I love the fact that Tom often referred to "Insider" as "The Insider". Wish he had given it that title "officially".
I wanted to call out "Tedw9" for posting that there is an Indie vinyl exclusive of AT available as well. I did not know this and might have missed this version. It must have just recently been added...so a big thanks I say!!!
Thanks for your comments, the intention of my post was just to say I enjoyed the CDs not withstanding limitations (and I am sure many others do as well).
I bought the high-res version and converted it to 16bit to play in the car. Unfortunately the music player couldn't read tags properly, so it decided to play the songs in alphabetical order. It's my first Tom Petty compilation and there were quite a few songs i didn't know, so it was wonderful experience driving around listening to these songs, some of which i knew mixed with the new (to me) songs! Highly crankable as well (as i knew they would be). So now it's time to listen to the 24 bit versions on my Pono player in the proper tracklist order. Can't wait! Thanks to everyone, and Ryan Ulyate in particular, for sharing information and reviews about this release!
FLAC files often don't seem to contain all the data the needed for say an MP3 player to recognise and play them in the right order, I usually add the data manually before I transfer to the car. I usually also add the track number before the title which normally ensures they play in the right order.
I always tag my files with MP3Tag and that works for most of my systems, but this specific music player in the car just can't read the tags properly. I found out i have to remove the title (in the tag, NOT in the file name) and then it will play like it should. With the track number before the title, as you said On topic: the songs of Hypnotic Eye (2014) seem to be boosted slightly: 'Fault Lines' has a DR of 14 on 'Hypnotic Eye' and and a DR of 11 on this new set. Same mix as far as i can tell. Still sounds great though
I would say absolutely no after ordering it from my local shop yesterday. There were a couple of sites that said bonus tracks, but after talking to the owner, he told me there is no mention of bonus tracks on the Indie version. Just the lithograph and stickers, which is good enough for me to get this version instead, plus at $129, not bad. They would have to of done a different press for that to of happened, plus they had to save bonus songs to entice the GRH package more that is coming...
I just made a sick blunder ordering from the TP site. I stupidly thought I had found a great bargain for a 24/96 FLAC download @ $29.99, but it turned out to be mp3s. I didn't know his site sold mp3s, believed those were always FLAC. Wrote to customer service to try to upgrade. Since the item on order page was mp3, it seems 24/96 is not available on the TP site. Waiting really is the hardest part. Except when wasting money.
Listening to this great set as I type - hi-rez via my main set up. I have zero complaints and all the love, having listened to (most) of the set 4 times now. As far as the the criticism of using very similar alternate versions of songs, that doesn't bother me in the slightest - from what I gather, Tom was very particular about his sound - to the point where he stayed very true to form and structure during his live shows (from what I understand anyway - never saw TP - easily one of my bigger regrets that boggles my mind - long time fan and just somehow never went. Stupid.) Seems to me the alternate versions/mixes are, in a way, targeting both casual and hardcore fans in this sense: the more casual fan (meaning perhaps a fan that doesn't own all the albums, maybe just an album or two and a comp or whatev) will still hear the songs fairly close to how the originally released version is. The more hardcore fan gets to hear the song basically from a slightly different angle and perhaps pick up on some nuance, subtle changes... etc. I don't mind admitting, I can't hear that much difference going in cold and might not even notice one was "alternate version" if not labelled - but that's where this forum and the REALLY knowledgeable people are worth their weight in gold: THEY KNOW. And they spell it out for the rest of us. Taking in what Mr. Tench has said about the intent of the presentation of the set: Tom Petty, Songwriter, I think it is a very smart set. Stunning even. The quality of the songs, man. Song after song. After song. After song. God damnit, it just keeps flowing. And the lesser known tracks and unrealeased tracks seem right at home, red herrings nowhere to be found. A towering achievement, if you ask me.
So far, the only talk I’ve heard about the alternate versions is that they don’t sound any different. Has anyone found any differences?
