Let The Day Begin...Let The Day Start!: Day 357 - Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers

Another favourite Compilation of mine is the Greatest Hits from Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers.

I have spotlighted a number of Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers and Tom Petty Solo albums throughout the year: Southern Accents (March), Full Moon Fever (April), Into The Great Wide Open (July), Long After Dark and the Debut album Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers (November). So it seems fitting to include a Greatest Hits compilation to crown it off.

A 2008 reissue of the album saw the original American tracklisting restored which meant that Anything That's Rock and Roll was not included and for some strange reason they replaced Something In The Air with Stop Draggin' My Heart Around - a great single that was included on Stevie Nicks' album Bella Donna. 

Amazingly Greatest Hits is the most successful album from Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers. It has sold more than 12 million copies in the USA alone (which means it has received the Diamond Certification).

Now there's always the debate about what should have been included and what should have been left off. Let's start with the fact that there are three solo singles by Tom Petty from the album Full Moon Fever. A few Heartbreakers appeared on the album but only Mike Campbell plays on every track as well as contributing to a couple of songs (Love Is A Long Road and Runnin' Down A Dream). Howie Epstein did backing vocals for I Won't Back Down and Love Is A Long Road and Benmont Tench plays piano on The Apartment Song. So for the fact that two Heartbreakers appear on the three singles included I guess that means it's okay to have them here.

What's missing? Well for a start there's A Woman In Love (It's Not Me) from the Hard Promises album (it did chart but peaked at #79), Change of Heart ( from Long After Dark which was a biggish hit #21) and Rebels (from Southern Accent which was a minor hit - #74). There are no tracks from the Pack Up The Plantation - Live! album, so the cover of Needles and Pins with Stevie Nicks didn't make the cut (the single reached #37 in the US). There are no singles from the Let Me Up (I've Had Enough) album which included a #18 placed song Jammin' Me.

These issues were somewhat rectified when the Anthology - Through The Years compilation was released in 2000 as a 34 track 2 CD set. That's the one I would heartily recommend on getting (or better still, the Playback 6CD Box Set that came out in 1995).

The album was reissued as a Double Album on Vinyl in 2016 with the original American Tracklisting (but with the 2008 reissue artwork) and also on CD.

Greatest Hits - Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers

MCA

Released November 1993

US Chart #5

UK Chart #10

(UK Release with Bonus Track of Anything That's Rock 'n' Roll)

 Links Include Live and TV performance Versions
1 American Girl    
2 Breakdown    
3 Anything That's Rock 'n' Roll    
4 Listen To Her Heart    
5 I Need To Know    
6 Refugee    
7 Don't Do Me Like That    
8 Even The Losers    
9 Here Comes My Girl    
10 The Waiting    
11 You Got Lucky    
12 Don't Come Around Here No More    
13 I Won't Back Down    
14 Runnin' Down A Dream    
15 Free Fallin'    
16 Learning To Fly    
17 Into The Great Wide Open    
18 Mary Jane's Last Dance    
19 Something In The Air

(2008 Reissue Cover)

Notes On Singles

Breakdown / The Wild One, Forever
January 1977
US Single
Did Not Chart 

Was Reissued in the US
Breakdown / Fooled Again (I Don't Like It)
October 1977
US Chart #40

Anything That's Rock 'N' Roll / Fooled Again (I Don't Like It)
UK Single
February 1977
UK Chart #36

American Girl / Luna
May 1977 (US)*
July 1977 (UK)
UK Chart #40

 

* US Release had Fooled Again (I Don't Like It) on the B-Side

(UK 7" Picture Sleeve)

I Need To Know / No Second Thoughts
June 1978
US Chart #41

(German 7" Picture Sleeve)

Listen To Her Heart / I Don't Know What To Say To You
August 1978 (US)
October 1978 (UK)
US Chart #59

Don't Do Me Like That / Casa Dega
November 1979
US Chart #10

(UK 7" Picture Sleeve)

Refugee / It's Rainin' Again
January 1980 (US)
February 1980 (UK)
US Chart #15

 Here Comes My Girl / Louisiana Rain
April 1980 (US)
US Chart #59

The Waiting / Nightwatchman
April 1981
US Chart #19

You Got Lucky / Between Two Worlds
    Released: October 22, 1982

US Chart #20

Don't Come Around Here No More / Trailer
March 1985
US Chart #13
UK Chart #50

 I Won't Back Down / The Apartment Song
    Released: April 1989
US Chart #12
UK Chart #28


Runnin' Down a Dream / Alright For Now
    Released: July 29, 1989
US Chart #23
UK Chart #55
 

Free Fallin' / Love Is A Long Road
    Released: October 27, 1989
US Chart #7
UK Chart #59
  

Learning To Fly / Too Good To Be True
April 1991
US Chart #28
UK Chart #46

Into The Great Wide Open / Makin' Some Noise
September 1991
US Chart #92

Two New Tracks on the album were both released as 7" and  CD Singles

Something In The Air / The Waiting
October 1993
UK Chart #53

UK CD Single 1
1 Mary Jane's Last Dance
2 Make That Connection    
3 King's Highway (Live)    
4 Take Out Some Insurance (Live)

UK CD Single 2
1 Mary Jane's Last Dance
2 Casa Dega    
3 Gator On The Lawn    
4 Down The Line

December 1993
US Chart #14
UK Chart #52

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Let The Day Begin...Let The Day Start!