Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers: Into The Great Wide Open - 1991

 

This was a solid, very appealing album in the style of the solo album, Full Moon Fever. A most enjoyable, lively listen where every single track is more than acceptable. 

It doesn't mess with the formula, as was true of most Petty albums, and therein lies both its strengths and its weaknesses - if you like it (as I do), you like it, but if you are looking for something that breaks the mould and innovates, then you won't find it. Then again, Petty & The Heartbreakers were never about changing  much, were they? 

The standouts are the instantly appealing Into The Great Wide Open, King’s Highway and Learning To Fly. There is a bit of a Traveling Wilburys rootsy feel in places on the album too, together with the Jeff Lynne/ELO production influence. Once again, like many Petty albums - for me at least - the overall fine quality of the material hides the fact that there aren’t many true killers on there - no “wow” tracks. 

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