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Why is Tom Petty so revered?

#81
Why is Tom Petty so revered?

Simple. He probably has the most devoted and loyal fanbase in music today. His fans are such a big part of his shows, that they have earned themselves a nickname: Pettyphiles.

With as many albums as this guy has sold over the years, there are most certainly millions of Pettyphiles in the US alone. I'm sure there are just as many Pettyphiles overseas.

Hell, if you look at the number of posts in this thread alone, it would suffice to say that TB is full of Pettyphiles too!
 
#82
Because he:
1. took lessons from Don Felder
2. does a neat Neil Young imitation (for the last 15 years)
3. backed up Dylan
4. friends with legends (Wilburys)
5. and, oh yeah, has a great band

I don't think he's that highly revered but he's well liked and seems humble. I've seen a ton of bands and none of them ever covered a Petty song but that could be a Jersey/NYC thing Bands I've been in have covered Neil Young, Dylan and Bruce but never Petty. I think at some point it seemed he an Jeff Lynne were more about networking with living legends. There was definitely many good musicians from Florida a little before his time. Stephen Stills & Bernie Leadon.
 
#83
john_martin_sai said:
Coming from Jersey, I saw him as kind of a Southern Springsteen. Both influenced by Americana, early rock and Dylan. Back in the age of new wave frills, trendiness, MTV visuals, and gimmicks, they had the 'common man' vibe. The people who get them, saw them coming up. But something changes when the up-and-coming musician becomes a mega-millionaire.
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Nicely stated. I came at Petty from the other side, sort of. Growing up in Florida and intensely interested in Southern rock/pop/R&B and the idea of being Southern,* I always thought of Petty as my own personal Bruce. As in, I respected Bruce's music and hard work, and was blown away by the E Street (Orange Bowl, mid '80s). But I never really connected with his songs. I was with TP all the way. For me, Bruce was kinda' like the Northern Petty.

*despite the fact that Petty basically went SoCal right at the start of his recording career.
 
#88
I connect more with Petty than Springsteen as well. I don't "revere" either, but they are great examples of straight up rock n' roll with great stories to go with the music. My introduction to Petty began when, in the 2nd grade, we finally got cable tv (big deal back then) and I found MTV. First video I ever saw- "You Got Lucky". It was so cool- the road warrior-esque setting, the far out keyboards, the eerie guitar. Also, "American Girl" is about as pure a rock song as they come- I have never tired of listening to it.

All that said, I never came across anybody who said he was their "favorite" band until later in life- a friend of my wife's from, you guessed it, Florida. It struck me as odd at the time (and still does a bit) that anyone would consider him the "best" rock act around, but if everyone liked the same stuff life would be pretty boring. Still, Tom can write a great song that guys and girls can relate to like it's nobody's business. I guess I like him because, while he's kinda "pop" (which I generally don't like), he's got tremendous integrity and a big ol' catalogue of fun songs.
 
#90
elgecko said:
Good point. I've seen Petty a couple of times and his concerts are essentially gigantic "sing alongs". The only artist I've seen that even comes close was The Eagles.
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I take it from this that you have never seen Jimmy Buffet live.
Some shows he practically calls out the song name and the audience performs it while he kind of fills in to keep things moving.
 
#95
Rickett Customs said:
Tom does alright for himself. OTOH, I can't stand the traveling wilburys........
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Another example of the "different strokes" applicability. I thoroughly enjoyed the Wilburys, and wish things would have worked out so that they could have put out more material. All of them were quite talented, and they'd trade off lead vocals (which kept it from being boring or monotonous). Of course I wasn't wild about all their songs, but the ones I liked, I liked a lot. And they all seemed to be having a lot of fun.

Sorry for the derail...
 
#97
having seen buffet i can say it was the worst sing along i have ever witnessed. i think i only knew 2 or so songs at most. i know the Petty show i saw was 100% a greatest hits show where EVERYONE knew every lyric. & i don't own a single album by either so i don't see the buffet comparison.
 
#98
Floridabwoy said:
True Story....

American girl is written about a girl that jumped out of Beaty Towers on the University of Florida campus. You cannot open the windows anymore
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Tom Petty disagrees with you. Here is a quote when asked about the story's origin.

When asked directly about the story in the book Conversations With Tom Petty, Petty responded:


"Urban legend. It's become a huge urban myth down in Florida. That's just not at all true. The song has nothing to do with that. But that story really gets around... They've really got the whole story. I've even seen magazine articles about that story. 'Is it true or isn't it true?' They could have just called me and found out it wasn't true"
 
#100
I only have two Petty albums and I'm not a huge fan, but "Refugee" has got to be one of the greatest rock tunes of all time. Lyrics are direct but not in your face, tell a story, set a vibe and have some degree of universal application such that it's easy to get pulled into the tune. The band parts are phenomenal - everything in exactly the right place, superb note and tonal choices (Benmont Tench's organ part is simple and perfect), folks don't get in each other's way and there is a collective sense of power...like a big Detroit car that cruises with authority and has lot's more up it's sleeve but does not need to push to make its point.

Several rock bands have impressed me over the years as consistently structuring killer parts for the good of the tune and the collective whole, even on tunes that aren't that great. I'd put Midnight Oil and the Heartbreakers at the top of that list, although I must confess I am not current with respect to Petty's recent work.
 

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