Earlier this month, the Florida-born singer-songwriter Tom Petty made an uncharacteristically bold political statement in an Esquire interview. “The war in Iraq is shameful,” he said. “Whether you’re pro- or con-Bush, you’ve got to admit it: the guy lied and he continues to do so. I can’t understand why he’s not just run out on a rail. To send somebody’s kids off and have them killed for no good reason – he’s going to have his day in hell for that. I wouldn’t want that karma.”
What does this have to do with Highway Companion? Well, not a whole lot on the surface of things. While Neil Young is releasing righteously angry albums like Living With War, Petty’s third solo outing – also his debut for Rick Rubin’s American Recordings label – isn’t a political record per se. It’s not a call-to-arms, nor to open rebellion or insurrection.
“It’s just a really nice collection of songs,” its creator reckons. “I think it has an underlying theme of time and what it does to you.”
On the other hand, as with most of Petty’s output over the last three decades, it’s still very much a red-blooded American record, and the weariness and cynicism of being a citizen of that war-mongering nation certainly comes across on its twelve tracks. For all that, it’s not especially judgmental – just experienced, wise, loving and, ultimately, hopeful. Petty’s on tour with Pearl Jam even as you read this review, and having travelled the highways and byways of the US fairly constantly for many years, he’s well-placed to observe and record the variations in the national mood. And the scenery, of course.
The foot-stomping ‘Saving Grace’ opens proceedings: “I’m passing sleeping cities/ Fading by degrees / Not believing all I see to be so / I’m flyin’ over backyards /Country homes and ranches/ Watching life between the branches below/ And it’s hard to say/ Who you are these days/ But you run on anyway /Don’t you baby?/ You keep running for another place/ To find that saving grace.”
Catchy as it is, ‘Saving Grace’ isn’t musically indicative of the rest of this record. The other eleven songs run the gamut of rock, blues, surf guitar and folk, and range from downbeat, heart-broken ballads to mid-tempo rock songs. It’s not a concept album but, with titles like ‘Night Driver’ and ‘Turn This Car Around’, it’s obviously been put together with long car journeys in mind.
It’s not a totally solo run. Petty provides the vocals (distinctively whiney, as always), guitar, drums, harmonica, electric piano, bass and keyboards. Long-term collaborator and former Travelling Wilburys bandmate Jeff Lynne co-produces and supplies bass, guitar, keyboards, backing vocals and autoharp. The Heartbreakers’ Mike Campbell also features on the album with guitar and vibraphone contributions.
Deeply layered with all kinds of subtle musical effects and stray guitar licks, Highway Companion is a real grower of a record. Petty fans certainly won’t be disappointed. And while it won’t win any awards for musical innovation, the album works equally well whether you’re barrelling down an American interstate or past the green fields of the N17.
How it would sound on the roads to Basra or Baghdad, though, is anybody’s guess. If you were a US marine, I’d imagine it’d make you extremely homesick.
Illustration: John Berkeley