The Tom Petty Project

"I’ve made no bones about the fact that I think Long After Dark is a better album than it often gets credit for and I think this is a deep cut that can have a tendency to be overlooked. Just a good groove, a great riff and given it was basically recorded live, a shining example of why this group of musicians formed such a brilliant band that was so much more than the sum of its already impressive...

"The song opens with Mike’s crunchy blues riff and some percussion in the background, most likely a woodblock. One thing that’s slightly surprising is that it’s in C. Most blues riffs are in G or E as they’re way easier to play on guitar, but hey, this is Mike Campbell!" Today's episode is dedicated to the greasy, the sleazy, the Stonesy track from side two of Long After Dark; The Same Old You. Yo...

"Tom tells Paul Zollo that “Sometimes it takes a lot of work. Sometimes the songs won’t reveal themselves to you until you find the right sound and the right recording of it. And this one was like that. You couldn’t really get everybody grooving the same way until we went over to the piano, and then everybody instinctually found what to play. But that’s part of working with a group.” Today's episo...

"We Stand a Chance is a fantastic way to open the second side of an album. Tom and the boys had a knack for starting side two strong. I Need to Know, Don’t Do Me Like That were side two openers and hey, those are pretty great songs! There’s more than enough going on here to make me really curious why this was never dusted off for a few outings on tour". Today, we’re talking about the first track o...

This week's episode is my wonderful conversation with Dan Spiess. Dan is the Producer the Tom Petty Weekend, which has run in 2018, 2019, and again this year (and has its origins in an impromptue tribute show in 2017). Dan was very kind to spend a couple of hours online with me and share his experience of Gainesville and most importantly, the details of how this year's festival came together and w...

There’s also another one of Tom’s clever lyrical twists in this one, in that first verse, when he sings “I must be looking over something” rather than “overlooking something”. A simple little bit of wordplay that subtly changes the impact of the line and changes the cadence of how it bounces along. Overall though, it’s definitely a hopeful, positive song and resolves in the bridge with the line “Y...

Tom tells Paul Zollo that it’s “Not one of my great songs. But it’s a good rock song.” I think that simple doesn’t necessarily mean "not great". The beauty of this song is at least partially down to the economy of it: Let the riff drive the melody. Let the rhythm section keep the tempo high and danceable, and let the lyrics tell a story of disenfranchisement and loneliness. Today’s episode looks a...

"It’s one of those sneaky Tom Petty tracks that really burrows its way into your brain and sits there playing itself in the back of your mind. It definitely follows a trusted template and because of that I think it might be slightly overlooked in the catalog." Today’s episode looks at the third track from Long After Dark; Deliver Me. If you want to listen to the track before we dig in, check out t...

Hello you lot! I mentioned on social media that this episode would be slightly delayed and that turns out to be correct, but thankfully I’m still getting it posted up on a Wednesday for you! I switched gears a little and decided to publish a conversation I had last week with Megan Volpert, whose new book, Straight Into Darkness, Tom Petty as Rock Mystic is available right now at fine retailers eve...

When I think about the arrangement of this song, with the synths leading, Mike filling in those gaps with artfully placed licks, and Tom soulfully ripping his heart out for the audience, I think he’s dead on with that assessment. Today’s episode looks at the second track from Long After Dark, You Got Lucky. If you want to listen to the track before we dig in, check out the official video: https://...

Good morning, good afternoon, or good evening, my fine friends. Welcome to the first episode of the fifth season of the Tom Petty Project Podcast! I am your host, Kevin Brown. This is the podcast that digs into the entire Tom Petty catalog song by song, album by album and includes conversations with musicians, fans, and people connected with Tom along the way. The first song we’re digging into is...

Today’s episode is the incredibly fun and wide-ranging conversation I had with Jeff Slate. Jeff is an ASCAP-award-winning singer songwriter from New York City who has fronted several bands including the 80’s mod punk band the Mindless Thinkers, has worked with musicians such as Earl Slick and Carlos Alomar, has opened for Sheryl Crow, toured Europe and has released numerous albums and singles both...