Well I believe "The Insider" is actually the proper title of the song although the qualifier was dropped by the time the record was pressed. This is actually not all that uncommon when it comes to Tom Petty's songs. Perhaps the most extraordinary circumstance that I could find in which a qualifier was removed from a song title was "It's Good To Be King" off of "Wildflowers". The song was written/recorded under the title of "It's Good To Be (Your) King" with the qualifier in parentheses. To be honest, I have no clue why that qualifier is present as the word "your" does not feature at all in the song's chorus and if it did, it would throw the entire chorus off balance. Another oddity is a song that Petty wrote in 1982 that remains unreleased to this day. The song is entitled "Long After The Dark" which of course without the qualifier became the title of the fifth Tom Petty/Heartbreakers album. It is probable however, that the song was in gestation before it was assimilated into the title of the record, as right up until the eleventh hour the album was going to be entitled "Between Two Worlds" complete with an alternate cover slick. which is why I suppose the Tom Petty/Heartbreakers logo used on "Long After Dark" looks like something out of a science fiction film. Sure have. Any songs in particular that you are curious about?
As always, much to learn from McCools post for this particular TP trainspotter! FWIW I always felt that Between Two Worlds is an overlooked song on an unfairly neglected album. And while in the real of 1982, I just got a copy through the mail of a book called Straight into Darkness by Megan Volpert which purports to be a book entirely about that one song. At first glance there is quite a lot of other material there too but a number of chapters deal with the song itself, broken down in great detail. One for the train journey tomorrow.
It's Time For Another Tom Petty/Heartbreakers Contest! - Once again, Tom Petty/Heartbreakers have teamed up with Omaze to bring their fans a great contest, this time to benefit Team Rubicon Disaster Response, an incredible organization that unites the skills and experience of our nation's military veterans with first responders to rapidly deploy emergency response teams following natural disasters. Specifically these funds will be raised to help those affected by Hurricane Michael in Florida. - As there was with the last Omaze contest, there are several levels/tiers to pledge at beginning at $10 USD and running through $5,000 USD. With each increment, the pledge will receive more chances to win! - Six winners will receive an artist's proof screen print of Shepard Fairey’s cover art for Tom Petty - An American Treasure, signed by the artist. These screen prints have never been made commercially available and were only given to friends and family of Tom Petty/Heartbreakers. The winners will also receive a Super Deluxe edition of "An American Treasure" containing 4CDs (60 tracks), custom reproductions of Tom’s handwritten lyrics, and a hardbound book with photographs and an essay from Nicholas Dawidoff (with a numbered certificate of authenticity!). The box set will also come both autographed and personalized to each winner by name, by The Heartbreakers. - The contest is now open and runs through 12-02-18. It is open only to US residents. For further contest rules and to enter please visit: Win a Rare Print of Shepard Fairey’s Tom Petty - An American Treasure Cover Art - Omaze.com Good Luck!
This should not be a surprise to anyone that has been following Petty’s releases over the last 15 years or so. Mojo, Hynotic Eye and especially Highway Companion were mastered very differently for vinyl. It’s a deliberate decision, admitted by his representatives, made because Petty (or his management) believes that most CD listeners enjoy the louder, compressed, more impactful sound. I appreciate their honesty, and, as someone that prefers a more natural sound when it comes to base-and-guitar “classic” rock, am thankful that they make alternatives available. I wish that other bands would do the same - I would have loved a more dynamic version of the Stones’ blues album, for example.
My only gripe with the vinyl set is the track layout on the discs. I wish certain things had been shuffled to add a little cohesion to each LP. For instance, LP1 looks to be all material from the first 2 albums, plus Here Comes My Girl. Ending this disc with Lost In Your Eyes would have been a much better move for a "Cordell" disc IMO. Still hoping to get this for Christmas regardless.
11 Days (not that I'm counting), and on RSD to no less! I hope the lithograph in the Indie exclusive is cool, that's the one I'm picking up, but honestly I just want to hear this music mastered for vinyl, it's going to ROCK! Still glad I got the 4-CD set though...
Just got UPS confirmation my vinyl is in transit. A bit confusing as 11-23 is release date. It's listed "in transit' shipped UPS 2 day but will arrive 11-28. Would be nice if they just said shipping 11-26 by 2 day air. Even better if it were all ready in transit and I get it on the 23rd.
Just got email from Hiway Companions site and 20% off entire store. "Use code COMPANION20 to get 20% off everything in the store". 11-21 & 11-22 only. About $78 for clear vinyl hits set and $120 for the American Treasure is not bad.
