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This page is our attempt to document the touring history (and as many setlists as possible!) of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. 

Much (although not all) of this is taken from the Gigography  previously hosted on Mudcrutch Farm, the Tour History previously hosted on Gone Gator, and various Wayback Machine archives of TomPetty.com. 

If you have a setlist not yet posted here (or notice any mistakes in our existing ones), please contact us .

Early Shows 1976-1977 | You're Gonna Get It! 1978 | Damn The Torpedoes 1979-1980 | Hard Promises 1981 | Long After Dark 1982-1983 | Southern Accents 1985 | True Confessions 1986 (w. Bob Dylan) | Rock 'n' Roll Caravan 1987 (w. Georgia Satellites & Del Fuegos) | Temple in Flames 1987 (w. Bob Dylan & Roger McGuinn) | Strange Behavior Tour 1989 | More Strange Behavior Tour 1990 | Touring the Great Wide Open 1991-1992 | Dogs with Wings 1995 | Fillmore House Band 1997 | Echo Tour 1999 | Way Out West/East Coast Invasion 2001 | The Last DJ 2002 | The Lost Cities Tour 2003 | For The Hell Of It Tour 2005 | Highway Companion / 30th Anniversary Tour 2006 | Mudcrutch 2008 | Summer Tour 2008 | Mojo Tour 2010 | Summer Tour 2012 | Summer Tour 2013 | 2014 Tour | Mudcrutch 2016 |  40th Anniversary Tour 2017

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Tom Petty  

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I was always a dork when it came to music, until about the age of 13. I listened to old R&B and stuff that my mom listened to but then I decided to separate myself into a category of my own musical tastes. Tom Petty was a flame that lit my love for music. There's just something about the sound, the way Petty is able to grab you on the very first note of a song. I remember hearing Last Dance With Mary Jane in the car for the first time. I also remember seeing Tom Petty live for the first time last year and the performance was one of the best I have seen in years. His memorable voice and incredible lyrics have always had me hooked. I can only imagine what it must have been like to see him in his absolute prime, but I can tell you now that his performance was one I can't forget. I fell in love with a man for 35 minutes while "Free Fallin'" played and I slow danced with an absolute stranger. That's the sort of feeling that Petty gives me. There's nothing quite like a road trip without a little "American Girl" in it somewhere. If you love rock and roll, and love good cruisin' music, Petty is the way to go!

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freakin awesome!! plays all the hits and it sounds fantastic! go go go to the show!!! very fun to dance to and i quarentee you will have a good time even if you watch other people enjoying themselves.

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Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers play first ever UK festival set at Isle Of Wight

Legendary rocker plays hit-heavy set on festival's opening night

Revered US rocker Tom Petty and his band The Heartbreakers closed Friday night at Isle Of Wight Festival with a set full of classic hits at the close of a day that saw other acts paying tribute to him. Charlie Fink of Noah And The Whale asked the crowd “Is anyone else sharing my excitement at seeing Tom Petty this evening?” during their early evening set, while Elbow frontman Guy Garvey referred to Petty as a “living legend”.

Opening with 1978 single ‘Listen To Her Heart’, Petty appeared energetic and dapper in a blue suit jacket he later removed to reveal a brocade waistcoat. The rapport between the veteran band members was clear, Petty leading them like a conductor with arm gestures. After following up with ‘You Wreck Me’, Petty thanked the crowd and told them he was pleased to be back in England – the set came as part of the band’s first live dates in the UK for 20 years – before playing the classic ‘I Won’t Back Down’.

As well as hits like ‘Here Comes My Girl’, ‘Don’t Come Around Here No More’, ‘Free Fallin” and ‘Learning To Fly’, the set included a rendition of ‘Handle With Care’ by The Traveling Wilburys, the supergroup Petty formed with Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Roy Orbison and Jeff Lynne.

Jack Henstridge, 21, from Salisbury, said: “He’s amazing. ‘Learning To Fly’ was brilliant. The whole thing was amazing, and when he played that – brilliant. The weather was pretty awful getting here, but this was just awesome. Just forgot all about it, the sun was out, this guy was living life, I was living life. Done.”