In this special episode, Kevin is joined, once again, by co-host John Paulsen. Today's album wrap up episode covers the Heartbreakers' fourth album, Hard Promises. In the episode, the guys both picked their top three songs from the album and both (once again) picked the two heavyweight tracks from the album, but different third tracks. You can find a combined "EP" on Spotify here: https://spoti.fi...

Today’s episode is a fantastic conversation I had with Janet Lovell back in early July. Janet will be well known to members of the Tom Petty Nation and it was great to spend a couple of hours in her (virtual) company and geek out over Tom and his music. Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show. Follow: https://linktr.ee/tompettypro...

Hello my fine friends! Today we're taking about the final track from 1981's Hard Promises, the beautiful You Can Still Change Your Mind. If you want to listen to the track before we dig in, check out the official video: https://youtu.be/k5XHrJ1A0WI If you want to hear the 2018 remastered version that was included on the An American Treasure compilation, you can find that here: https://youtu.be/HNY...

Hello my fine friends! Today we're taking about the penultimate track from Hard Promises, The Criminal Kind. If you want to listen to the track before we dig in, check out the official video: https://youtu.be/qWjN4VVVxx4 Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show. Follow: https://linktr.ee/tompettyproject Listen: https://pod.link/158...

Hello my fine friends! Today we're taking about the best song any band never released as a single; Insider. If you want to listen to the track before we dig in, check out the official video: https://youtu.be/x7bjXWzms5I If you want to watch Tom play Insider on acoustic for the Heartbreakers, check out this great clip: https://youtu.be/JXaKYn8qHEQ?t=96 If you want to watch Tom and Stevie perform th...

Hello my fine friends! Today we're continuing with side two of Hard Promises by talking about the second track from this side of the album, A Thing About You. If you want to listen to the track before we dig in, check out the official video: https://youtu.be/_ZquPbwmDa4 I mentioned a great live version of this track where you can see the on-stage interaction between Mike and Tom. You can watch tha...

Hello my fine friends! Today we're getting back into Hard Promises by talking about the wonderful second track from side two of the album, Letting You Go. If you want to listen to the track before we dig in, check out the official video: https://youtu.be/UzIG1KYBTDs If you want to see Tom laying down his actual vocals, check out this clip from the 1993 "Back Home" documentary: https://youtu.be/JXa...

In this special episode, Kevin is joined, once again, by co-host John Paulsen. Today's album wrap up episode covers Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers' second album, You're Gonna Get It!. In the episode, the guys both picked their top three songs from the album and both (once again) picked the two heavyweight tracks from the album, but different third tracks. You can find combined "EP" on Spotify her...

In this special episode, Kevin is joined, once again, by co-host John Paulsen. Today's album wrap up episode covers 1976's debut album, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. In the episode, the guys both picked their top three songs from the album and both picked the two heavyweight tracks from the album, but different third tracks. You can find combined "EP" on Spotify here: https://spoti.fi/3xRybkx ....

Hello my fine friends! I spent a lot of time in my formative early 20s on the Kings Road in Chelsea/Fulham so this was a fun episode to record. I hope you'll forgive a little overindulgance on my part in giving you some personal background. Don't worry, there's still plenty of deep diving into the song! If you want to listen to the track before we dig in, check out the official video: https://yout...

Hello my fine friends! I hope you're ready for Something Big. I love this song and it's one I've really been looking forward to digging into. I wanted again to wish a very happy birthday to the founder and guiding hand of the Tom Petty Nation, which basically replaced the Tom Petty fanclub. Keith does a superb job steering the group and sharing his love of Tom and Tom's music. If you want to liste...

Hey folks, thanks for downloading this podcast. It means the world to me that people actually sit and listen to me ramble on about my favourite artist. Actually, it's a bit weird now that I come to think about it! What are you doing with your lives!!! Go outside! Smell a flower! High Five an Anglican minister (they could use cheering up)!!! But once you've done those things, come back and listen t...

Welcome back to Season Four of The Tom Petty Project podcast. Thanks so much for staying with my on this journey, or, if you're just finding this ridiculous vanity project, I welcome you with open arms! Today's episode covers the second track from Hard Promises; A Woman In Love (It's Not Me). If you want to listen to the track before we dig in, check out the official video: https://youtu.be/fKDYEr...