Long After Dark was Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ fifth studio release, issued through MCA's Backstreet Records imprint in November 1982. The album spawned three top-40 hit singles in “You Got Lucky," "Change of Heart," and “Straight Into Darkness,” eventually achieving a Gold sales certification from the RIAA. It was also the first Heartbreakers album to feature bassist and backing vocalist Howie Epstein, who would remain with the band for the next two decades.
Long After Dark saw the return of producer Jimmy Iovine and engineer Shelly Yakus, both of whom had already worked with the Heartbreakers on 1979’s Damn The Torpedoes–the group’s commercial breakthrough–and its 1981 follow-up Hard Promises. Iovine is best known today as co-founder of Interscope Records and Beats Electronics, but his career began decades earlier with engineering credits on classic albums like John Lennon’s Walls and Bridges (1974) and Bruce Springsteen’s Born To Run (1975).
More than four decades after its original release, Universal Music Group and the Tom Petty estate are celebrating Long After Dark with an expanded deluxe reissue produced by longtime collaborator Ryan Ulyate. The deluxe release augments the original album with 12 newly-rediscovered bonus tracks, including several previously-unreleased studio recordings from this period.
The deluxe edition is available in a variety of physical and digital formats, but it’s the 2CD/Blu-Ray Audio set that will surely draw the most attention from audiophiles and immersive music fans. The Blu-Ray disc contains Uylate’s brand-new Dolby Atmos mixes of the entire 22-track collection, alongside Chris Bellman's 96-khz/24-bit remaster of the original 1982 stereo mix. The immersive mixes were mastered by Michael Romanowski at Coast Mastering, and are also available to stream on Apple Music, Tidal, and Amazon Music.
Long After Dark is the fifth archival release from Petty’s catalog to receive a Dolby Atmos remix from Ulyate, following Wildflowers & All The Rest, Angel Dream, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ Greatest Hits (winner of IAA's 2024 Listener's Choice Award), and Mojo (Extra Mojo Version). Whereas those prior immersive mixes were kept exclusive to streaming services, this is the first be issued on physical media in high-resolution. The last Blu-Ray Audio release from the Heartbreakers–their final studio album Hypnotic Eye, produced and mixed by Ulyate in 5.1 surround sound–arrived over a decade ago in July 2014.
Ryan Ulyate is one of the very best immersive mixers working today, having recently earned a Grammy nomination in the field for his 2023 solo album Act 3 (get it in the IAA Shop!). The new Atmos mixes of Long After Dark remain up to his very high standard, making full use of the entire 7.1.4 palette to completely engulf the listener in this iconic music.
“One Story Town” sets the template for the immersive experience. The rhythm guitar parts played by Tom Petty and Mike Campbell are split in wide stereo across the front stage, spilling over into the side surround channels. Stan Lynch’s drums similarly appears mostly upfront, but the overhead mics seem to be mixed partially to the sides–giving the impression that the kit is wrapping around the listener. Benmont Tench’s organ is firmly rooted in the rear speakers, while the height array supplies lead guitar, percussion, and harmony vocals.
Synthesizers move to the front stage for “You Got Lucky,” quickly followed by the whistle-like keyboard line in the rear left height speaker. Tom Petty’s voice is most prominent in the center speaker, but also appears at a reduced level in the front channels. However, the center speaker isn’t dedicated exclusively to dry vocals–you’ll hear the snare drum and some lead guitar in there as well.
Tambourine percolates from the rear height speakers for “Deliver Me,” while Mike Campbell’s lead guitar comes roaring from the front heights. Benmont Tench’s piano pops up in the side surrounds, along with organ from the rear. During the chorus, backing vocals and handclaps hover overhead.
The main guitars again sit between the front stage and side surrounds for “Change of Heart,” with Tench’s piano filling out the sides and his synth pad coming directly behind from the rears. Double-tracked lead vocals appear from the sides on key phrases (“you push just a little too far,” “you make it just a little too hard”), while harmonies and lead guitar explode from the height array during the chorus.
“Finding Out” kicks off with Stan Lynch’s drums crashing all around the listener, complimented by percussion up in the rear heights and organ in the rear. Campbell’s guitar appears in all four height speakers, hovering directly above the listener’s head. Epstein’s multi-tracked backing vocals during the chorus also pop up from above.
Handclaps pop up from above for “We Stand A Chance,” along with the vocoder-processed backing vocals and multi-tracked harmonies during the chorus. Different organ parts appear in the rear surrounds and front heights, while percussion takes the rear heights and piano fills up the sides.
