Thomas Earl Petty is a musician who preferred rock music. He was born in Gainsville, Florida. This musician went down in history as a performer of classic rock. Critics called Thomas the heir to the most famous artists who worked in this genre.
The childhood and youth of the artist Thomas Earl Petty
In the early years of his life, little Thomas did not even imagine that music would become the meaning of his whole life. The artist has repeatedly said that his passion for music appeared thanks to his uncle. In 1961, a relative of the future musician took part in the filming of Follow the Dream. Elvis Presley was supposed to be on set.
Uncle could not resist and took his little nephew with him to the shooting. He wanted the boy to see a famous artist. After this meeting, Thomas caught fire with music. His passion is rock and roll. This is not surprising. In those years in America, this musical genre was very popular.
But alas, the boy did not even think that he would become a famous musician. I didn’t even think about big successes. The revolution in his life took place in 1964. The boy watched the E. Sullivan show. On February 9, the great band The Beatles was invited to the studio. At the end of the transmission, Tom was delighted. He was deeply impressed. Since then, the guy began to get involved in playing the guitar.
D. Falder becomes the first teacher. It is worth noting that this musician will later join the group The Eagles.
At this time, the young man begins to understand that it is necessary to develop his potential not in a small town. Accordingly, the decision to move to Los Angeles becomes obvious.
Wanderings of Thomas Earl Petty in different groups
Thomas gathered his first group of friends. At first, the team was called The Epics. Somewhat later, it was decided to rename the group. This is how Mudcrutch was born. But alas, work in Los Angeles did not bring success. Accordingly, the friends decided to disperse.
In The Heartbreakers
In 1976, the musician became the creator of The Heartbreakers. Surprisingly, the guys were able to raise money for the release of the first disc "Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers". In fact, this disc includes simple rock compositions. In those years, such songs were very popular. The guys themselves did not expect that this simple material would become popular.
Inspired, the team started working on the next disc. It wasn't long before fans were able to appreciate the quality of "You're Gonna Get It!" The record becomes mega famous in America and England. Hits were constantly included in the TOPs of the charts.
The next disc "Damn the Torpedoes" was released in 1979. He brought the team a serious commercial success. In total, more than 2 million copies have been sold.
Critics felt that Thomas's approach to creativity is very similar to the principles of the work of Dylan and Young. In addition, he was repeatedly compared with Springsteen. Such statements appeared for a reason. In the 80s, Petty collaborated with Dylan. Thomas' group acted as accompanists of a famous artist. In addition, together with this artist, the musician records several tracks. During this period, new motives and notes appear in music.
In the Traveling Wilburys team
Thanks to his acquaintance with Bob, the young man expands his circle of acquaintances among famous rock performers. He was eventually called to Traveling Wilburys. At that time, the band included, in addition to Dylan, such musicians as Orbison, Lynn and Harrison.
At this time, the guys release a large number of well-known compositions. One of the iconic of that time is "End of the Line". But the work in the team did not bring satisfaction to the musician. This led to the fact that in 1989 Petty began to develop solo work.
Artist solo swimming
During independent creativity, he records 3 records. The very first disc becomes "Full Moon Fever". Already in the 90th he began to cooperate with R. Rubin. While working with this producer, Thomas releases "Wildflowers". After that, an interesting turn is observed in the work of the musician. He continues to work, but the last solo record appears in 2006. It's called "Highway Companion".
At the same time, the musician collaborates with The Heartbreakers. Working with this team has brought considerable success. Together with the guys, Petty becomes the first rock performer who began to record videos for his compositions. Famous actors starred in the clips.
D. Depp was noted in his work on the composition "Into The Great Open". F. Dunaway acted as his partner. The corpse in the video for "Mary Jane's Last Dance" was played by K. Basinger.
The group continued to tour and create unique compositions. The 12th disc "Hypnotic Eye" was able to rise to the 1st line of the Billboard 200 rating. This disc was released in 2014. After 3 years, the team organizes a big tour of America.
Personal life and death of famous rocker Tom Petty
All experiences on the love front were reflected in his work. The man loved his first wife very much. Separation from Jane Beno introduced the musician into a severe depression. Colleagues in the workshop were worried about Thomas. They were afraid that he would start looking for solace in alcohol or drugs.
But Petty was a very strong man. Tom leaves for the outback. Being alone with himself, he was able to rethink all experiences. As a result of this, the lyrical and very deep composition "Echo" was born.
After the appearance of his second wife, Dana York, the musician got a second wind. He enjoyed not only family happiness, but also his work.
In addition, the artist was a harsh critic of rock music. He believed that this direction is in crisis. The fact is that commerce began to have a negative impact on music. She killed the soulfulness and deep richness of the music itself.
In 2017, in the fall, relatives found the musician in their house. Thomas was near death. They called an ambulance. The hospital could not save the great artist. The man passed away surrounded by his loved ones. The musician died due to cardiac arrest and a heart attack. No matter what, his music will sound forever!