Menawhile, Andrew Davie from Newport, South Wales, 25 enthused: “I’m a big fan. He played somewhere in London a few days ago, I know, but before that [it] was a long, long time. ‘Refugee’ I think was my favourite. I’ll be honest, the build up for today seemed a little bit boring and a little bit kind of safe, and they came on and they blew me away.”

Jenny Leigh, 32, from Birmingham, added: “I grew up listening to his music so to finally see him live is a dream. Me and my friends had a group-hug moment when he played ‘Don’t Come Around Here No More’, it was incredible.”

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Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers played:

‘Listen To Her Heart’ ‘You Wreck Me’ ‘I Won’t Back Down’ ‘Here Comes My Girl’ ‘Handle With Care’ ‘Good Enough’ ‘Oh Well’ ‘Something Big’ ‘Don’t Come Around Here No More’ ‘Free Fallin” ‘It’s Good To Be King’ ‘Something Good Coming’ ‘Learning To Fly’ ‘Yer So Bad’ ‘I Shoulda Known It’ ‘Refugee’ ‘Runnin’ Down A Dream’ ‘Mary Jane’s Last Dance’ ‘American Girl’

Other acts to play earlier in the day, meanwhile, included Noah And The Whale , Lana Del Rey and Elbow .

Next up on the main stage was Example . After opening with ‘Stay Awake’ and ‘See The Sea’, he worked the crowd up, asking “Where’s the fucking lunatics at?”. “What rain, what mud, what traffic?” he demanded mid-set. “If you’re here to see another band and not me that’s fair enough, let’s all try and enjoy ourselves.” Circle pits formed in the crowd on Example’s request during ‘Playing In The Shadows’ and he seemed pleased with the results, beaming “How fun is this?” during a euphoric ‘Watch The Sun Come Up’.

During ‘Video Games’ Del Rey gave the crowd a wide smile after the “and baby, now you do” line before ending on an impressive vocal flourish. “Fuck yes, that was so good,” she enthused, before closing her set with ‘National Anthem’.

Elbow , who played underneath Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers on the main stage, put on an emotive show, with frontman Guy Garvey telling the crowd: “The light’s beginning to fade, the sun is going down – a whole world of magic and mysticism is opening up for you lot.” T

The festival continues today with performances from Pearl Jam, Biffy Clyro and Magnetic Man. You can watch NME ‘s video guide to the seven must-see bands at Isle Of Wight festival by scrolling down to the bottom of the page and clicking.

NME.COM is coming live from Isle Of Wight Festival this weekend. Stay tuned to NME.COM/festivals/isle-of-wight for news, blogs, photo galleries and video interviews.

Tom Petty, Crystal Castles, Lana Del Rey and more – Isle Of Wight festival day one in photos .

Who stole the show at Isle Of Wight 2012? Vote now.

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• Petty, Tom and the Heartbreakers
• June 20, 1978 Setlist

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Setlist at The Old Grey Whistle Test, BBC Television Theatre, London, England

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• Anything That's Rock 'n' Roll Play Video
• Fooled Again (I Don't Like It) Play Video
• I Need to Know Play Video
• Breakdown Play Video
• Listen to Her Heart Play Video
• You're Gonna Get It Play Video
• American Girl Play Video
• Strangered in the Night Play Video
• Shout ( The Isley Brothers  cover) Play Video

Edits and Comments

5 activities (last edit by bendobrin , 8 Oct 2017, 18:06 Etc/UTC )

Songs on Albums

• American Girl
• Anything That's Rock 'n' Roll
• Fooled Again (I Don't Like It)
• Strangered in the Night
• I Need to Know
• Listen to Her Heart
• You're Gonna Get It
• Shout by The Isley Brothers

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Tom petty and the heartbreakers gig timeline.

