point, "Companion" is not a Heartbreakers album, but a collaboration with Jeff Lynne, who produced. Petty and Lynne, his old Traveling Wilburys companion, played almost all of the instruments, with Petty serving as the drummer. Lead guitarist Mike Campbell was the lone Heartbreaker, and he's featured primarily on slide.
The man from Gainsville, Fla., via Los Angeles is secure in his stardom, complete with first-ballot Rock and Roll Hall of Fame membership for his band in 2002 and a raft of other accolades, including Thursday's "Tom Petty Day" proclamation by Mayor Daley. "The mayor just gave me a joint backstage -- just kidding," Petty proclaimed before launching into the defiant "I Won't Back Down."
Source: http://www.yahoo.com
Posted BY JEFF JOHNSON
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