Review of Tom Petty's album w/LB mention

[Karen]

**There is an interesting comparison between The Last DJ and Out of the Cradle in this review from The Miami Herald (October 11, 2002). Just wanted to share it with everyone. **

Tom Petty takes another slap at the system

TOM PETTY
and the
HEARTBREAKERS

The Last DJ
(Warner Bros.)
* * *

There's a famous scene in the 1976 film classic, Network in which the late Peter Finch has had enough and shouts, ''I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore!'' Network satirized a struggling TV network that would air anything to get ratings.

With the music industry subbing for television, Tom Petty is Peter Finch on his group's bitterly fed-up and tense new CD, The Last DJ.

On the title track, Petty mourns the sorry state of soulless corporate radio today in which the individual voice is lost. There goes the last DJ / Who plays what he wants to play / And says what he wants to say / There goes your freedom of choice / There goes the last human voice.

Money Becomes King traces a once-idealistic rocker corrupted by the system. Johnny rock that Golden Circle / And all those VIPs / And that music that had freed us / Became a tired routine.

And on Joe, sung in the sneering voice of a slimy record company executive, he gets his digs in on an unnamed label (Jive Records comes to mind) and lip syncers with a penchant for revealing outfits (Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera and J.Lo seem the all-too-obvious subjects). He gets to be famous / I get to be rich . . . Bring me a girl/They're always the best / You put 'em on stage / And you have them undress / Some angel whore / Who can learn a guitar lick / Hey, that's what I call music.

Petty makes a hell of a pop music critic. Though he's a wealthy Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, he manages to avoid hypocrisy. Petty won't allow ''golden circle'' seating and its exorbitant $300 tickets at his concerts; he withheld his 1981 album, Hard Promises, from his former label until they agreed not to price it $1 above the then-accepted list price; and he refuses to license his songs for commercials.

A lot of thought went into this CD's lyrics, but tackling the greedy music business isn't a new concept. In 1970, the Kinks did it with Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One; two years earlier, The Who did the same on The Who Sell Out. Lindsey Buckingham (who harmonizes on this CD's throwaway, The Man Who Loves Women) did likewise 10 years ago on Out of the Cradle.

None of these records rank among those artists' bestsellers and it's unlikely The Last DJ will reach the masses the way other Petty discs like Damn the Torpedoes or Full Moon Fever did. The concerns, though valid, are probably too insider-related, and the public is buying the soulless music Petty complains about.

Also, Petty's new music isn't his best. The melodies and arrangements borrow from The Beatles, the Byrds, Bob Dylan and the Stones, and, while the title track is immediately catchy and harmonious, it takes a few listens for the other tunes to take hold.

Given time, they will. The musicianship is terrific. But most likely, pop music critics and those turned off by the status quo will champion this CD more than will the average listener.

-Howard Cohen

**There is also an announcement of Tuesday's release of Fleetwood Mac, The Very Best Of.**

Fleetwood Mac, The Very Best Of (Reprise).
Two-CD, 36-track set traces the Buckingham-Nicks years (1975-1987) and includes three songs from 1997's live reunion tour, including Lindsey Buckingham's amazing re-imaginings of Big Love and Go Insane. In addition to the expected Top 40 hits, the package includes welcome LP cuts like [i]Storms, Gold Dust Woman,[i/] the original Landslide, and The Chain (But where's Fireflies from the 1980 live labum and what are No Questions Asked and Paper Doll doing here instead?) The set is designed to whet appetites for the band's upcoming Spring 2003 studio album and tour.

-Howard Cohen

**I also agree that Fireflies should have been included. It appears that Howard Cohen is a Mac fan.**

-Karen

[sulamith]

Hey, great article!
I agree with what the author said about this not being Tom's best work musically, because I have found myself more into the lyrics that the music. I do hate that he called the track Lindsey participated on the the throwaway, but the truth is the truth.

He must be a Mac fan to mention OOTC and to even know there is such a thing as "Buckingham-Nicks years". Most people think that is all there was.

It is nice to read something written by someone who knows and apparently appreciates this band.

[BlueGrass]

Where can I hear the song with Lindsey!?

[Karen]

Originally posted by sulamith
I agree with what the author said about this not being Tom's best work musically, because I have found myself more into the lyrics that the music. I do hate that he called the track Lindsey participated on the the throwaway, but the truth is the truth.

I haven't bought the CD yet, so I can't comment on the "throwaway" part. Is this particular song like the other tracks (not Tom's best musically)? Ugh! I normally like Tom Petty's music, but I have a feeling that I'll be very disappointed with this.

It is nice to read something written by someone who knows and apparently appreciates this band.

I was thinking the same thing this morning. Also...out of the 15 releases listed, the Mac announcement was the longest write-up in that section of the paper.