• Jun 14 1978 Paramount Theatre Portland, OR, USA Add time Add time
• Jun 15 1978 Commodore Ballroom Vancouver, BC, Canada Add time Add time
• Jun 20 1978 The Old Grey Whistle Test, BBC Television Theatre This Setlist London, England Add time Add time
• Jun 24 1978 A Midsummer Night's Dream 1978 Knebworth, England Add time Add time
• Jun 27 1978 Marquee Club London, England Add time Add time

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30 Years Ago: Tom Petty Mends Fences on ‘Great Wide Open’ Tour

In the early '90s, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers were between two worlds.

Petty himself was fresh off the success of his debut solo album, Full Moon Fever , but only a few years away from his most poignant songwriting period, which would yield much of the material included on   Wildflowers .  Somewhere in the middle, there was 1991's  Into the Great Wide Open , the band's eighth studio LP, for which Petty reunited with the Heartbreakers but brought along his  Full Moon Fever  producer Jeff Lynne . That decision initially put off the Heartbreakers, but the success of singles like "Learning to Fly" made it a bit easier to look past.

"That's the paradox of the whole thing," Petty noted in the 2005 book, Conversations with Tom Petty , "I think they were kind of pleased with it. And it did well for us, and we went on to perform everything live. ... I think whatever their hang-ups were kind of dissipated once the record was done. Then they felt good about it."

When the tour launched in Denver on Aug. 29, 1991, the audience view wasn't of your typical rock show. An elaborate set design featured a large, storybook-styled tree with a staircase leading down to the stage, along with dangling chandeliers. The mystical-looking layout was created by Jim Lenahan, who would later design several more Petty tours in the mid-2000s, as well as stages for Don Henley , Santana , Marty Stuart and more.

"It's been maybe two years since we played in front of people," Petty told MTV at the time, "so I'm kinda jazzed up right now."

But on the tour's first night, Petty was so ill that his manager had to coax him into performing. "That's all part of life on the road," guitarist Mike Campbell said. "The show must go on and all that." ("I was just up all night and didn't sleep," Petty assured, "I think I'm okay now.")

The Heartbreakers were joined by a special guest, Texas blues-rock guitarist and singer-songwriter Chris Whitley, as they made their way across the U.S. and then on to Europe for a total of 64 concerts in eight months, wrapping up on April 2, 1992 in Malmo, Sweden. Average set lists included multiple songs from Into the Great Wide Open , though they were nearly evenly balanced out with  Full Moon Fever  material, along with a handful of tried and true fan favorites like "American Girl," "Refugee" and "You Got Lucky." Sprinkled amongst the originals were a few covers, including Count Five's "Psychotic Reaction" and Van Morrison 's "I'm Tired Joey Boy."

Those unable to catch the tour in person were in luck: A full-length concert film, 1992's  Take the Highway Live , was released as a TV special, highlighting the show's dramatic stage lighting and the crowd's raw energy.

Watch Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Live in 1991 on 'Into the Great Wide Open' Tour

And in October 1991, the band paid a visit to the Saturday Night Live studios,  performing "Into the Great Wide Open" and "Kings Highway."

As proof that the Heartbreakers were shifting toward a new musical era, this would be the last tour featuring original drummer Stan Lynch, who formally left the band in 1994, replaced by Steve Ferrone . After concluding the tour in 1992, Petty would spend most of the next two years off the road, working on the songs that would ultimately appear on Wildflowers .

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'Into the Great Wide Open' Tour, Average Set List

1. "Kings Highway" 2. "Too Good to Be True" 3. "I Won't Back Down" 4. "Free Fallin'" 5. "Out in the Cold" 6. "Psychotic Reaction" (Count Five cover) 7. "Ben's Boogie" 8. "Don't Come Around Here No More" 9. "Learning to Fly" 10. "Listen to Her Heart" 11. "Into the Great Wide Open" 12. "American Girl" 13. "Breakdown" 14. "Yer So Bad" 15. "You Got Lucky" 16. "Love Is a Long Road" 17. "Refugee" 18. "Runnin' Down a Dream 19. "Makin' Some Noise"

