1981 - "Hard Promises" released by Tom Petty in 1981 had the seemingly impossible task of following his 1979 commercial breakthrough "Damn The Torpedoes." What's amazing is that Petty follows up his best work with another classic and finds himself searching deeper with more soul-searching lyrics than before and delivering them with a voice that displays true emotion proving the point that he just may be one of the most underrated singers in rock. The cover shot of Tom Petty in a record shop. "The Waiting," became the best-known song on the record, but there's no discounting "A Woman in Love (It's Not Me)," "Something Big," "Kings Road," "Insider," and "The Criminal Kind," album tracks that would become fan favorites. If Hard Promises doesn't have the sweep of Damn the Torpedoes, that's because its predecessor was blessed with good timing and an unusually strong set of songs. Hard Promises isn't quite so epochal, yet it has a tremendous set of songs and a unified sound that makes it one of Petty's finest records.
Side One
1. Waiting
2. Woman in Love (It's Not Me)
3. Nightwatchman
4. Something Big
5. Kings Road
Side Two
6. Letting You Go
7. Thing About You
8. Insider
9. Criminal Kind
10. You Can Still Change Your Mind
