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| Artist: Mudcrutch
Label: Warner Bros.
Category: Music
List Price: $18.98
Buy New: $6.95
You Save: $12.03 (63%)
New (58) Used (15) from $6.95
Avg. Customer Rating:  82 reviews
Sales Rank: 365
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.1
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 4.9 x 0.4
MPN: 455868
UPC: 093624987338
EAN: 0093624987338
Release Date: April 29, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Petty and Mudcrutch, with a Wilbury Twist April 30, 2008
113 out of 119 found this review helpful
I'm amused at the way people say things like "worth the 30 year wait," as though people have been holding their breadth for a Mudcrutch reunion. The truth is, this doesn't sound much like the original Mudcrutch, as can be heard on the box set Playback. The original Mudcrutch sounded a lot like the early Heartbreakers, and for good reason: the core of the band, Petty, Campbell, and Tench, were working together. The reunion of Mudcrutch is actually a much more democratic band. Petty was and remains the leader, but he lets Leadon and Marsh take more of the spotlight here. The songs are more countrified and traditionalist, and the album is mixed in a way that allows every instrument its own space, so all five personalities show through very clearly.
What this reminds me of is not so much the original Mudcrutch or Heartbreakers - but the Traveling Wilburys. The Wilburys existed because the musicians involved wanted to enjoy making music in a loose environment, to play without the pressures of their exisiting careers, and to enjoy playing as friends, and that's exactly what we've got here. The best part of this album is the sound of five friends making music for all the right reasons.
It's not a perfect cd. Some of the songs kind of blur together, "Crystal River" is a bit overlong at nine and a half minutes, "Queen of the Go-Go Girls" is kind of weak, and the melody of "Oh Maria" is too much like "Lost Children" from The Last DJ. Still, the criticisms pale in comparison to the virtues: Mike Campbell remains the absolute best guitar player out there, always playing the perfect part for the song. Tench still has that perfect touch on the keyboards. And Leadon and Marsh are no slouches themselves, more than acquitting themselves among their legendary former bandmates.
There are some really good songs here. "Scare Easy" is strong latter-day Petty, and "The Wrong Thing to Do" has lyrics that are absolutely vintage Petty. The main highlights of the album, for me, though, come towards the end. The cover of "The Lover of the Bayou" is probably the closest to what the original Mudcrutch was all about. The Petty-penned "Topanga Cowgirl" is the best on the album, and the Petty/Campbell "Bootleg Flyer" is also a good swinging rocker.
It's clear, especially after having seen the documentary Runnin' Down a Dream, just how much the act of making music means to Petty and the other members of the band. Ultimately, it's this love of making music that made this album happen, and it's that spirit that elevates it from being just some side project. As with the Wilbury CDs, it's the intangible sense of joy that comes through the most, making this another strong entry in the brilliant Petty catalog.
Well worth the 30 year wait April 30, 2008
19 out of 24 found this review helpful
Tom Petty, once and for all, proves he is one of the nicest guys in rock. After all, who do you know would call up old friends you'd lost touch with over 30 years and say "let's make a record." Which is, basically, what the three-decades-in-the-making "Mudcrutch" is. Drummer Randall Marsh and Guitarist Tom Leadon (brother of Eagle Bernie Leadon) join Heartbreakers Benmont Tench and Mike Campbell for a reunion that is Petty's loosest record since he sat in with The Traveling Wilburys.
Recorded over 10 days and arranged on the fly, "Mudcrutch" owes a lot to Gram Parsons and the Grateful Dead (think American Beauty or Workingman's Dead), with an easy groove that sounds warm and friendly. Petty switches over to his old instrumant, bass, allowing Campbell and Leadon to trade leads. Both Leadon and Tench get a lead vocal shot (used to great effect on the opener, "Shady Grove") and the whole album has the flow of a band that has been together for a long time. Which is peculiuar, considering that they last played together in the mid-seventies.
The album also is reminiscent of the best Grateful Dead in that four of the songs are choice covers. Country/Boogie band staple "Six Days On The Road" (tying back to the Flying Burrito Brothers, who also covered it) gets a workout, as does Roger McGuinn's "Lover of The Bayou." Then once these guys finally find a groove they can really lock into, they chow down and make the delicious swirling jam of "Crystal River." It's the centerpice of "Mudcrutch" and alone justifies getting the CD.
Add that there are plenty of other great songs here (Tench's "This is a Good Street" being a personal favorite), "Mudcrutch" joins The Racountours' harder rocking Consolers Of The Lonely as the kind of loose free-flowing rock records recorded on the quick and sounding all the better because of it.
 Agree with other reviews April 29, 2008
1 out of 4 found this review helpful
Excellent CD. This is an excellent CD from start to finish. I didn't think Lover of the Bayou could ever be done better but this cover does for this song what Hendrix did for All Along The Watchtower. Both the originals and the covers are sustained excellence. Short and long songs. Different genres. It sure sounds like they are relaxed and having fun. A relaxed, yet tight record like the first Heartbreaker offering back in 76-77. Tasty stuff.
Reunion of Gainesville's finest April 29, 2008
6 out of 8 found this review helpful
After a successful 30 year career, Tom Petty felt the time was right to reunite his pre-Heartbreakers band, Mudcrutch. Benmont Tench and Mike Campbell followed Petty to fame and fortune, while guitarist Tom Leadon and drummer Randall Marsh did not stay for the ride. Regarding his erstwhile band mates in an interview, Campbell said "I wonder if they can still play?"
Not only can these guys PLAY, they play very well, thank you. The disc starts off with the traditional "Shady Grove", a perfect vehicle for a Florida band. The Byrds are an obvious favorite of Petty's, as "Lover of the Bayou" illustrates. That song and "Crystal River" feature Campbell and Leadon, very reminiscent of Roger Mcguinn and the late Clarence White.
"Six Days on the Road" is the Dave Dudley trucker's anthem popularized by the Flying Burrito Brothers, but Mudcrutch does this number justice. "Oh Maria" features some of Petty's best singing ever, while "This is a Good Street" and "Wrong Thing to do" are back to back rockers.
"Queen of the Go-go Girls" is the most countrified performance here, while "June Apple" allows the band to stretch out Allmans style, especially the guitars and keyboardist Tench.
Mudcrutch is an obvious labor of love for Petty, and his band has produced vital rock music as well as a reunion of kindred spirits.
Days of Past Future April 29, 2008
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
Mudcrutch - Tom Petty and gang truly are keeping those lighters lit on good ole fashioned RnR. Kind of like the Bob Dylan LP cover of Before The Flood.
This CD shines from start to finish. Even Mike Campbell has stated it could be his favorite recording so far. Completed in only 10 days - it's an essential for all rock fans. After seeing them perform 4/25/08 at the Troubadour (just a foot away from the stage) brought me back in time like no other concert/recording of the past 20 years. Crystal River is a true highlight - a psychedelic southern mind bending song. If you've played in bands in the 70s you'll truly appreciate this track. The CD is interwoven with harmonies, hooks, hammond keys and a buoyant feel throughout. It's refreshing and what a lot of us older generation rock fans have long waited to hear. You might compare this to early Eagles, Quicksilver Messenger Service meets Damn the Torpedoes. Can't wait for the 2nd Mudcrutch CD, I've already worn this one out (released today 4-29-08) :)
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