-Karen

[Les]

Hi Karen

"The concerns, though valid, are probably too insider-related, and the public is buying the soulless music Petty complains about."

Hmmm. I'd like to hope that there are an awful lot of people to whom his concerns aren't at all too "insider-related." Wishful thinking, perhaps.

At the moment, I think I agree generally with the rest of the review. Lyrically, it's entertaining. But like Sulamith, I think I am finding that I am a little disappointed musically. Money Becomes King is one that is lyrically full, but musically flat to me. There are a few others that seem a little flat to me as well.

About the tune LB is on? The Man Who Loves Women is sort of atypical of the other songs on the album. It's sort of an odd inclusion amongst the other material, which might translate to why a reviewer would see it as "throwaway."

Nice about the FM write-up. Thanks for posting this stuff!

[Les]

Just happened to see this from the LA Times, so I thought I'd add it to the thread:


TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS
"The Last DJ"
Warner Bros.

Petty has always seemed to have more in common with Joe Rock Fan than the larger-than-life stars with whom he shares membership in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It's no surprise, then, that the anger, frustration and sadness over the state-of-the-rock-union in this loosely thematic album (due Tuesday) reflect the view of the disheartened classic-rock fan more than that of the jaundiced rock star.

The album works on a number of levels, but the ambition behind the songs and the off-the-cuff production doesn't slap you in the face. On the surface, several numbers are straight-out poison-pen letters to the commercial forces that compromise the art--and the fun--of rock 'n' roll.

It's hardly a revolutionary idea; the Kinks devoted much of their 1970 album, "Lola Versus Powerman and the Money-Go-Round, Pt. 1," to the dispiriting machinations of the music business, and such complaints have surfaced regularly ever since.

But Petty brings a disarming, regular-guy passion to his treatise, invoking many of his '60s and '70s rock heroes along the way: John Lennon circa "Imagine" (the wistful "Like a Diamond" ), "Sticky Fingers"-era Stones (the moody "Blue Sunday"), the Kinks (the jaunty "The Man Who Loves Women"), Pink Floyd (the expansive "When a Kid Goes Bad") and Bob Dylan (the benedictory "Have Love Will Travel").

It makes for a heartfelt pastiche that feels like Petty's answer to such recent rock-rooted movies as "High Fidelity" and "Almost Famous." It even has a happy ending, closing with the resounding "Can't Stop the Sun." Petty and the Heartbreakers launch a U.S. tour with shows being televised live to theaters on Oct. 15 and 16 from the Grand Olympic Auditorium.
--Randy Lewis

[Karen]

Originally posted by Les
It's no surprise, then, that the anger, frustration and sadness over the state-of-the-rock-union in this loosely thematic album (due Tuesday) reflect the view of the disheartened classic-rock fan more than that of the jaundiced rock star.

Hi Les

I think this quote speaks volumes. I think that we (as fans) have felt very disheartened with the state of rock...much like the Tom Petty's and Lindsey Buckingham's of this world. Each post on The Ledge is dripping with frustration, or at least it has been lately. The news hasn't been exactly the greatest.

When you're speaking musically, are you referring to the sound or the mood? I mean...does every song on the album sound the same? How about the harmony between Tom & Lindsey?

[Les]

Originally posted by Karen
When you're speaking musically, are you referring to the sound or the mood? I mean...does every song on the album sound the same? How about the harmony between Tom & Lindsey?

There is a good trade-off between electric and acoustic, fast and slow, etc... It's not even the only only song that is meant to be tongue-in-cheek and on the humorous side. But the sound and the mood is just a little bit off from the other stuff on the record. For some reason I'm having a hard time coming up with a way to describe it. Lindsey's voice is heard at the very end of the song. His voice sounds multi-tracked and he's singing one part while Tom is singing a different line, so it's not exactly a harmony that they're doing. Their voices do seem to sound pretty good together, even though you'd never really think to put them together. I still think the tune is kind of appealing in its doofiness.

I think the CD will still grow on me...

[Karen]

Originally posted by Les

Lindsey's voice is heard at the very end of the song. His voice sounds multi-tracked and he's singing one part while Tom is singing a different line, so it's not exactly a harmony that they're doing.

In other words, it's not anything like "Walls (Circus)" from She's the One.

Well, it looks like I'll end up buying the CD along with The Best of FM when I return from my trip. Thanks Les!

[seteca]

I've only heard "The Man Who Loves Women" from the album, and I like it a lot. Lindsey's vocals are brief but really good, sounds very GOS-like.

[wondergirl9847]

The song sounds kinda FM-ish to me...something Lindsey would sing...maybe it's that bouncy opening and the wierd instrumentation...I dunno.