Its original working title was Benmont's Revenge, referring to the band's keyboard player, Benmont Tench. The album features guest vocals from Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac on the duet "Insider". The Heartbreakers also recorded the hit "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" for Nicks' album Bella Donna around the time Hard Promises was recorded.
Damn the Torpedoes wasn't simply a culmination of Tom Petty's art; it happened to be a huge success, enabling him to call the shots on its successor, Hard Promises. Infamously, he used his first album as a star to challenge the record industry's practice of charging more for A-list artists, demanding that Hard Promises should be listed for less than most records by an artist of his stature, but if that was the only thing notable about the album, it would have disappeared like Long After Dark.
Instead, it offered a reaffirmation that Damn the Torpedoes wasn't a fluke. There's not much new on the surface, since it continues the sound of its predecessor, but it's filled with great songwriting, something that's as difficult to achieve as a distinctive sound.
The opener, "The Waiting," became the best-known song on the record, but there's no discounting "A Woman in Love (It's Not Me)," "Nightwatchman," "Kings Road," "Insider," and "The Criminal Kind," album tracks that would become fan favorites.
If Hard Promises doesn't have the sweep of Damn the Torpedoes, that's because its predecessor was blessed with good timing and an unusually strong set of songs. Hard Promises isn't quite so epochal, yet it has a tremendous set of songs and a unified sound that makes it one of Petty's finest records.
During the recording of the album, John Lennon was scheduled to be in the same studio at the same time. Petty was looking forward to meeting him when he came in.
The meeting never occurred, as Lennon was murdered before the date of his planned visit to the studio.
Petty and the band paid tribute to the slain former Beatle by etching "WE LOVE YOU J.L." in the runout deadwax on early U.S. and Canadian pressings of Hard Promises.
Side A
A1. The Waiting - 3:58
A2. A Woman In Love (It’s Not Me) - 4:21
A3. Nightwatchman - 3:59
A4. Something Big - 4:44
A5. Kings Road - 3:26
Side B
B1. Letting You Go - 3:24
B2. A Thing About You - 3:32
B3. Insider - 4:23
B4. The Criminal Kind - 4:00
B5. You Can Still Change Your Mind - 4:15
Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
- Tom Petty – lead and backing vocals, guitar (acoustic, electric, 12-string, bass on "Something Big"), electric piano on "Something Big"
- Mike Campbell – guitars (acoustic, electric, 12-string, bass), auto-harp, accordion, harmonium
- Benmont Tench – organ, piano, backing vocals
- Ron Blair – bass guitar
- Stan Lynch – drums, backing vocals
- Stevie Nicks – backing vocals on "Insider" and "You Can Still Change Your Mind"
- Lori Nicks - backing vocals on "Insider"
- Sharon Celani – backing vocals on "You Can Still Change Your Mind"
- Donald "Duck" Dunn – bass guitar on "A Woman in Love"
- Phil Jones – percussion
- Alan "Bugs" Weidel – piano on "Nightwatchman"
- Brad Gilderman – assistant engineer
- Jimmy Iovine – producer
- Tom Petty – producer
- Tori Swenson – assistant engineer
- Shelly Yakus – engineer
Notes
Release: 1981
Format: LP
Genre: Heartland Rock
Label: Backstreet Records
Catalog# 203635
Prijs: €10,00
Vinyl: Good
Cover: Good
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