Closing in on 60, Tom Petty has delivered a new studio album that effectively reshapes his sound in a fashion that has invigorated both him and his Heartbreakers band. The 15-song opus is just a few less-than-stellar songs away from being a masterpiece along the lines of Damn the Torpedoes.
Mojo has been characterized elsewhere as Petty’s blues album, which is only marginally true. A more accurate summation is that Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers have embraced the blues — sometimes in structure, often in spirit — far more than on any prior effort. Put another way, Mojo is far more Gainesville than L.A. This point is driven home by the opener, “Jefferson Jericho Blues,” a fast shuffle built around a guitar/harmonica riff that could’ve been dreamed up by Robert Johnson in a shotgun shack.
