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A taste of the late Epstein

By Mark Brown, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published August 25, 2008 at 6 p.m.
Updated August 25, 2008 at 8:33 p.m.

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Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers receive a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame in 1999. Band members, from left: Mike Campbell, Howie Epstein, Tom Petty and Benmont Tench.

Photo by Vince Bucci / Getty Images

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers receive a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame in 1999. Band members, from left: Mike Campbell, Howie Epstein, Tom Petty and Benmont Tench.

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The late Howie Epstein worked with the greats of rock 'n' roll - John Hiatt, Bob Dylan, John Prine, Johnny Cash and most notably as the bass player in Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers - but never released any music of his own.

After his tragic death due to drug use in 2003, his brother Craig decided it was time for the world to hear it - everything from the demos Epstein recorded in his bedroom at age 16 to the more polished studio stuff from his later years.

The first installment is out. Looking like a bootleg, Early Tracks has a scruffy charm to it, with Epstein often playing all the instruments as he fleshed out pop-and-folk inspired tunes, many surprisingly mature for his tender age.

The plan is three installments: this collection of early years, a disc of cover songs, and a third disc of songs found in Epstein's Los Angeles studio after he died.

Grand Hotel shows an early sense of melody that became a hallmark of Epstein's work, with a loping bass line sounding like John Wesley Harding-era Dylan. The brooding Francis Street is a low-key ballad moving toward Byrds territory, which made it a no-brainer when Petty pinched Epstein from Del Shannon's band when the Heartbreakers needed a new bass player.

Fans who like what they hear can get a view of what's coming up later in the series. Sadly, someone ransacked Epstein's studio near Santa Fe after his death, so a wealth of music there is gone. The tapes of his most recent songs need extensive restoration before they can be played, so that project remains down the road.

Anyone looking for a taste of his cover songs, however, can go to Epstein's MySpace page, where the music streaming includes a lovely version of Hiatt's She Don't Love Nobody.

Early Tracks is available on CD through CDBaby.com and can be downloaded there and on iTunes.

Howie Epstein

Early Tracks, Vol. 1

CDBaby.com

Grade: B+

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Comments

  • August 26, 2008

    10:42 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    I_Slay_The_Dragon writes:

    Great piece, on a great bassist and cool guy.
    I briefly met TP and The Heartbreakers in Frankfurt, Germany.
    Howie was a real CHARACTER, and a funny, funny guy.
    May God rest his soul. Good work, Craig.