Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers Releases Deluxe Damn The Torpedoes Nov. 9

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers are clearing out the vaults once again to release an expanded, deluxe edition of their classic third album from 1979 Damn The Torpedoes November 9.

This isn’t the first archival project in recent history for The Heartbreakers, who released a Live Anthology last year in multiple formats.  The deluxe Damn The Torpedoes will also be released in multiple formats, beginning with a 2-CD version of the set.  The first disc is the album, remastered from the original analog tapes.  Torpedoes has been remastered at least one other time in this CD era.  It’s not immediately clear if this is a second remaster from the source tapes or not but there is a decent chance it is because of the other formats this set is being released in.  We’ll come back to that.  This album is arguably the best of the Hall of Fame band’s career or at least stands as the album that broke them into the stratosphere in the first phase of their career with songs like “Refugee,” “Here Comes My Girl,” “Even The Losers,” and “Don’t Do Me Like That.”

The second disc collects nine tracks from the Torpedoes era.  Two of them are B-sides from singles from the album with the additional seven being previously unreleased tracks.  We’ll get a previously unreleased version of “Surrender,” a song that band often played live in the ’70s.  It would have been a contender for inclusion on a Heartbreakers record but the tape was lost.  As many Heartbreaker fans know, Torpedoes was recorded during a time when Petty and his label were in litigation and each night the tapes of the sessions they were recording were hidden for fear of being seized by the label.  It was probably a smart, necessary move but in the case of “Surrender” they may have outsmarted themselves, until now.  Also included are previously unreleased “Nowhere,” a demo of “Casa Dega” that’s different than the B-side version included on the set, an alternate take of “Refugee,” and three tracks from the band’s 1980 Hammersmith Odeon show.

In addition to the 2-CD version, the album will be released on audiophile 180g vinyl as well as Blu-ray audio.  The care taken to release such high fidelity versions of this classic record mean the band may very well have gone in and remastered Damn The Torpedoes a second time to ensure the most sonically rich version of the album possible is being presented.

As you may have gathered, I revere Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers as one of the most important, greatest American bands in history.  For me, this is a must add.  The bonus material is interesting to me and I’m interested in the sonic presentation coming forward for this record.  I wouldn’t put it past me to buy the CD and Blu-ray version of this set.  This is a classic album and the Heartbreakers are a classic band.  Casual listeners may not see anything here they can’t live without but I’m having one of these and you’ll be hearing more about it soon.

Damn The Torpedos – Disc 1

1. Refugee
2. Here Comes My Girl
3. Even The Losers
4. Shadow Of A Doubt (A Complex Kid)
5. Century City
6. Don’t Do Me Like That
7. You Tell Me
8. What Are You Doin’ In My Life?
9. Louisiana Rain

Disc 2 – Bonus Disc

1. Nowhere
2. Surrender
3. Casa Dega/B-side
4. It’s Rainin’ Again/B-side
5. Shadow Of A Doubt (A Complex Kid)/Live – Hammersmith Odeon 1980
6. Don’t Do Me Like That/Live – Hammersmith Odeon 1980
7. Somethin’ Else/Live – Hammersmith Odeon 1980
8. Casa Dega (Demo)
9. Refugee (Alternate Take)