Encore: 20. "The Waiting" 21. "Built to Last"

Tom Petty Albums Ranked

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The  Gateway  Theatre | Seaton

The Crescent Theatre | Birmingham

The Big Gig Festival 2024 | Horsham

The Arc Theatre | Winchester

Neeld Arts Centre |  Chippenham

The Beehive | Honiton

Doncaster Little Theatre |  Doncaster

Louth Riverhead Theatre |  Louth

17.11.24  (Tom  Petty Legacy Show only)

Cheltenham Playhouse |  Cheltenham

24.01.25 

Cryer Arts Centre |  Carshalton

25.01.25 

Dembe Theatre |  Tring

14.02.25 

The Courthouse |  Otley

15.02.25   Tom Petty show only

The Platform |  Morecambe

19.04.25 

Palace Theatre | Paignton

Mowlem Theatre |  Swanage

03.05.25 

Alex Theatre | Faversham

NEWS... BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT

Legendary 70s rock star announces first UK and Ireland tour dates in 35 years

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It’s been 35 years since Stevie Nicks last played a string of shows in the UK – but that’s about to change, with the rock legend announcing a run of concerts this summer.

The iconic American singer, 75, last performed consecutive UK shows as a solo artist in 1989, playing in London and Birmingham during the Europe-wide Other Side of the Mirror tour.

She’s played in the UK several times as part of her group Fleetwood Mac , but this is the first time in a generation that fans all over the country will see her perform hits such as Edge of Seventeen and Rooms on Fire as the front of her own band.

The UK and Ireland tour kicks off in Dublin on July 3, before going to Glasgow on July 6. Then two England dates: Manchester at the newly-opened Co-op Live Arena on July 9, before a huge show at Hyde Park BST on July 12.

Safe to say, UK and Ireland-based Stevie Nicks fans have lost it at the news, with many sharing their reactions on social media.

On X, user Guitarista said, ‘Stevie Nicks is playing Glasgow. I have goosebumps and I will cry,’ while user Eva commented: ‘Stevie Nicks is coming to Glasgow and no one will go with me!’

That upcoming night in Glasgow in July will be her first show in the UK of any kind since before the pandemic – she last performed as part of Fleetwood Mac at Wembley Stadium back in 2019.

For her last UK solo show, you’ll have to go back even further to 2017, when she supported Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers as part of the line-up for that year’s Hyde Park BST festival.

‘My birthday is on Thursday and all I want is to manage to get tickets to see Stevie Nicks in Glasgow when the tickets go on sale Friday,’ user Hailey posted onto X in response to the news.

However, some were left disappointed at there only being UK dates, with fans in places such as Cardiff, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Liverpool, and Birmingham left feeling disappointed.

And one unfortunate user, Jake Thomas Long from Manchester, found out that Stevie would be playing his city while he’s not there: ‘Not Stevie Nicks coming to Manchester when I’m on holiday!’

As a singer and songwriter, Stevie rose to fame after joining Fleetwood Mac alongside fellow singer-songwriter Lindsey Buckingham in 1975, eventually leaving the band in 1990 before re-joining in 1997.

Stevie’s arrival in the band signalled a huge change of direction for them after initially being founded as a progressive rock band by Peter Green, Mick Fleetwood, Jeremy Spencer, and John McVie in 1967.

After numerous line-up changes, Stevie and Lindsey joined before the release of the band’s 1975 self-titled album – their most successful up to that point.

Their albums Rumours, Tusk, Mirage, and Tango in the Night, released between 1977 and 1987, saw them become one of the biggest bands in the history of popular rock music, selling millions of albums and singles worldwide.

However, it’s unlikely that Stevie will ever tour with Fleetwood Mac again, after saying the band is ‘done’ following the death of long-time member Christine McVie , who died in November 2022 aged 79.

She said: ‘When Christine died, I felt like you can’t replace her. You just can’t. Without her, what is it? You know what I mean? She was like my soul mate, my musical soul mate, and my best friend that I spent more time with than any of my other best friends outside of Fleetwood Mac.’

