An American Treasure
, the first posthumous
Tom Petty
project, is designed as an aural biography of the late rocker, telling a tale that begins with a
Mudcrutch
session from 1974, running through the glory of
Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
in 1976, and concluding with a live version of "Hungry No More" from 2016, just over a year prior to his tragic 2017 passing. Arriving roughly a year after
Petty
's death, the timing for
makes sense -- he certainly deserved a tribute -- but in strict discographical terms, there didn't seem to be a need for a second career-spanning box set, as he already had 1995's rarity-laden box
Playback
and a multi-disc
The Live Anthology
from 2009. Happily,
offers a story that's not told on either previous set, and that's a complete picture of
's career, told entirely through byways, not highways. The compilers -- a team consisting of his widow
Dana
, daughter
Adria
, bandmates
Mike Campbell
and
Benmont Tench
, plus longtime producer
Ryan Ulyate
-- made a conscious decision not to replicate any material from
, which meant that there wasn't room for the original hit versions of any of
's hits. Ultimately, this meant that many of his best-known songs are nowhere to be found on
, but that winds up as a feature, not a bug. In the absence of "American Girl," "Refugee," "The Waiting," and "Free Falling," the spotlight shifts to the remarkable consistency of
's catalog, which is represented through deep cuts, alternate takes, live versions, and unheard songs. Upon first glance at the track listing, it may seem like there's not a treasure trove of unheard material, but as
plays, what becomes clear is that the bigger picture counts more than the individual details. Not that the box doesn't serve up some unexpected surprises from all eras: an alternate "Rebels" has a muscle lacking on the original version,
Echo
generates two fine rarities in "Gainesville" and "I Don't Belong," the plaintive outtake "Don't Fade on Me" could've fit onto
Wildflowers
with no problem. It's fun to cherry-pick these tracks, but
carries a greater resonance by demonstrating how
kept growing through the years, not only as a songwriter but a performer; some of the best moments are hearing him sing older songs later in his career. The trick
pulls off is weaving these latter-day performances into the place where the songs were originally written, so this not only provides a narrative but also gives a sense of continuity, which is a rare thing in a decades-spanning box like this. As such, this box winds up as a fitting tribute to a rocker whose touch was so casual, he could be easy to take for granted, but when his work is looked at as a whole, he seems like a giant. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine