Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers #12: Mojo

Release Date: June 15, 2010

Personnel: Tom Petty (vocals, guitar); Mike Campbell (guitars); Benmont Tench (piano, organ); Scott Thurston (guitar); Steve Ferrone (drums); Ron Blair (bass)

Produced by Tom Petty; Mike Campbell; Ryan Ulyate

List of Tracks: Jefferson Jericho Blues; First Flash of Freedom; Running Man's Bible; The Trip to Pirate's Cove; Candy; No Reason to Cry; I Should Have Known It; U.S. 41; Takin' My Time; Let Yourself Go; Don't Pull Me Over; Lover's Touch; High in the Morning; Something Good Coming; Good Enough

Mojo turned out to be the penultimate Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers album, a record defined by maturity and creative freedom. With music transitioning into the streaming era, there was less pressure to produce hits for the radio. Petty opted for longer, blues-based jams, unafraid to play rock and roll in broad strokes and the results were a record that sounded timeless and alive.

"Jefferson Jericho Blues" sounds not unlike a track from Bob Dylan's Modern Times, evocative of old Americana. It's the sort of song it takes four decades to conjure. "First Flash of Freedom" extends to nearly seven minutes and goes for a more modern rock sound, allowing the Heartbreakers to show off their chops. 'Running Man's Bible" has echoes of swamp rock. "The Trip to Pirate's Cove" tells of a weary road trip, fleeting love, and small-time crime, Petty's weathered vocal and the mellow production make for a lived-in atmosphere. 

"Candy" gestures towards rootsy rock and roll, while "No Reason to Cry" is a quiet ballad. "I Should've Known It" is straight up blues and mission statement for the record, "U.S." 41" is more in the tradition of delta blues, "Takin' My Time" continues the retro blues motif. "Let Yourself Go" revels in jukebox poetry with killer riffs by Mike Campbell. "Don't Pull Me Over" sounds a bit wearier, "Lover's Touch" muses on desire. "High in the Morning" offers fatherly advice, "Something Good Coming" sounds like an outtake from Wildflowers. "Good Enough" ends the album with an epic blues statement. 

Detractors might dismiss Mojo as monotonous in sound and theme, but there's much to admire. The band sounds confident, Campbell's guitar work rivals Petty as the focal point. Track for track it's consistently solid, blues-based rock recorded at a time of resurgent interest in how to define American music. With their status in rock and roll history unshakeable, the band felt free to indulge in their passion for classic rock and blues. 

Mudcrutch #1: Mudcrutch

Release Date: April 29, 2008

Personnel: Tom Petty (vocals, bass); Mike Campbell (guitars); Benmont Tench (piano, organ); Tom Leadon (guitar, vocals); Randall Marsh (drums) 

Produced by Tom Petty; Mike Campbell; Ryan Ulyate

List of Tracks: Shady Grove; Scare Easy; Orphan of the Storm; Six Days on the Road; Crystal River; Oh Maria; This is a Good Street; The Wrong Thing to Do; Queen of the Go-Go Girls; June Apple; Lover of the Bayou; Topanga Cowgirl; Bootleg Flyer; House of Stone

Mudcrutch was an earlier incarnation of the Heartbreakers back when Petty and his bandmates entered the music scene. While the core of the Heartbreakers remained intact with Petty, Campbell, and Tench all playing on the record, original members from the 1970s Tom Leadon and Randall Marsh also joined them. The tenor of the record leaned more into country rock, a genre having a resurgence in the late 2000s as the Americana genre. 

The album opens with the traditional "Shady Grove" sounding like alt-country bands of the era. "Scare Easy" is a strong track, channeling early Petty songs but sounding more seasoned in sound and vocal style. "Orphan of the Storm" segue ways into country rock, channeling Gram Parsons. Next is a reworked version of the country classic "Six Days on the Road." 

At nine minutes, "Crystal River" is the centerpiece of the record, a spacey jam with Campbell's guitar taking over. "Oh Maria" is another mellow interlude, much in the vein of Wildflowers. Benmont Tench contributed 'This is a Good Street", a bluesy rocker. Petty's "The Wrong Thing to Do" lifts a lyric from a Dylan song done also in the style of late period Bob. 

Tom Leadon wrote and performed "Quenn of the Go-Go Girls", an homage to the Flying Burrito Brothers. "June Apple" is an instrumental, pure Americana. "Lover of the Bayou" covers a deep cut from the Byrds, as Petty once again revisits some foundational influences. 

"Topanga Cowgirl" jauntily indulges in Western imagery, then "Bootleg Flyer", now that sounds like a Heartbreakers song straight out of 1978!  "House of Stone" returns to country rock to end the record on a spirited note.

Mudcrutch got Petty back in touch with his past, many of the songs tap into his influences and allowed him to reconnect with his old lineup. A mostly solid collection of tunes. While Petty remains the frontman, stepping aside to highlight other members was a nice change of pace. 

