Tom Petty
(born October 20, 1950,
Gainesville
, Florida, U.S.?died October 2, 2017,
Santa Monica
, California) was an American singer and songwriter whose roots-oriented guitar
rock
arose from the
new-wave
movement of the late 1970s and resulted in a string of hit singles and albums.
At age 10, Petty was introduced by his uncle to
Elvis Presley
, who was filming
Follow That Dream
(1962) in
Florida
, where Petty grew up. Within two years Petty had taken up the
guitar
. He began touring with his
band
Mudcrutch (originally called the Epics) while still in
high school
, skipping his graduation ceremony to play a gig. After arriving in
Los Angeles
, the band quickly disintegrated, but in 1975 Petty and two former members,
Mike Campbell and
Benmont Tench, joined
Ron Blair and
Stan Lynch to form
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.
Britannica Quiz
Pop Culture Quiz
The band’s
eponymous
debut album, released in 1976, initially caused little stir in the
United States
, but the single “
Breakdown” was a smash in
Britain
, and, when it was re-released in the U.S., the
song
made the Top 40 in 1978.
Damn the Torpedoes
(1979), featuring the hits “Don’t Do Me Like That” and “
Refugee,” shot to number two, and, though the group’s success in the 1980s leveled off, there were several hits, including Petty’s duet with
Stevie Nicks
, “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around” (1981), and the Heartbreakers’ “Don’t Come Around Here No More” (1985). The band also gained notice for its
music videos
.
In 1984
Petty
shattered his hand after punching a studio wall in frustration, but, to the surprise of doctors, he recovered to play guitar again. The Heartbreakers backed
Bob Dylan
on tour in 1986, and later Petty joined Dylan, former
Beatle
George Harrison
,
Roy Orbison
, and
Jeff Lynne
(formerly of the Electric Light Orchestra) in the supergroup the
Traveling Wilburys
, with whom Petty garnered his first
Grammy Award
in 1989. That year Lynne produced Petty’s first solo album,
Full Moon Fever,
putting Petty back on the charts with the hit single “
Free Fallin’.” This renewed popularity was followed in the 1990s with more group and solo albums, including the multimillion-selling
Wildflowers
(1994), which was presented as a solo album but featured contributions from the Heartbreakers, most notably guitarist Campbell, ever Petty’s essential collaborator.
Petty’s divorce in 1996 from his wife of more than 20 years took a heavy toll on him psychologically and contributed to his descent into
heroin
use. That period of emotional anguish and ultimately introspection led to the creation of one of his most deeply personal albums,
Echo
(1999). In 2001 Petty remarried, with
Little Richard
performing the ceremony. The next year he and the Heartbreakers were inducted into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
and released
The Last DJ
, the title song of which was a scathing indictment of
music
industry
greed
. Petty’s third solo album,
Highway Companion
(2006), and the Heartbreakers’
blues
-drenched
Mojo
(2010) followed.
Hypnotic Eye
, another Heartbreakers’ effort, topped the
Billboard
album chart in 2014.
In
2008
Petty and the Heartbreakers reached another
benchmark
of exalted status as
pop music
icons by performing during the
Super Bowl
halftime show. Petty, who was known for his devotion not only to the roots of
rock and roll
but also to his own musical roots, reunited with Mudcrutch to produce new albums and undertake tours in 2007 and 2016. In October 2017, in the midst of celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Heartbreakers, Petty died after suffering full
cardiac arrest
that was brought on by an accidental overdose of medications, including
opioids
,
sedatives
, and an
antidepressant
. Petty had been beset by a fractured hip, knee problems, and
emphysema
.
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