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Inside Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ Last Big Tour

By Stephen Rodrick

Stephen Rodrick

It’s about an hour before Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers play Colorado’s Red Rocks Amphitheatre for what may be the last time. Backstage, Petty is in his dressing room putting on a frontier rebel’s headdress to fight the chill. Keyboardist Benmont Tench is tweeting about the sad state of our country under Donald Trump. Bassist Ron Blair has battled stage fright for years since rejoining the Heartbreakers in 2002, after a 20-year sanity break. He wanders into Petty and cops to something you’re not likely to admit to your bandleader unless you’ve known him for 40 years. “I’m kinda nervous, you know,” says Blair in a quiet voice.

Petty rarely describes himself as the leader of his band, but as “the older brother they sometimes have to listen to.” Tonight, he gives Blair some fatherly assurance and a toothy Southern smile: “Let me be nervous for you.”

The band takes the stage and blows through “Rockin’ Around (With You),” the first song on its self-titled first album, from 1976. Petty ends the next few songs strumming in front of the drum set, trading man-crush smiles with drummer Steve Ferrone (Tench jokes, “They should get a room”). Petty even grins through a joyous version of “Walls,” from 1996’s She’s the One, an album he’s complained about for nearly 20 years.

And then there’s a flash of lightning. Rain pours down. The Heartbreakers are shooed into the catacombs of Red Rocks, and 9,000 fans head for cover.

There’s been a valedictory feel to the Heartbreakers’ 40th-anniversary tour, which Petty says is the band’s final country-spanning run – the “last big one.” Everyone else is a bit skeptical. “I’ve been hearing that for 15 years,” says guitarist and original Heartbreaker Mike Campbell. “We’ll see.”

The crowds are still there, something Petty is clearly proud of when we sit down in a hotel room on an off day. To be honest, he looks more jittery offstage than on. This may be because he is chain-smoking, alternating between Marlboros and vaping, perhaps as a concession to the Denver Ritz-Carlton’s smoking policy.

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The band now travels like pashas: playing shows in weeklong bursts, flying privately to the gig and then returning every night to a hub city like Denver. Backstage is no longer the den of iniquity it used to be, no longer full of starlets, hangers-on and good drugs. Petty says sleep is now his friend. “I need a new Netflix show, does anyone have any suggestions?” he asks just before his assistant ducks out of the room. Someone suggests Bloodline, a noirish series set in his native Florida.

Petty is defiant about the hyper pace of the tour, which hits 30 cities this spring and summer. “Unless you’ve done it, you can’t understand what it is,” says Petty, brushing his scarecrow hair out of his face. “And if you’re not really experienced, you will fall.”

What keeps the Heartbreakers together is simple: The band has been their life since 1976. (How close are they? Multi-instrumentalist Scott Thurston recently sold his house to Campbell.) That’s when Petty met Campbell – then painfully shy – at a friend’s house in Gainesville, Florida. Petty would be in the front room, and the bedroom would be dark except for the pilot light from a Fender amp. “I felt like I had to go down a dark tunnel and coax him out,” says Petty.

He soon met Benjamin Montmorency Tench III, a prep-school kid and piano prodigy. Tench wears suits and went to Exeter, but he’s the fiery one. In a Peter Bogdanovich documentary on the Heartbreakers, 2007’s Runnin’ Down a Dream,  Tench can be heard screaming at his bandmates to take things seriously. His nickname is Mad Dog. When Tench used to go on one of his tirades, a roadie would slide a dog bowl of water under his piano.

Petty, Campbell and 
Tench formed the nucleus of Mudcrutch ,
which morphed into the
 Heartbreakers in 1976,
 after adding San Diegan Blair on bass and 
Stan Lynch on drums.
 Blair fried out and
 bailed in 1982. He opened a bikini shop in the Valley and was replaced by Howie Epstein, but the band loomed in his subconscious. “I’d dream I’d be walking to the stage, and be like, ‘I don’t know “Mary Jane’s Last Dance,”‘ ” remembers Blair. “I had half a dozen of those nightmares, so I started learning those songs so I could get a night’s sleep.”

