“Some friends of mine and me stayed up all through the night, Rockin' pretty steady 'til the sky went light And didn't go to bed, Didn't go to work. I picked up the telephone, Told the boss he was a jerk”. Come on. You don’t find better rock n roll lyrics than those. They come from a guy who’s done the time. Worked crummy jobs, worked crummy bars playing to uninteresting punters who want to see the strippers. He’s lived this life and the way he’s singing about it, it’s real. Sure, it’s also a pastiche at the same time, but it’s one rooted in reality for him. It’s Chuck Berry with more distortion. It’s Buddy Holly with even more swagger. It’s a song that Elvis couldn’t have ever sung because he was too pretty - but a 26 year old Tom Petty with a chip on his shoulder right next to his guitar strap, challenging the audience and jack-in-a-boxing his way around the stage? Well it just works doesn’t it! Mike Campbell’s simple rockabilly solo just steps all that pent up energy and ambition and fires it all upwards into the night sky, letting it rain down sonically on you. It’s all about the attitude and it's all about the hedonistic intent.

Song : https://youtu.be/diFd917grI8

REFERENCED IN THE EPISODE

Anything That's Rock n Roll (Live in Boston, '78): https://youtu.be/kR8LMqn8_68

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All music, including the theme song, provided by my very best friend Randy Woods. Check him out at https://www.randywoodsband.com

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way and when you’re looking for Tom’s music, please visit the official YouTube channel first and go to tompetty.com for official merchandise.

A last very special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research. And further thanks to Warren Zanes for his outstanding book "Petty, the Biography".

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producers: Paul Roberts, Steve Ursell

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Anything That's Rock 'n' Roll (Revisited)