Tom Petty #3: Highway Companion

Release Date: July 26, 2006

Personnel: Tom Petty (vocals, guitar); Mike Campbell (guitars); Jeff Lynne (bass, guitars, keyboards)

Produced by Tom Petty, Mike Campbell, and Jeff Lynne

List of Tracks: Saving Grace; Square One; Flirting with Time; Down South; Jack; Turn This Car Around; Big Weekend; Night Driver; Damaged by Love; This Old Town; Ankle Deep; The Golden Rose

Highway Companion would be the third and final Tom Petty solo record. While generally not regarded to be at the level of Full Moon Fever or Wildflowers, the record leans into Petty's pop sensibilities making for a listen that goes down easily. 

"Saving Grace" is from the perspective of a weary traveler mystified by post-9/11 America. Mike Campbell's guitar add a hint of unease. "Square One" is a tender acoustic ballad on surviving the long haul. "Flirting With Time" has fun with a catchy chorus, like a jaunty outtake from the Traveling Wilbury sessions. "Down South" muses on southern childhood memories and family ghosts, once again Petty sounds centered. "Jack" offers some muted swamp rock, "Turn This Car Around" evokes Wildflowers with its steady energy and lo-fi qualities echoing '90s Petty.

"Big Weekend" plays as easy going country rock. "Night Driver" is exactly what the title promises, weary driving under a star filled sky. "Damaged by Love" is adjacent in theme to "Freefallin" but more downbeat. "This Old Town" follows a character stuck in a boring town, once again a haunted echo of "Here Comes My Girl." "Ankle Deep" gets a bit derivative, "The Golden Rose" touches on mythical themes of love and time passing.

Highway Companion also failed to produce hits like Petty's two previous solo efforts, perhaps adding to the dismissive attitude of critics. But for a lazy summer afternoon record one could do much worse, perhaps that's what Tom intended. 

 

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers #11: The Last DJ

Release Date: October 8, 2002

Personnel: Tom Petty (vocals, guitar); Mike Campbell (guitars); Benmont Tench (piano, organ); Scott Thurston (guitar); Steve Ferrone (drums); Ron Blair (bass)

Produced by Tom Petty; Mike Campbell; George Drakoulias

List of Tracks: The Last DJ; Money Becomes King; Dreamville; Joe; When a Kid Goes Bad; Like a Diamond; Lost Children; Blue Sunday; You and Me; The Man Who Loves Women; Have Love Will Travel; Can't Stop the Sun

The Last DJ proved to be one of Petty's most impassioned albums, a broadside against the increasing corporatization of America as the millennium passed. For erstwhile young fans of classic rock in the post-9/11 era like me, the album carried real weight. 

The demise of terrestrial radio and Top 40 culture accelerated rapidly during the 2000s and the opening track takes aim at the homogenization of mass media. The radio DJ was a part of the mythos of post-war culture, playing rock and roll and acting as intermediary between artist and audience. By the 2000s radio DJs were assigned management approved playlists. After 9/11, Clear Channel Communication infamously circulated a list of banned songs in an ominous move of stinking of censorship. Petty finds an outlaw hope in the song, imagining a renegade DJ starting a channel in Mexico. Despite the exuberance, the nostalgia feels more fantastical than real.

Most of the record echoes with the theme. "Money Became King" follows a rock star who once had integrity but caved to corporate interests, a kind of darker companion to "Into the Great Wide Open." "Dreamville" switches gears, recalling a childhood memory with hints of psychedelia. "Joe" imagines a callous record company CEO exploiting artists for profit in a sharp character study. "When a Kid Goes Bad" is a steady rocker that breaks into a jam. "Like a Diamond" lands with a lighter touch, pleasantly mellow. Another tale of protecting artistic purity, "Lost Children" features more excellent guitar work from Mike Campbell. 

The albums second half turns inward. "Blue Sunday" drifts into acoustic territory, with hints of country rock and heat-soaked dashboards. "You and Me" evokes '60s folk rock simplicity, "The Man Who Loves Women" is a cheerful ditty. "Have Love Will Travel" is classic Petty, drawing on American archetypes of resilience and the open road. "Can't Stop the Sun" closes out the record with a gesture towards epic rock, providing scale to the album's final moments.  

The Last DJ remains a strong - and at times fiercely impassioned effort- by Petty and the Heartbreakers. The album's critiques of corporate America still carry punch and relevance. The more introspective second half may not hit as hard, but the album solidified Petty as an elder statesman of rock, a role he would inhabit for the rest of his career. 

