Music
All-Time High (And Low) Scores
Best Of 2009
Best Of 2008
Best Of 2007
Best Of 2006
Best Of 2005
Best Of 2004
Best Of 2003
Best Of 2002
Best Of 2001
Best Of 2000
Upcoming &
Recent Releases
70
AFI
65
Air
71
Alice In Chains
77
Amerie
85
The Antlers
75
Arctic Monkeys
68
As Tall As Lions
82
Atlas Sound
75
The Avett Brothers
67
Backstreet Boys
56
Bad Lieutenant
68
Devendra Banhart
72
Lou Barlow
88
Baroness
69
Basement Jaxx
81
David Bazan
72
Brendan Benson
72
The Big Pink
96
Big Star
46
Billy Talent
75
The Black Crowes
51
Black Mold
68
Blitzen Trapper
75
BLK JKS
77
A.A. Bondy
73
The Bottle Rockets
63
Box Elders
65
Boys Like Girls
76
Brand New
73
Tyondai Braxton
87
Brother Ali
70
Ian Brown
75
Michael Buble
78
Built To Spill
61
Colbie Caillat
79
Califone
68
Mariah Carey
84
Brandi Carlile
73
Julian Casablancas
83
Rosanne Cash
69
Castanets
65
The Cave Singers
84
Nick Cave & Warren Ellis
79
Vic Chesnutt
75
Choir Of Young Believers
81
Circulatory System
68
The Clean
84
The Clientele
71
Cobra Starship
85
Converge
71
Eric Copeland
80
Cymbals Eat Guitars
71
Datarock
59
Dead By Sunrise
76
Dead Man's Bones
88
Destroyer
63
The Dodos
77
Drive-By Truckers
66
Bob Dylan
44
The Entrance Band
67
Esser
69
Fanfarlo
63
Felix Da Housecat
68
Fink
78
The Flaming Lips
66
Flight Of The Conchords
79
Florence And The Machine
67
John Fogerty
83
Fuck Buttons
71
Nelly Furtado
47
Gary Go
68
Ghostface Killah
79
Girls
69
Gossip
62
David Gray
66
David Guetta
79
Richard Hawley
74
Mayer Hawthorne
66
Headlights
79
HEALTH
77
Joe Henry
66
Hockey
69
Whitney Houston
68
Imogen Heap
59
Jack Ingram
79
Islands
73
Jessie James
74
Jamie T
65
Jay-Z
51
Jet
69
Daniel Johnston
76
Karen O And The Kids
72
Toby Keith
69
Kid Cudi
65
Kings Of Convenience
62
Sean Kingston
64
KISS
76
Kris Kristofferson
68
KRS-One & Buckshot
76
La Roux
84
Miranda Lambert
72
Ledisi
75
Sondre Lerche
56
Juliette Lewis
82
Lightning Bolt
73
Little Dragon
44
Pixie Lott
73
Lyle Lovett
66
Lovvers
75
Baaba Maal
77
Madness
84
Madonna
85
Manic Street Preachers
62
Maps
55
Massive Attack
57
Matisyahu
67
Reba McEntire
66
Tim McGraw
65
Brian McKnight
79
Mew
77
Malcolm Middleton
77
Mika
68
Amy Millan
76
Mission Of Burma
76
Molina And Johnson
80
Monsters Of Folk
62
Morrissey
85
Mount Eerie
78
The Mountain Goats
62
Múm
72
Muse
66
Willie Nelson
78
Nirvana
97
Nirvana
72
Nisennenmondai
80
No Age
71
Noah And The Whale
75
Noisettes
79
Nudge
47
Dolores O'Riordan
74
Os Mutantes
73
Osso
81
Owen
76
Paramore
76
Pastels And Tenniscoats
51
Sean Paul
80
Pearl Jam
66
Jemina Pearl
72
Jack Penate
65
Phish
82
Pissed Jeans
61
Pitbull
79
A Place To Bury Strangers
66
Robert Pollard
79
Polvo
72
Porcupine Tree
80
Q-Tip
80
R.E.M.
89
Raekwon
69
Rain Machine
70
Ramona Falls
75
Dizzee Rascal
75
The Raveonettes
76
Jay Reatard
82
Reigning Sound
81
Rodrigo Y Gabriela
79
Russian Circles
69
Buffy Sainte-Marie
73
Hope Sandoval & The Warm Inventions
61
Sally Shapiro
78
Shudder To Think
70
Simian Mobile Disco
58
Simple Minds
72
Six Organs Of Admittance
69
Slaughterhouse
80
Slayer
61
The Slits
62
Mindy Smith
78
Soulsavers
77
Speech Debelle
58
Spiral Stairs
58
Squarepusher
55
Steel Panther
73
Sufjan Stevens
52
Rod Stewart
65
Joss Stone
75
George Strait
83
Barbra Streisand
76
A Sunny Day In Glasgow
74
Susanna And The Magical Orchestra
78
The Swell Season
76
David Sylvian
83
Taken By Trees
78
Tegan And Sara
68
The Temper Trap
72
Themselves
82
They Might Be Giants
67
Third Eye Blind
66
J Tillman
69
Times New Viking
57
Tokio Hotel
67
Trey Songz
71
The Twilight Sad
58
Carrie Underwood
56
The Used
68
Various Artists
70
Various Artists
74
Various Artists
77
The Very Best
71
Kurt Vile
67
Vivian Girls
71
Volcano Choir
76
Rufus Wainwright
59
Weezer
80
White Denim
76
Why?
