Highway Companion by Tom Petty: Life in the Slow Lane?

How excited should we be to hear a new Tom Petty disc? In a career that now spans over three decades, he's delivered a fairly consistent body of work, and a remarkable number of catchy, sturdy hits (My favorites are "Jammin' Me" "Listen to Her Heart" "Last Dance With Mary Jane" and "The Waiting"; yours probably vary) Never a heavyweight songwriter lyrically, he gained a level of respect with the endorsement of Dylan, Harrison, Orbison, et. al. as member of the Traveling Wilburys.

He was always good for half an album of memorable songs, and half an album of forgettable ones. He seldom inspired more than an urge to sing along; however that alone is a gift. So in some ways, he's had a great career; however, it's hard to get fired up about him now.

Time has passed him by in most respects; his concerns are solidly Baby Boom in nature, and he's never expressed a very good understanding of younger generations (the closer on the otherwise very good Full Moon Fever (1989) "Zombie Zoo" was a ridiculously out-of-touch take on punk, "The Last DJ" from 2002 was a ridiculously out-of-touch lament that would have been appropriate 20 years earlier). The Last DJ was widely panned, and Petty's new release, Highway Companion, is his first in four years, his longest silence ever. Has Petty run out of gas? Should anyone under 40 care?

Highway Companion is Petty's first release on Rick Rubin's American Records, and is the third solo disc of his career. Co-star is fellow Traveling Wilbury Jeff Lynne, former ELO maestro and producer of the Beatles "reunion" records of the mid-90's. Lynne brings with him a myriad of instruments, Petty plays everything else, including bass and drums; the duo shares production duties. Lynne had produced Petty's solo debut Full Moon Fever (1989), and his follow-up with the Heartbreakers, Into the Great Wide Open (1991) as well as the Traveling Wilburys, so on paper, Highway Companion looks promising.

Its title suggests the road. Imagine Petty's 1989 hit "Runnin' Down A Dream". a classic road song with its rhythmic chug, as a template for a whole album, and you'll have an idea what Highway Companion is advertising. Titles include "Turn This Car Around" and "Night Driver"

Certainly the first cut "Saving Grace" is a Petty classic; a great Texas blues guitar riff (think early ZZ Top), a propulsive rhythm that synchs up with the white lane dividers perfectly on the highway, and a great hook for a chorus. It's a reassuring jot of adrenaline from the 56-year-old, and it's real rock 'n' roll. Alas, he deflates the momentum almost immediately with the acoustic "Square One" which reveals what had always been Petty's biggest drawback: an uninsightful self-pity that his fairly thin voice can't help but deliver like a whine.

Which means this is pretty typical for a Tom Petty album. Good, solid nuggets of toe tapping rock, wisful ballads, and wince-inducing earnestness. "Jack" displays Petty's gift for tunefulness and surprisingly bluesy guitar punctuations in what is otherwise a sleek pop number; Lynne's production has humor to it, and even Petty's jokes work. "Damaged By Love" is one of Petty's portraits of a lonely woman in the vein of "Free Fallin'", but minus its hook. "This Old Town" is a ragged, shaggy tale reminiscent of "Last Dance With Mary Jane". "Big Weekend" is a jaunty, rhythmic rockabilly number that shares the theme of going into a small town with several songs; its chorus and guitar licks make it sound like a long-lost Traveling Wilburys tune. "Turn This Car Around" is a spare number, taut and clipped; lyrically, Petty gets his most ambitious here, to mixed effect. "Night Driver" has a dreamy, vaguely psychedelic quality.

If there's a theme here, it isn't "Road Trip For Baby Boomers" as the title and "Saving Grace" imply. Instead, it's just a return to 1989-1991 era Petty/Wilburys. Except for "Saving Grace" there are no songs here that rival the best moments on Full Moon Fever and Into the Great Wide Open. None even come close. The propulsion of the leadoff track never returns. And, as almost always with Tom Petty albums, the first sensation is unfulfillment, only this time there's little to grow on you.

Petty fans will probably like this one. It's better than The Last DJ; his playing has never been better, and the album does have its moments. Petty hasn't run out of gas, yet. But it isn't going to attract any new listeners. And he'd better pull into the slow lane, because "Runnin' Down A Dream" this isn't.

The verdict: Tom Petty as if it were still 1989. Only, not as good.