CD REVIEW
Tom Petty's 'Highway Companion' stays the course
by KEN BARTOLOTTA Reporter

While the '60s had Bob Dylan and the '70s were blessed with the supreme talents of Bruce Springsteen, the '80s had to settle for Tom Petty.

Certainly no slouch when it comes to American rock and roll, Petty could have earned the type of iconic status that Dylan and The Boss have achieved if it weren't for the apathy that his songs have exuded throughout the years.

It's no knock on Petty. For more than 30 years he's been a solid hit machine, but while his music is always an enjoyable listen, you never get the feeling that like his predecessors, he's going to change the world.

It's really no different with his new recording, "Highway Companion." He's not blazing any new trails with his music, but when you've perfected your sound as a rambling, rock vagabond, why mess with success.

In fact, I've always enjoyed that glazed-over sound that Petty has mastered, always lost in his own world that references only the best from Dylan and Neil Young.

It's almost comforting and reassuring when you listen to the opening track, "Saving Grace," a tribute to his life as a musician on the road, and the stable place in this world that he'll probably never achieve.

"I'm flyin' over backyards/ country homes and ranches/ watching life between the branches below," Petty sings over a driving blues riff. The song is vintage Petty, and another one of his classic road songs.

Producer Jeff Lynne, co-founder of both the Electric Light Orchestra and The Traveling Wilburys, is back to once again refine some of the artist's harder edges.

"Highway Companion," is Lynne's third album with Petty, and as in previous efforts, the producer at least mildly helps to differentiate the musician from his former band The Heartbreakers.

It's a much more mellow record than previous offerings, perhaps a sign of Petty's age and the dwindling clock that is always ticking, most evident on songs like "Flirting with Time," and "This Old Town."

On those songs and a number of others, Petty strums away on what seems to be his true "Highway Companion": his acoustic guitar.

But like an old pair of weathered shoes, the whole thing just fits. It's an album that washes over you and let's you take it in at your own leisure. Simple and serene, Petty doesn't waste a note on "Highway Companion."

There have been rumors that this could be Petty's last album, and if that's so, it's a fitting end to a storied career, a well-received journey off into the sunset that should be applauded.

e-mail: kenb@beenews.com