Yer So Bad could almost be the most important song in the entire Tom Petty canon. Almost. Probably not the most important, but it was the first song that Tom showed to Jeff Lynne and from there, the rest of Full Moon Fever and then The Traveling Wilburys dropped effortlessly into place. You have to…

Every hardcore Tom Petty fan knows that when Tom took the record to the execs at MCA, they didn’t like it at all. When Paul Zollo asks Tom why in Conversations with Tom Petty, Tom replies “They didn’t hear a single!” One of the other issues with the record that it was only nine tracks…

In his fantastic memoir, Tom Petty and Me, Jon Scott calls Runnin Down a Dream “One of the greatest driving songs I’ve ever heard” and you get his point completely. It’s a juggernaut of a rock n roll song but isn’t overpowering sonically. Again Jeff Lynne leaves enough space for the song to breath but…

“I do like that song. I think it’s a really sweet song. A nice sentiment. Very simple. Extremely simple. It’s not complex in any way” One thing I always find interesting in reading Paul Zollo’s book is the way that Tom often seems to be looking at his own songs from the outside. The book…

Love is a Long Road is a really durable song and though I pointed out that it has a few rock tropes in it, they’re not overdone and not dated and I think this song really holds up well in its original recorded form. It’s another song with a very simple structure but with a…

As it does with so many people, this song resonates with me in many different ways and has become part of my general outlook on life. For me, it’s less a combative thing and more about holding firm to certain principles. Loyalty. Decency. Humility. All big words and and big ideas generally, but they are…

“I’m gonna free fall out into nothin’. Gonna leave this world for awhile.” This is exactly what great music does to me. It takes me out of my body and out into the creative ether. It helps me let go of anxiety or sadness or anger or grief and just soar on the music. I…

Hi folks. Technical difficulties and scheduling have prevented me from recording episode one for season eight, so I have compiled the first Twelve answers to my first quick fire question. It’s interesting that there were so many different answers to what I imagined would be a pretty straight arm wrestle between Damn The Torpedoes, Wallflowers,…

In this special episode Kevin is joined, once again, by co-host John Paulsen to wrap up Let Me Up (I’ve Had Enough). Lots to talk about on this album and the “Producer for a Day” segment throws up a plethora of additional tracks to consider for inclusion! If you want to check out Kevin’s alternate…

This episode is the first installment in a new feature for the podcast; The Petty 8ight! I love talking to Pettyheads, musicians, and other people who have been influenced by Tom or his music in myriad ways, but I thought it would be neat to see what non-fans thought of Tom’s music if I threw…