"I think I’ve kind of settled into a template with the Heartbreakers in Atmos. Guitars are usually upfront, with the drums pulled out further into the room. Tom’s vocal is loudest in the center, but also present in the fronts. Then there’s all this space between the sides and rear for Benmont [Tench]. Sometimes I like to have the piano in the sides and organ in the back, which works nicely with the guitars in the front. For [Mike] Campbell’s solos, I love using the height speakers. It’s like there’s someone sitting up on my ceiling with a deluxe reverb."
Ryan Ulyate, October 2023
The piano intro to “Straight Into Darkness” comes almost entirely from the side surrounds, emitting its reverb up to the overhead speakers. Percussion enters from the rear heights, followed by lead guitar from the front left height speaker.
Crunchy rhythm guitars burst from the front stage for “The Same Old You,” with Lynch’s drums extending further out into the room. Tench’s piano pops out of the sides, while his organ owns the rear. Like “Straight Into Darkness,” “Between Two Worlds” opens with the piano almost completely locked to the side channels. Shakers float in from above, along with harmonies from Epstein.
The introspective closing track “A Wasted Life” features bongos from the rear heights, while different sets of keyboards are split between the front and rear speakers. Epstein’s harmonies and vocal delays also appear from above.
In addition to the original 10 album tracks, Ryan Ulyate has also created Dolby Atmos mixes of all 12 bonus selections. Seven of these additional cuts were newly-unearthed from the original multitrack masters, whereas the remaining five were recorded ’live-in-the-studio’ at the Record Plant for a French TV special in May 1982. These live versions of "Finding Out," "Straight Into Darkness," and "Between Two Worlds" have a somewhat looser, less polished feel than their album counterparts. That said, the immersive mixes of the live recordings are on par with the album tracks in terms of both channel seperation and sonic clarity.
The acoustic guitar in “Stories We Could Tell” comes primarily from the center channel, underpinning Tom Petty’s voice. An electric rhythm guitar enters mostly from the front right speaker, diagonally opposed by the organ rooted largely in the side left channel. Backing vocals and percussion rain down from the rear height speakers.
Two different piano parts appear isolated in the side and rear surrounds for "Never Be You," while the rhythm section stays weighted towards the front stage. The reverb from Petty's voice fills up the height array, along with percussion isolated in the rear height speakers. Starting in the second verse, a harmony vocal appears directly overhead.
"Turning Point" kicks off with the acoustic guitars completely isolated in the front speakers, before exploding out into full immersion with the entrance of the band. The electric guitars drift out towards the sides, with harmonica blasting from the front heights, tambourine in the left rear height, and a shaker in the right rear height.
The slapback effect on Tom Petty's voice in "Don't Make Me Walk The Line" travels up to the rear heights, with Tench's piano in the sides, keys in the rear, and backing vocals hovering overhead. "Heartbreakers Beach Party," recorded for Cameron Crowe's documentary of the same name, places organ in the sides and percussion up in the overhead speakers. Multi-layered backing vocals emerge from above during the chorus.
"Keeping Me Alive" opens with acoustic guitar from the center channel, followed by bongos from the rear heights. Next up is "Ways To Be Wicked," a track originally considered for inclusion on Damn The Torpedoes but vetoed by Iovine. The main guitar parts stay upfront, complimented by piano from the sides and organ in the rear.
Rhythm guitars and organ battle front-to-back for "One On One," with the backing vocals and lead guitar relocated up to the height speakers. The final track on the bonus playlist is a cover of the Troggs' "Wild Thing," again showcasing the layered group harmonies from above.
I was pleasantly surprised to find that the Blu-Ray disc also features an unadvertised Dolby TrueHD 5.1 audio stream. Though it was most likely derived from the Dolby Atmos mix, this is a great inclusion that will surely make the deluxe package more attractive to listeners that still inhabit the world of traditional six-channel surround sound.
Overall, I'd rank this as one of the best archival releases of 2024. The 2CD/Blu-Ray set is value-priced and jam-packed with content, all of which is presented in a breathtaking immersive presentation. Though I could certainly opine further about Ryan Ulyate's thoughtful approach to the Dolby Atmos mix, he arguably explained it best in an interview with us last year.
"When I started working in Atmos with the Tom Petty catalog, I made the decision not to do a lot of gymnastics and flying things around. I didn't want to distract people. When the music’s really good, I think all you have to do is put the listener inside of it. You don’t have to do crazy stuff because the excitement and dynamics are already present in the orchestration."
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