The Tom Petty Project

I’m expanding the non-Petty aspect of the podcast just a little by looking for conversations with artists who might not be strongly or directly influenced by Tom’s music but share some characteristic or characteristics with his writing or approach to the art of songwriting.This week’s guest, Amelia McLean, is a Nashville-based songwriter who is preparing to release her debut album, possibly later this year. We chatted for a little over two hours and listened to parts of some of the songs from that new album, which she very generously shared with me ahead of our conversation. It takes a lot to surprise me in music these days because, as the Barenaked Ladies once wrote, “It’s all been done”. So how refreshing to find an artist that has something original to say and has found the perfect collaborators to bring her artistic vision to life.Amelia uses her own life experiences, some of which have been hugely unpleasant, to create these beautiful, sometimes haunted, sometimes heartbreaking, always powerful sonic oil paintings which you can stand back and admire as a whole or get close to and really admire the detail and precision of a master at their craft. There is a depth, humanity, and reslience that underlies her work, making it a deeply affecting journey that she brings us on, as she tells of something of her life and herself through her songs.You can find Amelia on social media at the following places:Instagram: https://instagram.com/ameliamcleanmusicThreads: https://www.threads.net/@ameliamcleanmusicYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUDwyDGK6iHsqkO_EN4dC4AYou can also support Amelia on her Patreon account, here: https://patreon.com/AmeliaMcLeanDon't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.FB: https://facebook.com/thetompettyprojectTW: https://twitter.com/TomPettyProjectIG: https://instagram.com/thetompettyprojectYT: https://youtube.com/@thetompettyprojectTH: https://www.threads.net/@thetompettyprojectAll music other than the piano version of Wildflowers, including the theme song, provided by my very best friend Randy Woods. Check him out at https://www.randywoodsband.comThe 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.Producer: Kevin BrownExecutive Producer: Paul Roberts

Tom explains to author Paul Zollo in “Conversations with Tom Petty” that “I remember us tracking it all night and being really frustrated that it wasn’t working. Then they came on the idea of having us all walk out, and “Play this like we’ve never heard it before. I’m just gonna start playing, and whatever we fall in on, we’ll go that way.” And that was the take. It worked. I started to diddle on guitar, we went around a couple of times, Ferrone dropped in on that beat, and bang, we had it. But we would have never had that feel if we hadn’t have done that.” And this is one of the many reasons why Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers are one of the all time great rock n roll bands. They can just improvise and come up with exactly the right feel for a song as epic in scale and emotional weight as Crawling Back to You. Tom concludes by saying “That’s the value of a live group in the studio. I’d have never come up with that without them.”Today’s guest conversation sees the return of the very first Tom Petty fan I spoke to on the podcast, the wonderful, encyclopedically knowledgeable Dallas Heliker! We dug into the alternate take, live takes and discussed differences, strengths and… well there are no weaknesses in this song are there!? We also dug pretty heavily into the lyrics of this one and the differences between the lyrics in the demo version and the final version. It was fantastic to reconnect with Dallas and this certainly won’t be the last time he’ll appear on the show.You can find the song here: https://youtu.be/QqAEigytf7IHere is the alternate version: https://youtu.be/5ccIrg3AWWMHere's the home demo recording: https://youtu.be/BbiAeqH4TsAAnd here's the fantastic PBS special version: https://youtu.be/OtbzIDnEGsIDon't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyprojectTwitter: https://twitter.com/TomPettyProjectInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyprojectAll music, including the theme song, provided by my very best friend Randy Woods. Check him out at https://www.randywoodsband.comThe 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 BrownExecutive Producer: Paul Roberts

Today’s episode is part two of my wonderful conversation I had with Nora Hayward Olsen; her answers to my ten questions. Nora hit me with a new artist I'd never heard of and was most apologetic about her decision in the choice between Mudcrutch and The Traveling Wilburys! Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyprojectTwitter: https://twitter.com/TomPettyProjectInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyprojectAll music other than the piano version of Wildflowers, including the theme song, provided by my very best friend Randy Woods. Check him out at https://www.randywoodsband.comThe 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 BrownExecutive Producer: Paul Roberts

Today’s episode is an excellent conversation I had with Tom Petty superfan Nora Hayward Olsen. Nora comments frequently on the podcast socials and was every bit is personable, warm, and funny in person as she is online. Nora was at one of the Fillmore show where the band played Heartbreakers Beach Party which ended up on live album release. That song was only ever performed six times live, so it’s super cool that Nora was there for that one! We chatted about that and about how Tom’s music has changed for her over the years and all sorts of things in between! Sit back, relax, and enjoy, hopefully as much as I did, my conversation with the wonderful Nora Hayward Olsen!Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyprojectTwitter: https://twitter.com/TomPettyProjectInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyprojectAll music other than the piano version of Wildflowers, including the theme song, provided by my very best friend Randy Woods. Check him out at https://www.randywoodsband.comThe 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 BrownExecutive Producer: Paul Roberts

