As requested, here’s TOM PETTY And The Heartbreakers fourth studio album 1981’s “Hard Promises” in its mini-LP / cardboard sleeve Japanese edition pressed on SHM-CD, remastered.
The record was originally scheduled for early release in 1981, but was delayed next to the summer due to Tom Petty doing what Tom Petty does best. He really doesn’t get enough credit for it, but Tom Petty was a badass, through and through. He stirred the pot when it needed stirring, and he usually got his way as a result.
When the band’s distributor at the time, MCA Records, scheduled ‘Hard Promises’ to be released on what was then called “superstar pricing” Tom fought back. At the time, most records sold for 8 dollars and 98 cents (what I would give for records to be that cheap today!), and LP’s priced at “superstar pricing” were 9 dollars and 98 cents, a difference of only one dollar.
Tom, remembering his own quest for his favorite records when he was a teenager back in Gainesville, Florida, didn’t agree with this price increase – he wanted to keep the price low for his fans – and he fought it tooth and nail. The band considered naming the record Eight Ninety-Eight instead, or simply not delivering the album to be released.
The general public soon caught wind of this struggle and began to aid in the fight too. This wasn’t the first battle Tom had fought for his music, having also fought with MCA during the recording of Damn The Torpedoes over his contract being sold without his permission, a battle that he won. MCA finally backed down on the price increase, another win for Tom and the Heartbreakers.
It’s hard to believe that this record could possibly be 40+ years old. It still feels fresh, it feels timely, and it just feels downright good to listen to. It’s so hard to pick a favorite Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers record because they’re all so good and so different, but ”Hard Promises” is definitely up there for me.
I think, generally, ”Hard Promises” is one of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers’ more underrated albums. Their early 80s stuff is often overlooked – people tend to acknowledge 1979’s Damn the Torpedoes and then skip ahead to 1985’s Southern Accents. There’s 2 really great albums you’re missing out on if you do that! I also think ‘Hard Promises’ features some of their most underrated album tracks.
Maybe this is just me, but ever since I first heard it, I’ve always had a soft spot for ‘Letting You Go’. I’ve always loved songs that sound upbeat and happy, but the lyrics are kind of sad, and that’s what I get out of this one. It sounds like such a happy, cute little song, but the lyrics tell such a different story. “There’s no one as honest as those in pain… It’s a restless world, uncertain times. You said hope was getting hard to find…Do you get scared when you close your eyes?” I love the antithesis this song evokes.
Then there’s ‘You Can Still Change Your Mind’. I don’t think Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers are known too well for their ballads. With maybe the exception of ‘Free Fallin’ or ‘Wildflowers’, most people know Tom solo or Tom and the Heartbreakers for their upbeat rock numbers, but they excelled at ballads too. There’s something about that chord progression at the end of the chorus that always surprises me in the best way. It’s a hopeful song – it’s comforting. It’s always a good one to listen to on a bad day when you need of some better vibes, and what’s more, this song features backing vocals from the one and only Stevie Nicks.
Of course, this LP was being recorded around the same time Stevie Nicks was recording her first solo record, Bella Donna. She’d wanted Tom to write her a song, and after enough prodding, he did, a song called ‘Insider’. The pair recorded the song together, with Tom on lead and Stevie on harmony vocals.
After hearing the song back, Tom decided he didn’t want to give it to Stevie, so he gave her another song he’d written with Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell instead, ‘Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around’, which became Stevie’s first number one hit. As for ‘Insider’, it ended up on ‘Hard Promises’ as a hidden gem that only hardcore fans seem to pay attention to.
Underrated tracks aside, you can’t ignore the hits from this record either. ‘The Waiting’, a fan-favorite, made it to #1 on the US Billboard Top Tracks chart. Its jangly, Byrds vibes make it a really fun one to jam to. Perhaps a lesser-known hit, but still a hit, having reached #5 on the US Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart is ‘A Woman in Love (It’s Not Me)’. This track actually ended up being overshadowed by ‘Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around’, which was released around the same time. The point is, Tom Petty (and Mike Campbell) was writing some incredible music during this time.
”Hard Promises” is solid proof of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers’ talent as musicians and Tom’s talent as a songwriter, not that he needed any more proof at that point.
The release of this record also made it clear that his fans took priority over making money. He wasn’t doing this to get rich and famous, he was doing it to make music that resonated with people. He was a true artist, and that thought always pops into my head when I listen to this record. Go give it a spin and show it some love, it’s a good one.
Highly Recommended
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ＵＩＣＹ～77966 【ＳＨＭ－ＣＤ】（Ｒｅｍａｓｔｅｒｅｄ）
01 – The Waiting
02 – A Woman In Love (It’s Not Me)
03 – Nightwatchman
04 – Something Big
05 – Kings Road
06 – Letting You Go
07 – A Thing About You
08 – Insider
09 – The Criminal Kind
10 – You Can Still Change Your Mind
Tom Petty – vocals, guitar, electric piano on “Something Big”
Mike Campbell – guitars, auto-harp
Benmont Tench – organ, piano, backing vocals
Ron Blair – bass
Stan Lynch – drums, backing vocals
with:
Stevie Nicks – backing vocals
Lori Nicks – backing vocals
Sharon Celani – backing vocals
Donald “Duck” Dunn – bass guitar on “A Woman in Love”
Phil Jones – percussion
Alan “Bugs” Weidel – piano on “Nightwatchman”