Get ready, Tom Petty fans. It sounds like a special box set collection of the band’s greatest hits is being released soon. Mike Campbell, guitarist of the Heartbreakers, is confirming the release of an album recorded during their famous 1997 residency.
“It’s been mixed [and] I hear it is coming out,” Campbell tells Ultimate Classic Rock.
Taking place at The Fillmore in San Francisco, Tom Petty and his band played 20 one-of-a-kind shows. Campbell looks back fondly on the residency. He says it allowed the band to have more creative control with the setlist.
“I’m really proud of it. It was one of the greatest parts of our career. We were free to not have to play the hits every night. We changed the set list,” he says.
The collection will include the band’s hits, as well as some rare cuts. There may be a Grateful Dead cover thrown in as well.
This will be the band’s first proper release from their Fillmore residency. While select songs from the shows are included in The Live Anthology box set, this one focuses on these major performances. Campbell says it shows what Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers were all about.
“It’s a really good illustration of the Heartbreakers just being spontaneous and in the moment without being too rehearsed. I’m really proud of that.”
Fans are unsure of when the box set will be able for purchase. Until then, keep your eyes peeled and we will keep you updated.
An Unreleased Tom Petty Song
Fans remember Tom Petty for his prolific songwriting. With a catalog full of gems, the artist has sold over 80 million records worldwide.
As a songwriter myself, I know for a fact that many songs never see the light of day. There are also versions of released songs that never make it on the album. For Tom Petty, one track like this is “You Don’t Know How It Feels.” Released on his 1994 album “Wildflowers,” the song is very popular. However, most fans have not heard the home studio version.
It is a personal song on the record, but it feels even more intimate listening to the demo. Fans remember Tom Petty talking about the song with Song Facts. He talks about how radio stations would censor the word “joint.”
“The strangest thing happened. I wrote this song not thinking that it was controversial in any way and I nearly left this song off the album ’til the very end, and we put it on. Imagine my surprise when this song comes on television and they say, ‘Let’s roll another noojh,’ which sounded worse to me than joint. Because, I don’t know if you’ve ever had a noojh, but it sounds really wicked.”
He wished to have given fans more demo versions of the songs.
“That album was really about sound in a big way. I would like to go out there and perform the entire album as it was originally conceived with all of the songs.”