This proved fortuitous when Epstein died of heroin-related complications in 2003. “I don’t think the band continues without Ron,” Tench tells me. “Bringing in someone new wouldn’t have worked.”

You can argue that Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers are the most successful and longest-running American rock band in history, the Beach Boys be damned. Tench, Campbell and Petty attribute the group’s longevity to two epochal moments: one logistical and one creative.

Tom Petty's 50 Greatest Songs

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“About 20 years ago, we stopped doing soundchecks,” says Petty. “It eats up the whole day and we’d argue, and then you’d come back and the sound would be completely different with a crowd.” 

The other game-changer was Bob Dylan. By 1986, the band had toured relentlessly for a decade. Off the road, everyone was a mess – some members dealing with substance issues, some just dealing with real life. “The road and the studio are the only places I’ve ever felt completely OK,” says Petty, lighting another Marlboro. “In any other life situation I’m terribly retarded.” Petty got a call from Dylan asking if the band would back him on a tour. Petty raced out a “hell, yes.” Watching footage, you can see him smiling his head off, ecstatic to not be leading the show. The experience taught him how to be in the Heartbreakers, not just lead them. “That’s when we learned how to really be a band,” says Petty.

As the bandmates wait out the rain , Petty asks if they want to add their 1999 song “Swingin'” to the second half of the set. Everyone agrees: They do. The Heartbreakers aren’t a democracy, but more of a benevolent dictatorship. This is true when it comes to the set list. “We can make suggestions,” says Tench with a wry smile. “Sometimes they’re even accepted.”

After 20 minutes, the Heartbreakers retake the stage. They play “Swingin’,” which has a chorus where Petty lists icons who “went down swinging,” including Sonny Liston and Sammy Davis. Tench, who sings with Petty on the song, switches it up. Epstein provided the beautiful high harmonies on the record, so Tench sneaks in a tribute to his departed friend: “He went down swingin’/Just like Howie Epstein.” When I mention Epstein to Campbell later, he starts to cry.

Petty is supposed to do some acoustic numbers from Wildflowers, his 1994 solo album. There’s just one problem: His guitar is dead, soaked by the rain. There’s confusion and uncertainty on the bandmates’ faces for a moment, like it’s a 1975 show at a honky-tonk in Gainesville. Then Petty and Campbell shout across the stage, “Ben, play something!”

Tench, the best keyboardist in American rock, breaks into a pastiche of boogie-woogie, a homage to pianist Pete Johnson. The group chimes in, not quite in sync, until Petty switches to Chuck Berry’s “Carol.” The Heartbreakers fall in line, sounding like the best bar band you don’t want to tell your friends about because it’ll get too big and leave your favorite saloon.

“It’s still a wild pace. I might be away for two years, but I’ve worked myself to death on different projects.”

They encore with “American Girl.” The bandmates take a bow, wiping sweat and rain off their faces. Everyone exits, but Petty seems reluctant to leave. He takes a few steps toward the front of the stage and gives a last wave.

One word Petty and the band never mention: retirement. Petty still goes into his Malibu home office to write songs – right across from his home studio. He’s mostly a homebody, rarely even venturing the 45 minutes into Los Angeles unless it’s to see his two daughters and his young granddaughter. There was a Mudcrutch tour last year and a turn producing a record for former Byrds bassist Chris Hillman. The Heartbreakers will record again and play live in some capacity. “It’s still a wild pace,” says Petty. “I might be away for two years, but I’ve worked myself to death on different projects, you know?”

After 40 years, it would be surprising if there weren’t a few regrets. “Howie should’ve gotten some lead on a record,” Tench says of Epstein. “He should’ve produced a record for the Heartbreakers. I would’ve loved that.” Then he shrugs. “But I’m not in charge.”

