While we wait for the decisions on the final roster to come out of 501 Broadway…
I am going to go off topic today, as I often do when one of my musical heroes pass… and a big one died yesterday. The news of the death of Tom Petty has had me reeling a bit since we first heard the news, then heard it was premature, then finally heard that he passed away last night. The only way I could deal with it was to roll down the windows and blast American Girl like I did as a teenager... it helped.
Tom Petty was an original, you never heard anyone refer to another singer or artist as a “Tom Petty Soundalike… … he was all by himself there. I remember the first time I heard songs like "Breakdown" and "American Girl" ... the sound so startlingly fresh for the mid 70's that it blasted through all the insipid disco/pop that dominated the time… there was some good rock, don’t get me wrong, but Petty had a subversive feel to his music. Razor sharp lyrics accompanied by insanely catchy hooks marked with expert, totally on-point musicianship. His first two albums were a big secret except on album rock stations (WMMR and WYSP in Philly) but didn’t really break on the pop charts… until 1979.
Damn the Torpedoes... the soundtrack to my freshman year in college... Refugee, Don’t Do Me Like That, Here Comes My Girl, Even the Losers… Petty was a dominant force on the radio all through late 79 and early 1980.
Hard Promises, Southern Accents, Let Me Up (I’ve had Enough)... the soundtrack to my early to mid 20's, only now, we get to see a different side of Petty… the visual side. His videos on MTV were groundbreaking. Has anyone ever fit the part of the Mad Hatter more than Tom Petty? “Jammin’ Me… just hit me right at the right time, fitting the fits and turns I was going through in my life in ’87… apparently so was Petty, because that album marked a change for Tom, he wanted to shake loose of the Heartbreakers and do some different things.
You could definitely define this as different, The Traveling Wilburys, a rather interesting supergroup founded by George Harrison. The band initially came together for one song, but “Handle With Care… drove the group to do an entire album. Driving the revival of Roy Orbison’s career just before his death, a group featuring an early rock legend, a folk hero, a member of the most popular band ever, the return of ELO’s founder and Petty. A bizarre combination that yielded some really good music.
Petty then did his first solo album… even though some of the Heartbreakers assisted as side men. Full Moon Fever was a smash… Jeff Lynne’s production (along with Mike Campbell and Petty) brought out different sides of the musician, and Petty was richly rewarded for the effort. Classics like I Won’t Back Down, Free Fallin’ and Runnin’ Down a Dream… all driving creative, inventive videos on MTV.
The Heartbreakers came back together for Into the Great Wide Open, and the influences of Tom’s solo work was evident… As a young father, Learning to Fly and the title cut reverberated with me as did the Wildflowers album a few years later, a Rick Rubin produced classic featuring one of my favorite Petty songs, You Wreck Me.
I kinda fell off the Petty train for a little while, life does that... but then a rediscovery... when Petty did the Super Bowl halftime show on 2008… a spirited performance that sent me to my archives and listening again. Then in 201o, the release of Mojo and a tour. The stop in Nashville allowed me to introduce my daughter to the Heartbreakers. We saw him with Crosby Stills & Nash opening, the irony of my teenage daughter discovering his music at the same age I did was not lost on me. I watched her fall in love with his music from bar one... just like her dad did.
And now, as it turns out, we got to see him one final time just a few months ago, seeing him again on his 40th anniversary tour, again with my little girl, only this time, my little girl is building her own life, married to a great guy, developing a promising career. The fact that my daughter and I can share those two concert experiences is a precious gift, one that I will always treaure.
It is the power of music. A unifying force in such divided times.
Thanks for providing us with so much amazing music Tom... please rest well... and know that your music will live on for the many generations that heard you, saw you and were impacted by you.
Amazing how a musician like Tom Petty can help you mark mileposts of your life... with one helluva soundtrack...
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Random Notes
- The vote for the next anthem singer for your Predators is now up on the Preds website. You can watch the four performances and vote for your favorite… voting ends this Thursday at 5pm central.
- The Opening Night roster is due by 5pm today.
- Jaromir Jagr lives!!! Good signing from Calgary at a solid price. Jagr will be a really good influence on the Flames’ youngsters.
- Opening night is tomorrow night! We will have our annual preview show on SlapShot Radio at 7pm on 102.5 the Game.
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------------------------------------- SlapShot Radio has an exciting season in store for our tenth anniversary season. As the longest running hockey show in the region, SSR feeds hockey fans what they crave… intelligent, fun, entertaining talk about their favorite sport and we do it from the opening of training camp all the way through UFA day… the only local hockey show that does that.
We are on every Wednesday night at 7pm on the Predators flagship station, 102.5 the Game. Our new co-hosts are ex-Preds Dan Keczmer and JP Dumont bringing a true insiders perspective to the show. This week is our annual season preview show featuring Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek and The Athletic’s Craig Custance.
We have been delivering great hockey talk to the most energetic and engaged fans in radio and advertising with us drives results at a reasonable price. Just ask our sponsors… including day one sponsor Dr. Jane Bacon at Hermitage Family and Cosmetic Dentistry … make your appointment at (615) 872-7762, Mark Lonsway at ReMax Fine Homes, call him for all your real estate needs at (615) 207-7799, and TurfMasters… check out their great service at TurfMasters.com.
We are also welcoming a new sponsor to the SlapShot Radio family… The Crag… Nashville’s premiere location for indoor rock climbing. Newton Dominey and his awesome crew have a great location in Cool Springs and they are opening a new location in South Nashville at the corner of Old Hickory Blvd and Nolensville Rd. Check out their website at ILoveRockCLimbing.com If you’ve never done it before… you need to try, they specialize on helping first timers.
Advertisers… reach out to me in order to access our activated listener base though great preseason advertising deals available for our tenth season when you email me at paul(@)slapshotradio(dot)com
You can also keep up with all the goings on with SlapShot Radio by following the show on Twitter @SlapShotRadio1 … Also... make sure to "like" SlapShot Radio on Facebook... here's the link.
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