Tom Petty

[TC Raymond]

I think he's fucking ace. I went to see him a few years ago at Shepherd's Bush Empire and it remains one of the best gigs I've ever seen. Albums like Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, You're Gonna Get It, Damn the Torpedos, Hard Promises, Into the Great Wide Open and Echo should be in the upper echelons of 'top 100 albums' lists every time, yet somehow they never are.

Having said that...

The Heartbreakers definitely went through a duff spell in the 1980s, which - ironically - coincided with the rise of MTV and a pronounced leap in their popularity. Howie Epstein was a poor replacement for Ron Blair (who later rejoined the band, replacing his own replacement, following Epstein's death) and albums like Southern Accents, Full Moon Fever and Let Me Up, I've Had Enough were just full of lazy songwriting backed up by flashy video clips, Petty's superstar mates (don't get me started on the fucking Travelling Wilburys) and an increasing reliance on the "we're not just a great guitar band, we're fuckin' WEIRDOS!" ethic which they thankfully seemed to shake off by the early nineties. Look at the video collection currently available on DVD and you'll see what I mean - all of a sudden, mere performance clips (as with the videos for Here Comes My Girl and the Waiting) weren't enough, and we had those Little Nemo or Alice In Wonderland-inspired bits of whimsy to contend with...what was the fuckin' point?

Having said that, the videos for 'Into the Great Wide Open' (featuring Johnny Depp) and 'Mary Jane's Last Dance' (with Kim Basinger) hit just the right Heartbreakers note in terms of being simultaneously cool and slightly warped, like a copy of Rubber Soul left out in the sun.

Any more thoughts on Petty?

[Jemble Fred]

Argh, sorry, but his voice (at least these days) is hilariously bad. I sat down with a few folk to watch the George Harrison tribute the other week and they all burst into spontaneous laughter when he came along to whine his way through Taxman. It's like a deliberate joke act he has, we couldn't help but laugh fit to burst throughout. It is a terrible blot on an otherwise magical show though.

I'm not an expert on his own songs, perhaps they make up for everything.

[TC Raymond]

Argh, sorry, but his voice (at least these days) is hilariously bad. I sat down with a few folk to watch the George Harrison tribute the other week and they all burst into spontaneous laughter when he came along to whine his way through Taxman. It's like a deliberate joke act he has, we couldn't help but laugh fit to burst throughout. It is a terrible blot on an otherwise magical show though.

He was just getting over a serious illness at the time of that tribute, as he mentions in a few songs on the Echo album.

[Jemble Fred]

Ah, really? Cheers for that info, perhaps that explains it. I know he was in the Wilberries etc, but they should have kept him off the mic for the show really, it was just noise. The interviews with him on the DVD were also amusingly awful – feel ever-so-slightly bad for laughing now I know he was ill. Only a bit though.

[trotsky assortment]

Argh, sorry, but his voice (at least these days) is hilariously bad.

The '...and then she looks me in the eye-hey-eye-ey' line from 'Here Comes My Girl' gets me every time.  Not to mention the shouty bit before the chorus.  Mostly though, I love TP.  Least favourite album still has to be 'Into The Great Wide Open' though - just don't like the over all sound.

[Hank_Kingsley]

D'ya like the jayhawks mister raymondface? Probably not. They probably offend some bizarre sensibility of yours. Still, thought i'd ask.

Since they're obviously way better than Tom Petty. Who i've never listened to. Is it worth it? Where's a good starting point?

[Sadness]

Ah, really? Cheers for that info, perhaps that explains it. I know he was in the Wilberries etc, but they should have kept him off the mic for the show really, it was just noise. The interviews with him on the DVD were also amusingly awful – feel ever-so-slightly bad for laughing now I know he was ill. Only a bit though.

I don't think you should post ANY more comments in this thread as you're obviously stupid to a very large degree.

"I know he was in the Wilberries etc.....". That line alone is so smothered in stupidity that there's nothing I need to type to prove it's idiocy.

Tom Petty is wonderful TC, agree wholeheartedly.

[boxofslice]

D'ya like the jayhawks mister raymondface? Probably not. They probably offend some bizarre sensibility of yours. Still, thought i'd ask.

Since they're obviously way better than Tom Petty. Who i've never listened to. Is it worth it? Where's a good starting point?

Good mention for The Jayhawks. Hollywood Town Hall and Sound of Lies are two albums that always find its way back onto my stereo. Have you checked out Mark Olson's new record The Salvation Blues? I think Louris plays on a couple of tracks.

[trotsky assortment]

Yup.  Another shout out for the marvellous Jayhawks here too.  Also worthy of throwing into the conversation is the Jayhawks/Wilco/Big Star collaboration/collective Golden Smog. 

[TC Raymond]

Yeah, I do like the Jayhawks so ner. And the Bottle Rockets. And Wilco. And (apropos of nothing) John Mellencamp's 'the Lonesome Jubilee' album.

There are a couple of Petty tracks where I think "oh come on, you're just taking the piss now" - naming names, Yer So Bad and It'll All Work Out - but they're no more heinous than Pete Townshend and his bloody ukulele prattling on like Tiny Tim on Blue, Red and Grey from the Who By Numbers album in the grand scheme of things.

Least favourite album still has to be 'Into The Great Wide Open' though - just don't like the over all sound.
It's Jeff Lynne's production. You either like it or you don't.

[Ray Le Otter]

I don't think you should post ANY more comments in this thread as you're obviously stupid to a very large degree.

"I know he was in the Wilberries etc.....". That line alone is so smothered in stupidity that there's nothing I need to type to prove it's idiocy.

That's a bit of a cunty comment to make, even to Jemble Fred.

Anyroad up, I seem to remember Sarah Greene raving about Tom Petty on Saturday Superstore back in the 80's (hey, there were very few outlets for music back then) which was a bit odd but I never really got to grips with him, however "Free Falling" is a fucking great tune. And he was fab with the Wilburys.

[CaledonianGonzo]

Cool Dry Place is one of my favourite Wilberries tunes.

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

they're no more heinous than Pete Townshend and his bloody ukulele prattling on like Tiny Tim on Blue, Red and Grey from the Who By Numbers album in the grand scheme of things.

Oh, I've always had a soft spot for Blue, Red and Grey. Charming little ditty. Townshend "even shuns the south of France." Whadda guy.

[TC Raymond]

Since they're obviously way better than Tom Petty. Who i've never listened to. Is it worth it? Where's a good starting point?

I always say "start with a greatest hits" compilation, so...



Or if you're feeling braver...



There's some right shit on disc two, though. But you do get 'Waiting For Tonight' featuring the Bangles, 'Surrender', a song he wrote in 1976 but didn't record until 2001, and 'The Best Of Everything', which is just fecking beautiful really.

[TC Raymond]

Argh, sorry, but his voice (at least these days) is hilariously bad. I sat down with a few folk to watch the George Harrison tribute the other week and they all burst into spontaneous laughter when he came along to whine his way through Taxman.

Oh dear...
[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NejiSxxdG00[/youtube]

I think the sight of that boring old stump Claptout at the beginning is more depressing.