It’s hard to believe that Tom Petty– of Heartbreakers fame– turns 61 years old today. The skinny blonde rocker who came on to the scene in the ’70’s with hits like “Breakdown” and “American Girl” has come a long way from his roots in Gainesville, Florida.
In celebration of his big 6-1, here are 5 of our fave Tom Petty moments:
$8.98 Debate
Back in 1981, Petty raised all kinds of heck when he protested the rising cost of “superstar” record albums. When MCA wanted to release his “Hard Promises” album at the inflated list price of $9.98, Petty refused to comply-and even threatened to change the album title to “Eight Ninety Eight.” He won his battle in the end, but so did the record company: “Hard Promises” went platinum.
Incidentally, the album cover featured a melancholy Petty in a record store. Check it out here.
Stop Draggin’ Stevie Around
That same year, diehard Petty fans may have been a tad miffed when he teamed up with songbird Stevie Nicks for the duet, “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around.” Why? Because the song was featured on Nicks’ “Bella Donna” album, not on a Petty album. Of course, Nicks lent her voice to a song on “Hard Promises” (“Insider”), so it all evened out. Watch Tom and Stevie’s classic duet here.
Traveling Tom
What do you get when you take Tom Petty and add a Dylan a Harrison and an Orbison? The Traveling Wilbury’s, of course! The all-star band’s “Handle Me With Care” was a surprise hit before Orbison’s sudden death in 1988. You can check out the Wilbury’s hit song here.
Video Killed the Radio Star
Petty has called in some Hollywood favors for some of his greatest music videos: Johnny Depp starred in “Into the Great Wide Open,” while actress Kim Basinger played dead in “Mary Jane’s Last Dance.” But the acting bug even bit Petty! In 1997 he appeared in the Kevin Costner flick, “The Postman.” Check out Petty’s scene with Costner here.
Walk of Famer!
In 1999, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers received a well-deserved star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Its location: The south side of the 7000 block of Hollywood Boulevard. Check out a pic of the Heartbreakers’ star here.