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers #10: Echo

Release Date: April 13, 1999

Personnel: Tom Petty (vocals, guitar); Mike Campbell (guitars); Benmont Tench (piano, organ); Howie Epstein (bass)

Produced by Tom Petty; Mike Campbell; Rick Rubin

List of Tracks: Room at the Top: Counting on You; Free Girl Now; Lonesome Sundown; Swingin; Accused of Love; Echo; Won't Last Long; Billy the Kid; I Don't Wanna Fight; This One's For Me; No More; About to Give Out; Rhino Skin; One More Day, One More Night

Echo was recorded during a time of personal turmoil for the band.  Petty was struggling with drug addiction after his divorce and the songs reflect his despair. It would also be the final Heartbreakers album to feature bassist Howie Epstein who was fired from the band. He passed away in 2003. 

"Room at the Top" expresses Petty's bleak of state of mind, imagining a character isolated and contemplating death. Petty's lyrics and vocal bring tenderness and empathy to someone in a dark place. "Counting on You" is a moody and guitar driven. "Free Girl Now" is a bit derivative, with Petty taking the third person perspective towards a woman leaving a toxic relationship. 

"Lonesome Sundown" is a bit dreary, but melodic, in a McCartney sort of way. "Swingin" aims at the epic rock song and approaches greatness. "Accused of Love" is a gentle rocker, "Echo" is one of the most emotionally raw songs Petty had recorded up to this point. "Won't Last Long" channels the California 60's sound Petty always loved. It seems every rocker must write a song about a Western desperado, "Billy the Kid" is a turbulent confessional. 

In a first, "I Don't Wanna Fight" features Mike Campbell on lead vocal, he sounds a little like Petty. "This One's for Me" hints at personal renewal, "No More" signals artistic exhaustion. "About to Give Out" stays on point, Campbell and Tench add some life to the track. "Rhino Skin" returns to the resilience theme, Campbell contributes a nice solo at the end. "One More Day, One More Night" ends the record with an emotional plea.

Echo is a dreary record. Rick Rubin's production has a monolithic quality here, all the tracks blend into a sludgy sound. The songs were obviously more personal than usual; one wonders why Petty did not put it out as a solo record. Maybe it was just too long, it's 60 minutes of music, cutting a few tracks might've been a good idea. 

 

 

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers #9: Songs and Music from "She's the One"

Release Date: August 6, 1996

Personnel: Tom Petty (vocals, guitar); Mike Campbell (guitars); Benmont Tench (piano, organ); Howie Epstein (bass)

Produced by Tom Petty; Mike Campbell; Rick Rubin

List of Tracks: Walls (Circus); Grew Up Fast; Zero from Outer Space; Climb That Hill; Change the Locks; Angel Dream (No. 4); Hope You Never; Asshole; Supernatural Radio; California; Hope on Board; Walls (No. 3); Angel Dream (No. 2); Hung Up and Overdue; Airport

When Indie filmmaker Edward Burns approached Tom Petty about writing some music for his film, She's the One, Petty went above and beyond by writing an entire album's worth of material. Some of the songs were originally recorded for Wildflowers. A rotating group of drummers were used for the soundtrack, including Ringo Starr on "Hung Up and Overdue."

"Walls" became the signature song for the film and became a minor hit during the summer of 1996. The sound recalls The Traveling Wilbury's, jangly rock with sincere (and direct) lyrics. "Grew Up Fast" is a moody rocker, effective and even epic in concept. "Zero from Outer Space" is both bluesy and melodic, reminiscent of Dylan's sound on Blonde on Blonde. Heavy guitars punctuate "Climb That Hill." Lucinda Williams wrote "Change the Locks," and the guitars are once again on fire along with Petty sounding like Lucinda. 

"Angel Dream (No. 4)" is a nice acoustic number with a string arrangement, clearly an outtake from Wildflowers. 'Hope You Never" is pleasantly mellow and achieves a chill vibe, "Asshole" does the same but with more sardonic lyrics. "Supernatural Radio" shifts back into epic rock mode; the band really lets loose. "California" is short and sweet. "Hope on Board" and "Airport" are short instrumentals. "Walls (No. 3)" is a reprise of the opening track in a more country rock style. "Angel Dream (No. 2)" is another reprise with a double tracked vocal. "Hung Up and Overdue" has the makings of a McCartney ballad - steady, melodic, and chilled out. Ringo's drumming adds to the Beatles ambience!

Songs and Music from "She's the One" might be an easy one to overlook in Petty's catalog, but it's full of great stuff. It strikes a pleasing balance between Petty's more introspective songwriting on Wildflowers while letting the Heartbreakers rock out. The album was reissued in 2021 as Angel Dream with an alternative track list. 

