 |
|
David Young
dyoung@greeleytribune.com
April 28, 2008
 Comments  Print  Email
Odds are anyone who is familiar with popular music, or who watched the Super Bowl this year, has heard of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.
The group has been making hit records since 1976 and the band's fans span generations. But how many people have heard of Mudcrutch or The Epics?
For those well versed in the annals of rock and roll history, these obscure names will register as Tom Petty’s first band composed of Tom Leadon, guitar and vocals, Mike Campbell , guitar, Randall Marsh, drums, and Benmont Tench, Keyboards.
The band, formed in 1970, had a short but bright life which launched Petty’s career. In that time the group renamed The Epics Mudcrutch, made a name for itself in Gainesville Fla., signed a record deal and moved to Hollywood.
Then before they could record an album Mudcrutch broke up, and Petty went on to form the Heartbreaker’s with Campbell and Tench in tow. The rest is history.
The obscure band faded into the history pages of Petty’s biographies. That is until recently. Now, more than 30 years later, Mudcrutch is back and its self-titled debut album hits stores tomorrow.
What would possesses one of the world’s most formidable rock stars who has played with the likes of Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison and George Harrison to all of a sudden, out of the blue, record an album with his boyhood band? Fun mostly, according to Petty’s recent interview with the Los Angeles Times.
Much like the first demo the band recorded in the 70’s out of a reel-to-reel recording studio in a van, this album is recorded live in Petty’s home studio with no overdubs. The result is a crunchy authentic sound of thick southern rock that just can’t be imitated.
Minute clips of the album’s 14 songs are available on the band’s website, and while there is signature Petty on each track, it is also a unique sound that reveals how much fun the group is really having.
Right off the bat the album's first single, "Scare Easy," seeps classic southern rock. And as Petty seems to do with anything he touches, the album sounds as if it will be a staple rock and roll album.
|
CLEAR 52°
