Long After Dark
By the time of this 1982 album, Tom Petty was a bona fide American rock star, if not exactly a pop icon. Perhaps bowing to that status, Petty essentially commercialized a sound that had heretofore worn itsDylan/Byrdsinfluences proudly on its sleeve. Perhaps he and the Heartbreakers had become status conscious--or mistakenly took their oft-misapplied new wave label too close to heart. Or, more likely, Petty's muse was simply strained to the limit after four exceptionally strong albums in a row and the interminable touring that went with them. "Change of Heart" recalls earlier peaks while "You Got Lucky" remains a classic, but there's a sense the album's larger production (including synths and a thicker overall sound) was filling something of a void in Petty's songwriting. All tracks on this edition have been sonically upgraded via digital remastering.--Jerry McCulley