Jeff Tweedy: Twilight Override

Release Date: September 26, 2025

Personnel: Jeff Tweedy (vocals, guitar); Liam Kazar (bass); Spencer Tweedy (drums); Sima Cunningham (synths, piano); Sammy Tweedy (synths); Macie Stewart (violin); James Elkington (guitars)

Produced by Jeff Tweedy and Tom Schick

Disc One: One Tiny Flower; Caught Up in the Past; Parking Lot; Forever Never Ends; Love is for Love; Mirror; Secret Door; Betrayed; Sign of Life; Throwaway Lines

Disc Two: KC Rain (No Wonder); Out in the Dark; Better Song; New Orleans; Over My Head (Everything Goes); Western Clear Skies; Blank Baby; No One's Moving On; Feel Free

Disc Three: Lou Reed Was My Babysitter; Amar Bharati; Wedding Cake; Stray Cats in Spain; Ain't It a Shame; Twilight Override; Too Real; This Is How It Ends; Saddest Eyes; Cry Baby Cry; Enough

On "Wilco: The Song" from 2009 Jeff Tweedy pledged to listeners that "Wilco, will love you baby." His new triple solo album Twilight Override lives up to that promise from years back, offering everyone some tempered but hopeful words in the fraught year of our lord 2025. 

Tweedy has stated each disc was intended to loosely represent the past, present, and future. "One Tiny Flower" opens the album on a somber note, channeling a thread of hope by way of mantra. The image of a flower blooming amidst decay provides the metaphor, the hazy production recalls A Ghost is Born - cloudy, but melodic. 

On "Caught Up in the Past" Tweedy sings, "I'm the last in line and the line is moving fast" in a tune channeling late period Dylan ("Not Dark Yet") but with a post-punk sound. Listeners are reminded "it's a race against time/but you're never gonna be that fast" setting up the recurring theme of mortality running through the record. "Parking Lot" is a wry spoken word track in a zone somewhere between pastiche and parody. "Forever Never Ends" is an offering of jangly country rock, semi-autobiographical with Tweedy recalling getting stranded after the Prom on a dark road - and reliving the moment through recurring nightmares. "Love is for Love" is moody with dueling guitars and thundering percussion. 

On "Mirror" there's an undercurrent of electronica in a track about staring at one's own reflection. "Secret Door" interrogates a complex relationship; the fadeout sounds like a lost '70s theme to a paranormal themed TV show. "Betrayed" recalls Tweedy's Uncle Tupelo days with its swinging Sweetheart of the Rodeo grooves. "Sign of Life" is more cosmic country with ethereal background vocals, 'Throwaway Lines" ends the first disc on an acoustic number - confessional in sentiment. 

"KC Rain (No Wonder)" muses on middle age and elusive clarity. On "Out in the Dark" existential malaise and confusion set to power pop. "Better Day" interrogates the place of art amidst turmoil within and without. "New Orleans" recalls Yankee Hotel Foxtrot at its more stripped-down moments on tracks like "Radio Cure." In a similar vein, "Over My Head (Everything Goes)" evokes George Harrison at his most melancholy and insightful. 

'Western Clear Skies" begs for comparison to "Sky Blue Sky" from Wilco's 2007 album of the same title, sonically this track allows traces of light peak through the heavy grey tone of this movement on the album, a cheerful surrealism. "Blank Baby" achieves near Pet Sounds harmonies, but with the mood more wintery Midwest than sunny SoCal. "No One's Moving On" is like late period David Bowie, plus we're treated to a guitar solo. "Feel Free" is vintage Tweedy, ending the second part of the record with a secular sermon of sorts, not unlike John Lennon at his most optimistic and poetic, Jeff even references the Beatles and Stones (even a shout out to his 2000s side project Loose Fur!). 

The third disc opens the explosive "Lou Reed Was My Babysitter" in perhaps the emotional high point of the record. Tweedy promises, "rock 'n' roll ain't ever gonna die/not as long as you and I are alive." "Amar Bharati" is a ballad about the Indian ascetic who never lowers his right hand. "Wedding Cake" is the shortest song at 1:51, a spare acoustic track, "Stray Cats in Spain" offers a travelogue of vague memories. "Ain't It a Shame" muses on perspectives on death in the tenderest ballad on the album. 

The eponymous track "Twilight Override" echoes a tranquil '70s Cat Stevens ballad. "Too Real" goes even further into the cosmic, evoking a moment of enlightenment. "This Is How It Ends" stays in the cosmic realm, building to an epic finish. On "Saddest Eyes" Tweedy sings "All the best brains are broken" in the closest the album comes to speaking to the current moment but could easily belong on All Things Must Pass. "Cry Baby Cry" is a psychedelic country ballad in the Gram Parsons mode, background laughter floats in the background. The final track titled "Enough" ends the album, promising continuity, sending us off with a slushy guitar flourish. 

Twilight Override eschews social commentary in favor of introspection, the importance of inner strength and insight (not in the dopey pop psychology sense), but a political act in itself. The album feels like a tightly wrapped box with its fierce interiority. Moments when it lets loose may leave one hoping for more such moments but never diminishes its fragile power.