Artist:     Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Album:     The Best of Everything (2 CD)

Label:     Geffen Records/UME

Release Date:     3.1.2019

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Tom Petty was readily one of the USA’s truly great modern musicians, a guy with a genuinely genius touch and a melodic force that remains unrivaled following his sudden departure in October 2017. This posthumous double-disc collection covers much, if not most of his remarkable catalogue, a legacy most would virtually kill for. This career-spanning release covers every base from his work with the Heartbreakers, as a solo artist and with and Mudcrutch. Nothing has been overlooked.

With 38 tracks to choose from, there is something for everybody included in this wonderful mix. All of Petty’s most-loved, most-reprised and delightful cuts are here from “Mary Jane’s Last Dance,” “Free Fallin,” “American Girl” and “I Won’t Back Down” to “Don’t Come Around Here No More.” The result is an irresistible set of absolutely excellent material with not a trace of repetitive strain or deadwood. Petty has always been known as a fan of Elvis Presley and a man prepared to fight for his own personal artistic freedom and integrity, with a keen ear for melody, harmony and lyrical strength that allowed his story-telling to bubble to the surface in a near-hypnotic way that few can match. His work with George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison and Jeff Lynn with supergroup, The Travelling Wilburys, in the late 1980s provided an unexpected boost to his career at a time when Petty was still supremely successful but surprisingly working steadily below the radar, touring steadily and delivering powerful live performances across the world to a huge base of global fans but with little recording works then in the offing.

Best of Everything is maybe just that, an essential for any fan of Petty and most fans of good old rock ‘n’roll music.

—Iain Patience