Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers: Live in Concert

Vocal heir to Bob Dylan, the blonde-mopped Tom Petty and his Heartbreakers (including the smokin' Mike Campbell on guitar and virtuoso Benmont Tench on keyboards) serve up this 20-song set (awkwardly spread over two discs) taken from a 2003 concert filmed for PBS's Soundstage series. Rockers expecting to hear Petty cut loose on hits such as "American Girl," "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around," "The Waiting," or "Free Fallin'," may be disappointed by this country/blues-inflected set (although the band does play "Refugee," "I Won't Back Down," and "Love Is a Long Road"), but the open-minded will enjoy Petty and the crew playing blues with a country feel on "Born in Chicago," "Red Rooster," "Melinda" (featuring a dynamite piano jam by Tench), "I Done Somebody Wrong," "Rollin' in My Sweet Baby's Arms," and the new song "Two Men Talkin'," not to mention "Handle With Care" (originally by Petty's former supergroup, the Traveling Wilburys). DVD extras on this Dolby Digital 5.1 and stereo sound disc include six bonus tracks (among them an absolutely rockin' rendition of "Yer So Bad" and a fine cover of Buddy Holly's "Not Fade Away"), and two cuts from Tom Petty/Heartbreakers: Live at the Olympic DVD--"Like a Diamond" and "Can't Stop the Sun"--backed by an orchestra. Not exactly what Tom Petty fans might expect, but a rousing good time nonetheless, this is highly recommended. Aud: P. (R. Pitman)