-
Thirty Minutes That Changed Everything: How Tom Petty Wrote ‘Free Fallin” in Two Days and Fought His Label to Release It
Thirty Minutes That Changed Everything: How Tom Petty Wrote “Free Fallin’” in Two Days and Fought His Label to Release It It was Thanksgiving Day, 1987. Tom Petty was driving his black Corvette Stingray through Los Angeles on an errand so ordinary it barely qualifies as a story: he needed a baseball mitt, and he…
-
Tom Petty: The Tender Heart Behind the Rebel
On stage, Tom Petty was the picture of defiance — the sneer, the Rickenbacker, the man who sang “I Won’t Back Down” and meant every syllable. But offstage, those who knew him tell a different story. They describe a shy, sentimental man who carried old wounds, loved his family fiercely, and fought private battles that…
-
How Tom Petty Made “Wildflowers”: The Album He Called His Own Masterpiece
In the summer of 1992, Tom Petty was one of the most successful rock stars on the planet — and one of the loneliest. His 22-year marriage was quietly collapsing. He had just left MCA Records after more than a decade of battles. He had fired the only drummer the Heartbreakers had ever known. And…
-
The Untold Story of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: The Florida Band That Refused to Play by the Rules
Some bands burn bright and flame out. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers did something rarer: they stayed true, stayed together, and stayed great for four decades. From a small college town in northern Florida, this band of friends built one of the most beloved catalogs in American rock, and they did it without ever chasing…