Earlier this week, Tom Petty’s website and social media pages teased that “something really special” was going to be announced on Friday, August 30, and we now know what that is. A deluxe edition of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers’ 1982 album, Long After Dark, will be released on October 19.
Long After Dark was released in November 1982, and included the hits “You Got Lucky” and “Change of Heart.” While making the album, several songs didn’t make the cut, as the band debated over the musical direction of the project.
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As Petty once commented, “There was some music recorded for Long After Dark that didn’t get on the record, that I thought would’ve made it a better album. I left off…four things that I liked quite a bit. And probably a few more written that never even got in the door.”
The deluxe reissue features a newly remastered version of the original album, as well as 12 bonus tracks, including those omitted songs.
Long After Dark (Deluxe Edition), which can be pre-ordered now, will be available in multiple formats and configurations. Among them is a limited-edition two-LP set pressed on red-and-black-splatter vinyl, packaged with a lithograph, available exclusively at TomPetty.com. There’s also a three-disc collection featuring two CDs and a Blu-ray audio disc that boasts high-res mixes of the album and the bonus tracks.
Other versions include a standard black-vinyl two-LP set, and a single LP featuring just the remastered Long After Dark tracks that’s pressed on turquoise vinyl and comes with a two-sided lithograph. The latter release will be available only at independent record stores.
About the Bonus Tracks
Among the bonus tracks featured on the reissue is Petty and the Heartbreakers’ original version of “Never Be You,” a song that Rosanne Cash scored a No. 1 country hit with in 1985. They also include an upbeat rendition of “Ways to Be Wicked,” a tune that alt-country group Lone Justice covered on its self-titled 1985 debut album.
Several of the bonus tracks were recorded while Petty and the band were being filmed for a French TV show in 1982 as they worked on Long After Dark at New York City studio the Record Plant. These include a cover of John Sebastian’s “Stories We Could Tell” and a version of the album cut “Straight Into Darkness.”
Advance Track and Music Video
The “French TV” version of “Straight into Darkness” has been released as the first advance track from the reissue. A companion video, featuring footage shot for French television, has debuted on Petty’s YouTube channel. In the weeks leading up to release of Long After Dark (Deluxe Edition), Petty’s estate will share more previously unseen film and unheard audio from 1982 and 1983.
Long After Dark peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard 200. The aforementioned singles, “You Got Lucky” and “Change of Heart,” reached No. 20 and No. 21, respectively, on the Billboard Hot 100.
Long After Dark was the first Petty and the Heartbreakers album to feature bassist Howie Epstein. Epstein replaced founding Heartbreakers bassist Ron Blair, and remained a member of the group until 2002. Sadly, Epstein died of a drug overdose in 2003 at age 47.
Additional Info About the Reissue
The deluxe reissue will include liner notes by lauded rock journalist David Fricke, with additional commentary from Long After Dark co-producer Jimmy Iovine and filmmaker Cameron Crowe. The package also will feature a variety of photographs from the era.
Long After Dark (Deluxe Edition) Track List (* = previously unreleased):
Disc 1
- “A One Story Town”
- “You Got Lucky”
- “Deliver Me”
- “Change of Heart”
- “Finding Out”
- “We Stand a Chance”
- “Straight into Darkness”
- “The Same Old You”
- “Between Two Worlds”
- “A Wasted Life”
Disc 2
- “Stories We Could Tell” (French TV)
- “Never Be You”*
- “Turning Point” (Original Drums Version)
- “Don’t Make Me Walk the Line”*
- “I’m Finding Out” (French TV)”*
- “Heartbreakers Beach Party” (Extended Version)
- “Keeping Me Alive” (French TV)
- “Straight into Darkness” (French TV)
- “Ways to Be Wicked” (Denver Sessions)*
- “Between Two Worlds” (French TV)*
- “One on One”*
- “Wild Thing*
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