PlanetMosh Keeping it Metal
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers ‘Playback’ is a 6 disc box set, originally from 1995 which contains album tracks, B-sides, outtakes & early songs. This comprehensive set has not been available outsideNorth America since 2005. Playback is a career retrospective spanning Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers’ stay at MCA Records. It includes a collection of Petty’s best-known material, as well as tracks recorded by his first band, Mudcrutch, solo demos, 27 previously unreleased songs, B-sides and live cuts.
In “Playback“, you have a release which is being advertised as being “definitive Petty document” which is a pretty hefty statement to make about the musician who has been pretty much critically acclaimed since his humble beginnings as part of Mudcrutch back in 1973, where “Depot Street” put him firmly in the spotlight and made that huge leap from a semi known underground band, to one of being a mainstream artist.
As you would expect from any respectable box set, you have all of the hits ranging from “Breakdown”, “American Girl”, “I Need To Know”, “You Got Lucky”, through to “Learning To Fly”, “Into The Great Wide Open”, “Mary Janes Last Dance” and “Runnin’ Down a Dream” as well as various obscure “B sides” such as “Down The Line” (taken from “Free Fallin’”), “It’s Raining Again” (taken from “Refugee”) etc.
Where this release stands out from the crowd is its inclusion of material from Tom’s Mudcrutch period, including the one song that put him on the path to where he is now “Depot Street”.
Overall in “Playback” you have a release which covers all parts of Tom Petty’s musical career, ranging from his humble beginnings in 1973 through to its stella heights in 1993 and features over 90 classic songs.
Where I feel it does fall down is by stopping at 1993 and by not including any new material wrote for the release, which is something Tom has done in the past, such as the inclusion of “Mary Janes Last Dance” and “Something In The Air” for his 1993 Greatest Hits release. Yes this release originally came out in 1995, but to release it some 7 years later without adding any new material is a bit of a let down.
That detraction aside the box set is still a must buy for fans of Tom Petty and would make an ideal introduction to this musical legend’s work.
Rating: 9/10
Track listings:
The Big Jangle – Track listing:
1. Breakdown;
2. American Girl;
3. Hometown Blues;
4. Anything That’s Rock `N’ Roll;
5. I Need to Know;
6. Listen to Her Heart;
7. When the Time Comes;
8. Too Much Ain’t Enough;
9. No Second Thoughts;
10. Baby’s a Rock `N’ Roller;
11. Refugee;
12. Here Comes My Girl;
13. Even the Losers;
14. Shadow of a Doubt (A Complex Kid);
15. Don’t Do Me Like That;
16. The Waiting;
17. A Woman in Love (It’s Not Me);
18. Something Big;
19. A Thing About You;
20. Insider;
21. You Can Still Change Your Mind;
Spoiled and Mistreated – Track listing:
1. You Got Lucky;
2. Change of Heart;
3. Straight Into Darkness;
4. The Same Old You;
5. Rebels;
6. Don’t Come Around Here No More;
7. Southern Accents;
8. Make It Better (Forget About Me);
9. The Best of Everything;
10. So You Wanna Be a Rock `N’ Roll Star;
11. Don’t Bring Me Down;
12. Jammin’ Me;
13. It’ll All Work Out;
14. Mike’s Life/Mike’s World;
15. Think About Me;
16. A Self-Made Man;
Good Booty – Track listing:
1. All Or Nothin’;
2. Alright For Now;
3. Built To Last;
4. Christmas All Over Again;
5. Free Fallin’;
6. I Won’t Back Down;
7. Into The Great Wide Open;
8. Learning To Fly;
9. Love Is A Long Road;
10. Mary Jane’s Last Dance;
11. Out In The Cold;
12. Runnin’ Down A Dream;
13. Yer So Bad;
The Other Sides – Track listing:
1. Casa Dega (B-side of Don’t Do Me Like That);
2. Heartbreaker’s Beach Party (B-side of Change of Heart);
3. Trailer (B-side of Don’t Come Around Here No More);
4. Cracking Up (B-side of Make It Better – Forget About Me);
5. Psychotic Reaction (live) (from UK EP Too Good to Be True);
6. I’m Tired Joey Boy (live) (from UK EP Too Good to Be True);
7. Lonely Weekends (live) (from UK EP Too Good to Be True);
8. Gator on the Lawn (B-side of A Woman In Love – It’s Not Me);
9. Make That Connection (B-side of Jammin Me);
10. Down The Line (B-side of Free Fallin’);
11. Peace In LA (Peace Mix) (B-side of Peace in LA);
12. It’s Raining Again (B-side of Refugee);
13. Somethin’ Else (live) (UK B-side of Even the Losers);
14. I Don’t Know What to Say to You (B-side of Listen to Her Heart);
15. Kings Highway (live) (German B-side of Something in the Air);
Through The Cracks – Track listing:
1. On The Street;
2. Depot Street;
3. Cry To Me;
4. Don’t Do Me Like That (Mudcrutch Version);
5. I Can’t Fight It;
6. Since You Said You Loved Me;
7. Louisiana Rain (Original Version);
8. Keeping Me Alive;
9. Turning Point;
10. Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around (demo);
11. The Apartment Song (demo);
12. Big Boss Man;
13. The Image of Me;
14. Moon Pie;
15. The Damage You’ve Done (Country Version);
Nobody’s Children – Track listing:
1. Got My Mind Made Up (Original Version);
2. Ways to Be Wicked;
3. Can’t Get Her Out;
4. Waiting For Tonight;
5. Travelin’;
6. Baby, Let’s Play House;
7. Wooden Heart;
8. God’s Gift To Man;
9. You Get Me High;
10. Come On Down To My House;
11. You Come Through;
12. Up InMississippi Tonight;
Links:
http://www.tompetty.com/
http://www.youtube.com/tompetty
http://www.facebook.com/tompetty
http://twitter.com/#!/tompetty
