Tom Petty - The Last DJ
Label: Warner Bros
Rating: 
 

Tom Petty has always been somewhat of a rebel, trends have come and gone and he has stuck to his guns through it all. Now Tom is sticking it to the music industry, one he has witness going through major changes over the span of his career. 

With "The Last DJ" Tom Petty once again marches to the beat of his own drummer and this time bites the hand that feeds him.  Hurrah for Tom Petty! 

Musically, this album is classic Petty; it's rock with bluesy undercurrents, a bit of Dylan in the vocals. The real story here is the album concept as Petty doesn't leave one stone unturned as he blasts the industry he is a part of, but Petty has always tried to buck the system a bit and "The Last DJ" is just the crystallization of that. 

The title track takes aim at radio stations being owned by large corporations (Clear Channel anyone?) and how much radio has changed from the days when DJ's  broke new music and really spearheaded the rise of rock to now DJ's are merely puppets having their strings pulled by their corporate sponsors. 

The suits that try to control the music business from the corporate boardrooms are the major target of disdain here. Whether it is major tours being sponsored by large corporations (Neil Young spoke against this, over a decade ago) or musical direction being plotted by accountants and pollsters instead of musicians, Petty takes years of built up anger over how the business has gone from bad when he began his career to far worst than anyone could have even imagined three decades ago. 

The irony of it all is this album was released by a major label, how Petty pulled that off I would like to know but that just goes to show you that Tom Petty is able to get away with what most people in the music business only wish they could. 

Take the message away and you still have a very solid rock album from Petty, that is actually his strongest effort since "Wildflowers".  Petty fans should be pleased with "The Last DJ" and younger music fans should take note, if you haven't heard Tom Petty then this CD is an awesome introduction.   Hats off to Tom for telling as he sees it, damn the repercussions! We have another reason to not only love Tom's music but to respect the man behind it. 

Keep Giving em' hell! 

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