Track Listing

1. Shady Grove
2. Scare Easy
3. Orphan Of The Storm
4. Six Days On The Road
5. Crystal River
6. Oh Maria
7. This Is A Good Street
8. The Wrong Thing To Do
9. Queen Of The Go-Go Girls
10. June Apple
11. Lover Of The Bayou
12. Topanga Cowgirl
13. Bootleg Flyer
14. House Of Stone

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #43 in Music
• Released on: 2008-04-29
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.com
"I just finished a record with Mudcrutch, my old band before the Heartbreakers. I am over the moon about it. I couldn't have hoped for it to be as good as it came out." In summer 2007, Tom Petty reunited Mudcrutch, consisting of himself, Heartbreakers Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench, original bandmember Tom Leadon, and Randall Marsh, who joined when Mudcrutch first went to Los Angeles in search of a record deal in the early 70s. Now, more than 30 years later, Mudcrutch finally has its debut album. With new Petty songs and a handful of covers, the self-titled disc is both classic rock and a rock classic.

Customer Reviews

Mudcrutch
For an album made in 10 days it has good sound quality and the music is also of good quality, what more could you ask for? A little bit of the "Heartbreakers" sound is there but what I hear is something more down to earth almost like a great garage band playing and the neighbors are opening their windows instead of closing them.

Mudcrutch in fine form
This album, for me, is a musical breath of fresh air. Great musicians doing what they love and loving what they do.

TP has always been one of my faves. 'Wildflowers' is one of my top five. He's definitely one of the best live acts I've seen and his radio show on XM is a riot.

If you like The Wilburys, you'll love this disc.

Enjoy!

A Reunion Who's Time Has Come....And Maybe, Just Maybe...Passed
Years ago, on a trip down to the Deep South, an elderly Southern gentleman commented to my grandmother that "The South never forgets." That remark came back to me as I was listening to MUDCRUTCH, the debut effort from Tom Petty's pre-Heartbreakers band. Was Petty remembering (and, perhaps, yearning) for his earlier, pre-stardom days when he put this project together? And if so, is it really wise to try and recapture the past? MUDCRUTCH, a mixed bag of hits and misses, only partially succeeds in answering these questions. Things kick off with the infectious twang of "Shady Grove." Petty and co-lead guitarist Tom Leadon share an easy-going lead vocal, while the band provides an arrangement that is spirited and crisp. A great way to start things off! Ditto "Scare Easy", a classic Petty song that could easily have fit on any Heartbreakers album between '79-'92. From the tight instrumentation to the snarling lead vocal, this is a Petty gem from top to bottom. Toss in great lyrics ("I got a soul that ain't never been blessed/Yeah, I'm a shadow at the back of the hall/Yeah, I got a sin I ain't never confessed") and you have a true winner! "Orphan Of The Storm" lopes along nicely enough, but upon repeated listens there's an almost fake feeling to the track, like the band's trying to force a square musical peg into a round musical hole. Much more relaxed and enjoyable is "Six Days On The Road." This is a jam, pure and simple, but it never seems forced or over the top. It's also on this cut that the true star of MUDCRUTCH first emerges...keyboard player Benmont Tench. In all his years as a Heartbreaker, Tench has never been looser or more on fire, providing runs and fills that both dazzle and enhance. Sadly, things come to crashing halt with the bloated, overlong "Crystal River." The days of nine minute arena jams are SO long gone, and what could have been a gentle four-to-five minute ballad gets blown into something yawn-inducing (Once again, though, Tench shines). The disc's only real misstep. There's a sweet story/song to "Oh Maria", a cut that would have fit nicely on Petty's last solo disc, 2006's atmospheric HIGHWAY COMPANION. His plaintive lead vocal wraps around the lyrics ("Oh Maria/Whiskey and rye/Walking up the stairs/With a man twice your size") in a way that is equal parts heart-breaking and resigned. Lovely. And then there's "This Is A Good Street", with lead vocal by Mr. Tench. Funky, edgy and fun, this tale of lost love could have gone on for at least two more minutes as far as I'm concerned...it's that cool! Tench has had his songs covered by the likes of Stevie Nicks, Rosanne Cash and Lone Justice, and "This Is A Good Street" shows why....he's an incredibly gifted, albeit underrated, songwriter. There's a snakey vibe to "The Wrong Thing To Do" that is just captivating. The instrumentation is gutsy, without being overpowering, while Petty's lead vocal is equal parts mysterious and dangerous (I love how he drags out the word "care" in the chorus!). Toss in some killer lyrics ("Well, she was blonde and tall/She was twenty-three/Born into the world to get the best of me/And she never paid back/Half what she stole/SHe wanted my money/So I gave her my soul") and you have one of MUDCRUTCH's best cuts. The same can't be said about "Queen Of The Go-Go Girls." In the tradition of Ringo, Keith, Dave Davies and Jane Weidlin, Tom Leadon steps in for a lead vocal that is, at it's best, weak, at it's worst...well, you get the picture. "June Apple" is a slice of Southern rock, and while an instrumental is a nice way to break things up, this one seems dated and out of place. Much like "Crystal River", it almost feels as if the genre's time has come...and gone. It's at this point that MUDCRUTCH really starts to get bogged down. "Lover Of The Bayou" is nice enough, with some great guitar work from Leadon and Mike Campbell, and gorgeous underlying keyboard runs courtesy of Tench, but by song's end this really seems to be nothing more than an outtake from HIGHWAY COMPANION. "Topanga Cowgirl" has a nice bounce to it, with spirited instrumentation and a tight arrangement, but the song is so light as to be inconsequential. It almost seems like a studio jam that made it onto the disc to meet a certain time/length requirement. The same can be said about "Bootleg Flyer." There's a lot of energy here, but there's also a "been there, done that" feel as well, which is something you don't ever expect from Tom Petty. Once again, great playing, but a less than stellar song. Things end on a stronger note with "House Of Stone." This country shuffle boasts understated (but sharp) instrumentation, an easy-going lead vocal and great lyrics ("Got a brand new suit/I got two pair of pants/Easy on the eyes/And I love to dance/I could dance right now/If you give me the chance"). So....my Five Final Thoughts on Mudcrutch and MUDCRUTCH...1) It may just be time for Benmont Tench to record that long-threatened solo album (BENMONT'S REVENGE, anyone?!?)..2) Who knew Tom Petty was such a great bassist??..3) Would this album have gotten made if it wasn't Petty's old band? I'm not so sure...4) Would I automatically buy another album from the band? Ummmmm....probably. And....5) Are there some things the South...and old rockers!...should forget? Nah, that's part of both their charms!! (As with all my reviews, I'm docking the disc half a star for not including the lyrics).