It’s a song about trying to escape the monotony of daily life in a small town and trying to find something greater in the world. Petty and the Heartbreakers took a fast-charged jangling guitar riff and rapid vocals and made a song that sounded almost like a punk rock track while mixing ‘60s rock of The Byrds with a New Wave energy, according to Rolling Stone. Now a classic radio staple and considered to be one of Petty’s greatest hits the song got little airplay when released in 1977, but after appearing on an episode of the BBC’s music series “The Old Grey Whistle Test,” the song charted in the United Kingdom. It’s incredible to think that a band’s greatest song could come off its very first album, but that just goes to show what kind of songwriter Tom Petty has always been and what kind of a kickass band the Heartbreakers have always been. Mudcrutch broke up in the mid-70s, but reformed in 2008 with a self-titled debut featuring the rootsy “Scare Easy,” kind of an “I Won’t Back Down” with a twangier vibe. The band also consisted of guitarist Mike Campbell and keyboardist Benmont Tench, both of whom would later join Petty’s Heartbreakers.

with Tom Leadon, brother of original Eagles member Bernie Leadon. Petty formed the band in the early ‘70s in his hometown of Gainesville, Fla. And, Mudcrutch could’ve been one of the greatest country-rock bands there ever was. Here are the 40 greatest Tom Petty songs of all-time:īefore the Heartbreakers was Mudcrutch. It’s made the lives of all of us graced with its presence just a little bit better and that’s something that honestly just can’t be appreciated enough. It’s made people scream at the top of their lungs in concert and with the windows rolled down on the highway. I want to make music that’s worth making.”įor 40 years Petty has made music worth making and his music has been pure and real. It’s been so good to me that I want to be good to it. It moves, it heals, it communicates and does all these incredible things. Tom Petty once told The Telegraph: “Music is probably the only real magic I have encountered in my life. The group has become one of the most popular classic rock bands in America with 13 studio albums, three Petty solo albums and almost 70 singles. The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers will wrap up their tour in late September with three shows at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers embarked on a nationwide tour in April that includes over 50 shows in 25 states with the occasional show in Canada and the United Kingdom to celebrate the group’s 40th anniversary.

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