83
Wild Beasts
80
Wildbirds & Peacedrums
59
Andrew W.K.
71
Patrick Wolf
67
Wolfmother
84
The xx
79
Yo La Tengo
83
Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band
51
Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson
59
Zero 7
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.
Highway Companion
Generally favorable reviews
Based on 21 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 25 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album >
Album Info
Label: American
Release Date: 25 July 2006
Discs: 1 disc
Genre(s): Rock
Summary
The rocker's third solo disc has only one Heartbreaker (Mike Campbell) in tow, with the rest of the instrumentation handled by Jeff Lynne (who also produces) and Petty himself.
Also On Metacritic
MUSIC: Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers: The Last DJ
Also On The Web: Official Artist Site
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Entertainment Weekly
A huge improvement on 2002's [The Last DJ]... a true return to form. [4 Aug 2006, p.67]
The Onion (A.V. Club)
It's an extended salute to killing time, telling stories, swapping jokes, and singing along to the radio. An album title has rarely been more apt.
Read Full Review >Slant Magazine
These 12 often-elegiac tracks are machine-shop sleek, effortlessly buffed to a precision gloss that buoys Petty's irresistible harmonies and layered compositions.
Read Full Review >The Guardian
If [Petty]'s third solo album proves to be his last, he has delivered one of rock's most eloquent goodbyes.
Read Full Review >Uncut
[An] instant classic. [Sep 2006, p.84]
Q Magazine
Yet however familiar its themes may be, they all seem reinvigorated... by Petty's songwriting smarts and fantastically weathered vocals. [Sep 2006, p.110]
Mojo
Highway Companion abounds with Dylanesque first-, second- and third-person stories of rolling stones with no direction home, and how wear and tear is grinding them to a halt. [Sep 2006, p.90]
Los Angeles Times
It's... a more writerly exercise than typical of his concise and straightforward Heartbreakers hits. [23 Jul 2006]
New Musical Express
Contains... some of his finest ever songs. [5 Aug 2006, p.29]
Prefix Magazine
Highway Companion contains the most clear-eyed and hopeful songs that Petty has written in memory.
Read Full Review >Rolling Stone
The album runs out of gas a bit toward the end, with a few too many songs in a row stuck in a midtempo Neil Young-ish lope. But for most of the ride, Highway Companion is worth the trip.
Read Full Review >E! Online
The album's bluesy Americana-inspired tunes like "Saving Grace" and "Turn This Car Around" are, sure, kind of predictable, but they make up for that by being pretty darn good songs.
Read Full Review >Blender
Petty, never good at deep thinking, tries to introduce some grand gestures and literary flourishes, but they're forced compared with his amiably corny odes to driving and boozing. [Sep 2006, p.147]
The New York Times
For about half of “Highway Companion” Mr. Petty’s reticence opens the songs to a sense of mystery. For the rest, he just sounds reserved and cagey, singing about restlessness but sounding all too settled. [24 Jul 2006]
Village Voice
This rarely works as the heart-heavy traveling music Petty has in mind; while he flees or revisits dark corners in every song, Petty sings like he has nothing at stake.
Read Full Review >Spin
Moodier moments respectably imitate Dylan and Neil Young, but often fall asleep at the wheel. [Sep 2006, p.110]
Paste Magazine
So why is his new album so underwhelming? Because Petty has gotten away from his strength--whipping pop hooks into an emotional frenzy of harmonies--and has focused on his weakness: overly ambitious lyrics.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this album is 8.3 (out of 10) based on 25 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Nate K gave it a10:
While I rank this 4th best in Petty's catalogue, with or without the Heartbreakers, Highway Companion is a lyrical masterpiece. It's almost Dylan-calibre, but without ever being self-conscious of it; in the end, it's all Petty. The predictable Jeff Lynne production, while leaving some to be desired in musical creativity, actually works to focus our attention to the lyrics in many very subtle ways (the use of electric piano on "Night Driver", the vibraphone on the waltz, "The Golden Rose"). The album's grooves unapologetically borrow from many (Dylan, Young, but especially George Harrison), but through the course of Petty's war-weary yet crisp voice--on top of his incredible round-a-bout tales of displacement, lack of closure, and coming to terms with it all--we soon realize we're not looking for anything new; we're coming home full circle.
jyotirmaya d gave it an8:
I have never bought a Tom petty album before but this one will have me going through his back catalogue to see what else I have been missing. A solid effort with great melodies and lyrics.
Doug C gave it a7:
Spare in production. Strong in lyrical impact. The more I listened, the more I liked it.
Andy W gave it an8:
Using similar riffs and harmonies, this CD sounds like the "Full-Moon fever" and "Wildflowers" efforts. Almost too much so..still enjoyable nonetheless.
Mark D gave it a9:
Tom was around for the best of Rock and or Rollin. Tom has allowed his music to evolve into 2006. Love this record!
Guy H gave it a6:
It is fair to say that this album is hardly groundbreaking ... but there is something undeniably appealing about Tom Petty's music. I recently purchased 5 albums along with Highway Companion - and I would definitely rate this as the weakest of the bunch. However, when it comes to choosing a soundtrack to my journey home from work each day - Petty wins almost very time! 'Nuff said.
Jennifer 61 gave it a9:
Love my Petty! True Gainesville Green!