In the liner notes for Wildflowers and all the Rest, Producer Rick Rubin says “So many of these songs have a sloppy soulful groove that really defined this album. The goal was not to make a perfect album but to capture the sound of a band on a really good night recorded quickly with all of the quirks and imperfections that come with it. It took us about two years to get that spontaneous sound!” Today’s guest conversation is the second half of the chat I had with the brilliant and incredibly lovely Tim Bulman, AKA Judge Timbers. And if you haven’t checked out Tim’s latest song, the 31st of June, yet, you really need to! I hope you enjoyed our chat that came out a couple of weeks ago and I really hope you’ve checked out Tim’s brilliant Youtube channel where he goes through the ins and outs of so many of Tom’s songs. As he said during our chat, he doesn’t feel the need to put up a tutorial on Free Fallin’. Plenty of other people have that one covered, but it’s so cool to stumble across someone showing you the mad chord progression in House in the Woods! Sit back, relax, and enjoy my chat with Tim Bulman about this week’s song!You can find the song here: https://youtu.be/wGFL7KX47R4Here is the alternate version: https://youtu.be/5FYqHsDwnQkCheck out Tim's excellent YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@judgetimbers588Also, check out Tim's fantastic original composition, The 31st of June: https://youtu.be/di5MmW4njrEDon't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyprojectTwitter: https://twitter.com/TomPettyProjectInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyprojectAll music, including the theme song, provided by my very best friend Randy Woods. Check him out at https://www.randywoodsband.comThe 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 BrownExecutive Producer: Paul Roberts

Today’s bonus episode is a truly awesome conversation I had with Ivan Anderson, the genius mind behind @CyberattackWorld . We talked about his new collaboration EP with @teddigoldmusic  that is out now and chatted about his next Cyberattack album too.Then we got into a really free-wheeling conversation about music and creativity that ventured into all kinds of areas, from Van Halen, to Queen, to Guns n Roses and the enigmatic contradiction that is Axl Rose. Any chance to fanboy to Ivan I grab with both hands and this is one of the most interesting, and gloriously unfocused conversations I’ve had on the show. I left it longer because there were multiple times during editing that I was laughing again at things he said. Sit back, relax, and enjoy my discussion with Ivan Anderson!Check out Ivan's website here, where you can find links to everything he has going on: https://cyberattack.worldAnd check out his fantastic Youtube channel here; @CyberattackWorld  You can find the new EP from @teddigoldmusic  and Cyberattack here: https://open.spotify.com/album/2q38ge52fGNgQup1WaOJAd?si=drfUfn7lRYmb3Lz0z2X0BwLastly, you can watch Ivan explaining how Mortal Kombat influenced him so much here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzoOFQm69IYNOTE: There is some profanity during my conversation with Ivan. It's not gratuitous, but it's there!Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyprojectTwitter: https://twitter.com/TomPettyProjectInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyprojectAll music other than the piano version of Wildflowers, including the theme song, provided by my very best friend Randy Woods. Check him out at https://www.randywoodsband.comThe 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 BrownExecutive Producer: Paul Roberts

I always consider this one of Tom’s great ambiguous lyrics. Jaan Uhelzski writes that “Petty seems to be nervously taking stock, weighing options, reminiscing, trying to keep his incipient anxiety at bay and trying to hold on to a few last remnants of his former life.” and Benmont Tench says “It's another song that sounds like it's all about whoever, but these songs were about him." and whatever meaning you layer on afterwards, I do love that Mike Campbell makes the following observation on this song; “You reflect on it after the fact, and maybe you can read things into it, but in the moment you're just putting your nose to the grindstone."Today’s guest conversation sees the return of the uniquely brilliant and inventive musician and Youtuber, Ivan Anderson. I have an Ivan Anderson Returns bonus episode coming out this Friday for you too, as we had a massively free-ranging conversation about his recent collaboration and upcoming new album, as well as touching on Guns n Roses, Van Halen, Queen, and all kinds of other bands and topics. I hope you enjoy my conversation with the mind behind the genius of the Cyberattack Extended Universe!Check out Ivan's website here, where you can find links to everything he has going on: https://cyberattack.worldNOTE: There is some profanity during my conversation with Ivan.Listen to the song: Album version: https://youtu.be/53yxM3a1EccHome Demo recording: https://youtu.be/LwS38kER6VsLive: https://youtu.be/Aa0cYMCGqZIDon't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyprojectTwitter: https://twitter.com/TomPettyProjectInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyprojectAll music other than the piano version of Wildflowers, including the theme song, provided by my very best friend Randy Woods. Check him out at https://www.randywoodsband.comThe 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 BrownExecutive Producer: Paul Roberts

Today's episode is my ten questions with Tim Bulman. We talk about sick parts, Tim is playing and singing a song from Wildflowers as his pick, and yet another guest finds a way to describe Tom Petty in three words that is unique, personal, and wonderfully eloquent. There's plenty of Beatles chat in this one too, which never upsets me as I'm a huge fan, with Tim comparing Wildflowers, in a very specific way, to the White Album.Check out Tim's excellent YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@judgetimbers588Also, check out Tim's fantastic new song, "The 31st of June": https://youtu.be/di5MmW4njrEDon't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyprojectTwitter: https://twitter.com/TomPettyProjectInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCt6BLRWuuAR43zHpNKIirOwAll music, including the theme song, provided by my very best friend Randy Woods. Check him out at https://www.randywoodsband.comThe 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. If you want merchandise for this podcast, please check out https://www.teepublic.com/user/eight-ninety-eight/albums/245634-tom-petty-projectA last very special thanks to Paul Zollo and Warren Zanes without whose books, Conversations with Tom Petty and Petty: The Biography, this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research.