An American Treasure, the first posthumous Tom Petty project,
is designed as an aural biography of the late rocker, telling a tale
that begins with a Mudcrutch session from 1974, running through the
glory of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers in 1976, and concluding with a
live version of “Hungry No More” from 2016, just over a year prior to
his tragic 2017 passing. Arriving roughly a year after Petty’s death,
the timing for An American Treasure makes sense — he certainly deserved a
tribute — but in strict discographical terms, there didn’t seem a need
for a second career-spanning box set, as he already had 1995’s
rarity-laden box Playback and a multi-disc The Live Anthology from 2009.
Happily, An American Treasure offers a story that’s not told on either
previous set, and that’s a complete picture of Petty’s career, told
entirely through byways, not highways. The compilers — a team consisting
of his widow Dana, wife Adria, bandmates Mike Campbell and Benmont
Tench, plus longtime producer Ryan Ulyate — made a conscious decision
not to replicate any material from Playback, which meant that there
wasn’t room for the original hit versions of any of Petty’s hits.
Ultimately, this meant that many of his best-known songs are nowhere to
be found on An American Treasure, but that winds up as a feature, not a
bug.
In the absence of “American Girl,” “Refugee,” “The Waiting,” and “Free Falling,” the spotlight shifts to the remarkable consistency of Tom Petty’s catalog, which is represented through deep cuts, alternate takes, live versions, and unheard songs. Upon first glance at the track listing, it may seem like there’s not a treasure trove of unheard material, but as An American Treasure plays, what becomes clear is that the bigger picture counts more than the individual details. Not that the box doesn’t serve up some unexpected surprises from all eras: an early 1984 demo of “The Apartment Song” recorded with Stevie Nicks is a country-rocking marvel, an alternate “Rebels” has a muscle lacking on the original version, Echo generates two fine rarities in “Gainesville” and “I Don’t Belong,” the plaintive outtake “Don’t Fade on Me” could’ve fit onto Wildflowers with no problem.
It’s fun to cherrypick these tracks, but An American Treasure carries a greater resonance by demonstrating how Petty kept growing through the years, not only as a songwriter but a performer; some of the best moments are hearing him sing older songs later in his career. The trick An American Treasure pulls off is weaving these latter-day performances into the place where the songs were originally written, so this not only provides a narrative but also gives a sense of continuity, which is a rare thing in a decades-spanning box like this. As such, this box winds up as a fitting tribute to a rocker whose touch was so casual, he could be easy to take for granted, but when his work is looked at as a whole, he seems like a giant.
CD 1
1. Surrender (Previously unreleased track from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers sessions—1976)
2. Listen To Her Heart (Live at Capitol Studios, Hollywood, CA—November 11, 1977)
3. Anything That’s Rock ‘N’ Roll (Live at Capitol Studios, Hollywood, CA—November 11, 1977)
4. When The Time Comes (Album track from You’re Gonna Get It!—May 2, 1978)
5. You’re Gonna Get It (Alternate version featuring strings from You’re Gonna Get It! sessions—1978)
6. Radio Promotion Spot 1977
7. Rockin’ Around (With You) (Album track from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers —November 9, 1976)
8. Fooled Again (I Don’t Like It) (Alternate version from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers—1976)
9. Breakdown (Live at Capitol Studios, Hollywood, CA—November 11, 1977)
10. The Wild One, Forever (Album track from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers—November 9, 1976)
11. No Second Thoughts (Album track from You’re Gonna Get It!—May 2, 1978)
12. Here Comes My Girl (Alternate version from Damn The Torpedoes sessions—1979)
