Tom Petty has been a staple of rock ‘n’ roll for decades, and while his music has changed over the years, his approach to rock and roll has remained the same: to create music that says something. To put a personal stamp on it. To challenge himself and his listeners. And to push himself to make his performances better. Always better.
Tom Petty was a good old boy from Texas who had a penchant for singing about cars, girls, and, oh, yeah, rock ‘n’ roll. A decade before others were making the life-altering declaration that he should be the “king of rock,” Petty was winning over the rock audience, and his home state’s music press, with his bluesy electric guitar licks and aggressive, carefree rock ‘n’ roll attitude.
With their blend of Byrds riffs and rock ‘n’ roll panache, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers emerged in the late 1970s at the height of the punk and new wave movements. But they were different, they had their own style, good songs, and they could play. And they looked like a rock’n’roll band. I first heard American Girl on the radio in 1977 and immediately fell in love with the band. That same year I saw them at a gig in Manchester, UK, as support act for the excellent guitarist Niels Lofgren, and it was one of the few times I saw the support band clearly outperform the headliner. In fact, they wiped Niels and his trampoline off the stage. There were no music videos in the 70s and I hadn’t seen any photos of the band. So I was completely surprised when this cool blond guy and his band came on stage, blasting guitars, and sang Jaguar And Thunderbird, which was quickly followed by American Girl. I was sold, and the UK shows with Niels were so successful that Petty and the boys returned to the UK a few weeks later to headline their own series of shows. Petty’s introduction to music took place in the summer of 1961. His uncle works on the set of the new Elvis Presley movie, Follow the Dream, in Ocala, Florida, and invites Petty to come see the set. He immediately became a fan of Elvis Presley. After seeing the Beatles on an Ed Sullivan show in 1964, he knew he wanted to play in a band (one of his first guitar teachers was Don Felder, a Gainesville native who later went on to play with the Eagles). As a teenager, Petty worked briefly on the University of Florida campus, but he never became a student. The ogeechee lime tree he planted during his time at the university is now known as Tom Petty’s tree (Petty said he didn’t remember planting any trees!).
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Petty’s early bands included The Sundowners, The Epics and Mudcrutch, which also included future Heartbreakers members Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench. In 1974, Mudcrutch moved from Gainesville, Florida to Los Angeles, California. The Heartbreakers released their first album on Shelter Records and found success in the UK (long before the US) with appearances on Top of the Pops and the popular Old Grey Whistle Test Show. Their second album, 1978’s You’re Gonna Get It!, was the band’s first gold album and included the singles I Need to Know and Listen To Her Heart. In 1979, the band became embroiled in a legal battle when ABC Records, Shelter’s distributor, was sold to MCA Records. Petty refused to change record companies and stuck to his principles, which led him to file for bankruptcy as a tactic against MCA. In 1979, after a lawsuit, the Heartbreakers released their third album, Damn the Torpedoes, on the MCA Backstreet label, which included the singles Don’t Do Me Like That (#10 in the U.S., the band’s first top 10 single) and Refugee (#15 in the U.S.), which became their first singles in the U.S.; the album was quickly certified platinum. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers have arrived. 
Petty became a veteran of rock music, writing and performing with Stevie Nicks, Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash and others, and joined the Traveling Wilburys, a group that also included Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Roy Orbison and Jeff Lynn. Petty released acclaimed solo albums, the first of which was 1989’s Full Moon Fever, featuring his signature song Free Fallin’, as well as I Won’t Back Down (later performed by Johnny Cash) and Runnin’ Down a Dream. On the 21st. In September 2006, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers received the keys to Gainesville, Florida, the place where he and his bandmates have lived or grown up all these years. A few years ago, when talking about his fame, Petty said: When I decided to become a musician, I thought that would be the path of least profit, least money. I gave up trying to make a lot of money. It was something I loved doing. I would have done it anyway. If I had to work at Taco Bell, I’d still be making music at night. During 2017, the band went on a 40th anniversary tour, which ended at the Hollywood Bowl in September. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Petty hinted that this would probably be his last album. We’re all in our sixties, he says. I now have a granddaughter who I want to see as often as possible. I don’t want to spend my life on the streets. This tour takes me for four months. With a small child, that’s a lot of time. Tom Petty died on the 2nd. October 2017 in California at the age of 66 from cardiac arrest.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who sings Running Down a Dream?
Tom Petty has died at the age of 66. The singer, songwriter, and guitarist was known for his distinctive voice, a mix of twang and rockabilly drawl. He achieved his greatest commercial success in the 1970s and 1980s with the band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and went on to tour with his bandmates until his untimely death. Two of his greatest singles were “Refugee” and “Free Fallin’”. One of the most influential rock songs in history was written by an unknown artist in the early 1950’s. The song, Running Down a Dream, was written by Tom Petty while he was serving in the military in Texas. While serving, Petty was asked to write a song that was to be played in the mess halls so that the men could have something to sing along with as they ate….
What year did Tom Petty’s Runnin Down a Dream Come Out?
The title of Tom Petty’s 1985 album Runnin’ Down a Dream is quite self-explanatory; Tom Petty is singing in his signature, clear-as-a-bell Southern drawl about a dream he’s had. The song seems to take place in the present day, with Tom reminiscing about the best days of his youth, when he was a young man with his dreams and aspirations, and how he’s still the same person, just a little older and a little wiser. In 1976, Tom Petty released his debut album, “Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.” It became one of the best-selling albums of all time and is still selling today. It’s an incredible album with classic hits like “Listen to Her Heart” and “American Girl.” The song “American Girl” instantly became a hit, and is still a classic today.
Who wrote Runnin Down a Dream?
In 2018, Tom Petty died of a stroke at age 66, leaving behind a legacy of a rock-and-roll pioneer with a deep connection to the American spirit, and a body of work that stands as one of the best and most lasting of his era. I always felt like songwriters and musicians had the hardest job out of all of the journalists. How could they write about an event or a culture when they themselves weren’t from that culture? How could they write about it without sounding cliché or being too arrogant?
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