Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers - Mojo

When a guy who haven't ever played the blues tries to record a classic blues album one's gotta beware. I don't need Tom Petty to be another Muddy Waters, I will take his new album, Mojo, as it comes. I liked his previous effort no matter how it was labeled (pop-rock actually). So, the first song is running at the moment. "Jefferson Jericho Blues", mhm. Good old whiny, whitey voice of Petty is adorable. Not bluesy, not at all, but it's okay - he sounds like he just couldn't give a damn no matter how hard he'd try and I like it. Slide guitar driving the mediocre song and wham, next one.


This one's longer, taking off with long, interesting coda. "First Flash Of Freedom". It strikes me how well it's produced. Really, I feel like the band is in my room. Even if the sound of the guitars isn't the one I'm dreaming of, it's enjoyable. And it's not the blues as I know it. Not only it's not dirty, it's crystal clear. Somebody said it's reminiscent of the Allman Brothers Band and this is the description for me that I have to laugh about, ABB were the masters of sound. This is waaaaay weaker. But still, it's listenable. Enjoyable. And it has something of that jammy feel.

"Running Man's Bible" is another boring composition played in a nice way. Quite funky, actually. This looks to me as an album that would please Tom Petty's and contemporary blues fans alike. I'm not anyone that would feel connected to any of these groups. Even though I click the "next" button, I like it. Even though I'm happy I didn't spend ten bucks on Mojo, I like it.

"Candy" is the first song I really like. And 4th I've already listened - I have to skip the one called "The Trip to Pirate's Cove". I just can't listen to a song with a name like that. But "Candy" is superb. It's gotta a nice groove to it and a very relaxed feel. OK, 9 songs to go now.

This review sucks and I'm rather out of my mind sitting here listening to this music. A cheap imitation of the real blues, yeah. But Petty wanted to do album like that and he played it well. There's something in it that I like. This is like a girl that isn't particularly pretty but you feel like you just need to lay her anyway. "I Should Have Known It" is a natural single and now I think it would really work in a live setting. A small club and ouch... I can easily imagine myself in the crowd.

Petty wrote all of the songs on the album. I'd love to hear some covers. But it's okay. It's 3.5/5 on my RYM. It's an hour I've just wasted. It's good it was released. It's good there are still guys like Tom, who have nothing to prove and yet they try to have fun. But anyway... this morning I've listened to Blues From Laurel Canyon, Mayall's best work, and Mojo's nothing compared to that.

And when I come to think about it... Don't let anybody tell you it's a blues work. It's obviously not. An album on which every second is thought ten times over, every chord is perfectly chosen and every emotion labelled and classified just can't rock the way Petty wants to.