13. What Are You Doing In My Life (Alternate version from Damn The Torpedoes sessions—1979)
14. Louisiana Rain (Alternate version from Damn The Torpedoes sessions—1979)
15. Lost In Your Eyes (Previously unreleased single from Mudcrutch sessions—1974)
CD 2
1. Keep A Little Soul (Previously unreleased track from Long After Dark sessions—1982)
2. Even The Losers (Live at Rochester Community War Memorial, Rochester, NY—1989)
3. Keeping Me Alive (Previously unreleased track from Long After Dark sessions—1982)
4. Don’t Treat Me Like A Stranger (B-side to UK single of “I Won’t Back Down”—April, 1989)
5. The Apartment Song (Demo recording (with Stevie Nicks)—1984)
6. Concert Intro (Live introduction by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, The Forum, Inglewood, CA—June 28, 1981)
7. King’s Road (Live at The Forum, Inglewood, CA—June 28, 1981)
8. Clear The Aisles (Live concert announcement by Tom Petty, The Forum, Inglewood, CA—June 28, 1981)
9. A Woman In Love (It’s Not Me) (Live at The Forum, Inglewood, CA—June 28, 1981)
10. Straight Into Darkness (Alternate version from The Record Plant, Hollywood, CA—May 5, 1982)
11. You Can Still Change Your Mind (Album track from Hard Promises—May 5, 1981)
12. Rebels (Alternate version from Southern Accents sessions—1985)
13. Deliver Me (Alternate version from Long After Dark sessions—1982)
14. Alright For Now (Album track from Full Moon Fever—April 24, 1989)
15. The Damage You’ve Done (Alternate version from Let Me Up (I’ve Had Enough) sessions—1987)
16. The Best Of Everything (Alternate version from Southern Accents sessions—March 26, 1985)
17. Walkin’ From The Fire (Previously unreleased track from Southern Accents sessions—March 1, 1984)
18. King Of The Hill (Early take (with Roger McGuinn)—November 23, 1987)
CD 3
1. I Won’t Back Down (Live at The Fillmore, San Francisco, CA—February 4, 1997)
2. Gainesville (Previously unreleased track from Echo sessions—February 12, 1998)
3. You And I Will Meet Again (Album track from Into The Great Wide Open—July 2, 1991)
4. Into The Great Wide Open (Live at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena—November 24, 1991)
5. Two Gunslingers (Live at The Beacon Theatre, New York, NY—May 25, 2013)
6. Lonesome Dave (Previously unreleased track from Wildflowers sessions—July 23, 1993)
7. To Find A Friend (Album track from Wildflowers—November 1, 1994)
8. Crawling Back To You (Album track from Wildflowers—November 1, 1994)
9. Wake Up Time (Previously unreleased track from early Wildflowers sessions—August 12, 1992)
10. Grew Up Fast (Album track from Songs and Music from “She’s the One”—August 6, 1996)
11. I Don’t Belong (Previously unreleased track from Echo sessions—December 3, 1998)
12. Accused Of Love (Album track from Echo—April 13, 1999)
13. Lonesome Sundown (Album track from Echo—April 13, 1999)
14. Don’t Fade On Me (Previously unreleased track from Wildflowers—sessions—April 20, 1994)
CD 4
1. You And Me (Clubhouse version—November 9, 2007)
2. Have Love Will Travel (Album track from The Last DJ—October 8, 2002)
3. Money Becomes King (Album track from The Last DJ—October 8, 2002)
4. Bus To Tampa Bay (Previously unreleased track from Hypnotic Eye sessions—August 11, 2011)
5. Saving Grace (Live at Malibu Performing Arts Center, Malibu, CA—June 16, 2006)
6. Down South (Album track from Highway Companion—July 25, 2006)
7. Southern Accents (Live at Stephen C. O’Connell Center, Gainesville, FL—September 21, 2006)
8. Insider (Live (with Stevie Nicks) at O’Connell Center, Gainesville, FL—September 21, 2006)
9. Two Men Talking (Previously unreleased track from Hypnotic Eye sessions—November 16, 2012)
10. Fault Lines (Album track from Hypnotic Eye—July 29, 2014)
11. Sins Of My Youth (Early take from Hypnotic Eye sessions—November 12, 2012)
12. Good Enough (Alternate version from Mojo sessions—2012)
13. Something Good Coming (Album track from Mojo—July 15, 2010)
14. Save Your Water (Album track from Mudcrutch 2—May 20, 2016)
15. Like A Diamond (Alternate version from The Last DJ sessions—2002)
16. Hungry No More (Live at House of Blues, Boston, MA—June 15, 2016)
