Review: Skipping his hits is Tom Petty’s approach

Spencer Patterson

Monday, Nov. 4, 2002 | 8:35 a.m.

" 'Free Fallin', 'Breakdown,' 'American Girl' ..."

A woman in section 205 excitedly rattled off some of Tom Petty's greatest hits as a crowd of about 5,300 headed for the doors at the Aladdin Theatre for the Performing Arts on Friday night.

The makings of a satisfying performance, to be sure. But in this case, the vociferous concert-goer was actually naming songs Petty and his Heartbreakers had just skipped over.

Channeling the title character from his latest album, "The Last DJ," Petty spent two hours spinning through a vast catalog that stretches back 25 years. According to the title track's lyrics, the last DJ "plays what he wants to play," and Petty certainly did that on this night.

Instead of putting the needle to his most enduring classics, the aging rocker supplemented a set list heavy on new material with a parade of what can best be described as his "greatest near-misses."

Ultimately, the dearth of easily recognizable music kept fans from connecting with the performers, as large sections of the audience remained seated throughout.

To be fair, Petty did give the crowd fair warning his show would take the road less traveled.

"We're going to dig deep, deep, deep into the catalog tonight," he announced in his instantly identifiable whiny drawl. He made the announcement minutes after coming out onstage looking as if he'd escaped from 1985's classic "Alice in Wonderland"-themed video for, "Don't Come Around Here No More" (another hit not performed, incidentally).

Petty's sandy blond hair hung just past his shoulders, where it met up with a burgundy-colored velvet jacket. A retro-print tie, black T-shirt and stone-washed jeans completed the unusual ensemble.

Appearing spry and active at 52, the charismatic Petty showed off his unusual vocal style, constantly altering phrasings and bouncing between octaves to give his music a somewhat improvised feel.

Petty's longtime sidekick, guitarist Mike Campbell, continues to be one of rock music's most underappreciated talents, stealing the spotlight on many occasions with his fiery electric solos.

The six-piece band played eight songs from the recently released "The Last DJ." Several of the numbers thematically link to form a scathing assault on today's music industry.

"This is the meanest, nastiest song I ever wrote," Petty warned before launching into "Joe," a biting assault on record executives:

"Bring me a girl, they're always the best, and put 'em on stage, and you have 'em undress, some angel whore, who can learn a guitar lick. Hey, that's what I call music."

Accurate as his assessment may be, though, it also seems rather hypocritical for Petty to blast the record business while continuing to release his CDs on major label Warner Bros. If he is truly incensed by the majors' practices, wouldn't moving to an independent label be a more genuine way to show disapproval?

Some of the new music is strong, no question. "Lost Children" and "Can't Stop the Sun" both rocked, while the pretty "Have Love, Will Travel" showed off the venue's primo acoustics. But by and large, the unfamiliar material failed to energize many in the crowd.

They waited patiently for the string of favorites certain to come. It never did.

During the main set, only "The Waiting," "You Don't Know How it Feels," "Runnin' Down a Dream" and a throwaway run-through of "I Won't Back Down" came from Petty's A-list.

The rest of the evening was spent with second-tier numbers, among them "Feel a Whole Lot Better" and "Yer So Bad" off "Full Moon Fever," "Shadow of a Doubt (A Complex Kid)" off "Damn the Torpedoes" and "A Woman in Love (It's Not Me)" off "Hard Promises."

Wonderful songs, certainly, and a grouping that would appeal to any hard-core Petty devotee.

But unlike recent Las Vegas visitors Bob Dylan and Paul McCartney, Petty can't get away with turning his show into an introspective look at his musical career. His fans expect hits, plain and simple.

Even Bruce Springsteen, who played almost his entire new album at an August concert, nodded to casual fans with "Born to Run," "Glory Days," "Born in the U.S.A." and other standards.

Petty's opening act, singer/songwriter Jackson Browne, also got it, closing his solid but unspectacular 40-minute set with "The Pretender" and "Running on Empty," two of his best-known compositions.

Only in the encore did Petty give the crowd a glimpse at what might have been, tapping 1990s hit singles "You Wreck Me" and "Last Dance With Mary Jane," the latter a fully extended, explosive show-capper.

In a recent Rolling Stone interview, Petty asserted that, "Only a complete greedhead would charge $150 for a concert ticket. My top price is about $65, and I turn a very healthy profit on that."

Considering that most in attendance Friday night actually paid $85 to see him play, Petty might have put more time into constructing a set list that wouldn't leave fans counting up songs they didn't get to hear.