![]() I decided to convene some people whom I knew to be up to the task of reassessing Petty’s music, and who might be well equipped to articulate some of what is lasting and important about the range of his considerable accomplishments. The more I thought about this, the more I wanted to write about it. He serves on the board of directors for the Ally Jolie Baldwin Foundation, is a past president of Detroit Working Writers, and a loyal Detroit Lions fan.Since Tom Petty’s death, one year ago today, I have been haunted by the nuances and complexities of his songs, the sense of how they improve with attention, and have improved markedly in the period of reckoning that has come to pass since his untimely death.īecause Petty was so prolific and so popular, the intense craftsmanship of his body of work has been hiding in plain sight. ![]() ![]() What is your favorite song by him? Share it with us on Twitter.Ĭarl Anthony is Managing Editor of Automoblog and a member of the Midwest Automotive Media Association and the Society of Automotive Historians. But we only just scratched the surface of Tom Petty’s incredible catalog. The songs here are great for a weekend getaway or road trip. “I had all the time in the world for Roy.” What is Your Favorite Tom Petty Song? “He was such a brilliant singer and a lovely guy,” Lynne recalled in an interview with Billboard. Intertwined with the Traveling Wilburys’ inherent coolness is the void caused by Orbison’s death less than two months after Handle With Care was released in 1988. Writing for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine notes that there was never a supergroup more super than the Traveling Wilburys.Īlthough the Traveling Wilburys were quite different from mainstream music in the late 80s, the project arguably relaunched the careers of both Dylan and Orbison. Petty was joined by Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, and George Harrison (who originally conceptualized the group with Lynne). Under the guise of being traveling musicians and half-brothers (fathered by elder Charles Truscott Wilbury), the band consisted of some of rock’s greatest luminaries. 1 contains the line “sent to meetings hypnotized,” which suddenly takes on new meaning in an era where Zoom calls are the norm. The opening track from Traveling Wilburys Vol. While The Waiting would later be covered by artists like Linda Ronstadt, Natalie Imbruglia, and Jon Pardi, The Bob & Tom Show had their own parody version called Ned Beatty Had the Hardest Part. To convey their sadness and pay tribute to Lennon, the Heartbreakers etched the phrase “We Love You J.L.” in the run-out groove of Hard Promises.Īs for The Waiting, you may recall its various uses in popular culture, from The Office to The Simpsons. The meeting would never take place as Lennon was gunned down that December. In the book, Conversations with Tom Petty by Paul Zollo, Petty recalls that Lennon was supposed to sing on Starr’s album – or at least, that was the “talk right around then.” While recording the album in late 1980, there was a chance that Petty was going to meet John Lennon as Ringo Starr was working on his own record in the same studio. One of the best examples of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ timeless sound, The Waiting was the lead single from the band’s 1981 album Hard Promises. Just one week later, on October 2nd, 2017, Tom Petty died of complications from cardiac arrest. ![]() The band closed the final concert of their 40th Anniversary Tour at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles in late September 2017 with the iconic song. Scott, who authored the book Tom Petty and Me, said upon hearing Breakdown and American Girl, he got chills and knew it was a hit record.Īmerican Girl was the last song Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers ever performed live. Jon “Sizzling Memphis” Scott, head of national album promotion for ABC Records at the time, petitioned radio stations to spin the Heartbreakers while also urging the label not to drop the group. American record executives thought the Heartbreakers might be a punk band and nearly dismissed the album outright after seeing the cover. On the cover of the 1976 album, Petty stands in a black jacket with a row of bullets visible on his left-hand side. At least initially, there was some misunderstanding in the American music business about who (or what) Tom Petty was. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers embarked on a European tour behind their self-titled album but returned to Los Angeles to find the record wasn’t selling at home. American Girl actually gained more traction in the United Kingdom in 1977 when it was released.
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