The man put it best himself. "God, it's so painful when something that's so close is still so far out of reach," Petty sang on his breakthrough single, American Girl.
A live-in-the-studio album from Petty and his Heartbreakers seemed like the perfect way to bring out the best in a band whose instinctive musical rapport has been honed since the 1970s, and it very, very nearly works.
But it doesn't quite. Basically, there's too much in-thestudio and not enough live. It's all just too polite. With a few notable exceptions — US41, High in the Morning and I Should Have Known It — most of this album gets lost in midtempo tastefulness.
Petty is nearly 60, but, given his involvement in Johnny Cash's American albums, he should know that age is no reason to lose your sense of urgency.