Petty often thinks about songs that should have been left out on the street, like the closing track on Full Moon Fever . “I hate ‘Zombie Zoo,’ ” he says with a shake of his head. “I do not understand how that got on the record. I had better stuff. What frame of mind produced that? That was nearly a perfect album.”

But that’s on the dark side of town. Petty also mentions the stories of fans telling him how they walked down the aisle to “Here Comes My Girl” or got strength from “I Won’t Back Down.” He remembers a recent encounter in L.A. with a young fan. She mentioned that she got solace from the band’s 1999 album, Echo . She knew that it was one of Petty’s stepchildren – an opportunity Petty feels he squandered while he was out of his head from his divorce, and Epstein was slipping away into heroin abuse. Petty signed the woman’s copy of the record, then thought about the encounter when he got back home to Malibu.

“Well, see?” says Petty with a shrug of wonder. “Things can work even when you don’t realize it.” He pauses for a moment. “You know?”

Campbell and Tench use words like “miracle” and “magic” to explain how the Heartbreakers still crank out a show every bit as good as they did in 1985. Campbell describes moments when the band is working in sync, and he feels almost like he’s watching from above.

“I’ll be looking at this going, ‘Wow. How did I get here? How lucky am I?'” says Campbell with wonderment.

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He rubs his eyes and then smiles.

“Then I’ll come back and be like, ‘OK, I’ve gotta work.’ ” 

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2015 The Eagles play their last concert with Glenn Frey . The show takes place in Bossier City, Louisiana, the final date of their History of the Eagles tour. The set features 27 songs and two encores, closing with " Desperado ." Founding member Frey dies six months later. The band continues on with his son, Deacon, in his stead.

2011 Chuck Berry throws out the first pitch at the St. Louis Cardinals baseball game on the same day his statue is unveiled on Delmar Boulevard in the city.

1990 Elton John can't find a facility in Los Angeles that will treat both his bulimia and drug and alcohol addictions, so he checks into the Parkside Lutheran Hospital in Chicago for rehab. He stays for six weeks, then takes a year off from touring and recording.

1974 Cass Elliot of The Mamas & The Papas dies at 32 of a heart attack while on tour as a solo artist in London. Her manager, believing her death to be drug-related and trying to protect her legacy, plants a story that she choked on a ham sandwich, a narrative that persists for decades.

1966 A US magazine targeted to teenagers called Datebook causes an uproar when they reprint some of John Lennon 's interview from four months earlier in the London Evening Standard where Lennon said, "We're more popular than Jesus now." The American media jump on the quote and turns it into a major story.

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2022 Beyoncé releases her seventh solo album, Renaissance , with the hit " Break My Soul ." Like her previous six albums, it goes to #1 in America.

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2014 After 36 years of marriage, Neil Young files for divorce from his second wife, Pegi .

2011 Gene McDaniels, known for singing the 1961 hit "A Hundred Pounds Of Clay" and writing Roberta Flack 's 1974 hit "Feel Like Makin' Love," dies at age 76 at his home in Maine.

2011 At a Dallas concert, Kings Of Leon frontman Caleb Followill leaves the stage after complaining about the heat. He never returns, and the band cancels the rest of their tour. The incident is officially blamed on "dehydration," but Caleb's brother (and bass player) Jared later Tweets: "There are problems in our band bigger than not drinking enough Gatorade."

2005 An anonymous bidder pays one million dollars for the original handwritten lyrics to The Beatles' " All You Need Is Love " at the Hippodrome nightclub in London.

2004 Cincinnati-born singer, songwriter, and musician Huby Heard dies of a heart attack at age 53. As a keyboardist, he played with Billy Preston 's group The God Squad, Leon Russell's Gap Band , and toured with The Rolling Stones .

1999 Anita Carter (of The Carter Family ) dies at age 66 after years of drug treatment for rheumatoid arthritis irreparably damages her liver, kidneys, and pancreas.

1995 Les Elgart, swing jazz bandleader and trumpeter who performed the American Bandstand theme "Bandstand Boogie," dies of heart failure shortly before his 78th birthday.

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1987 Michigan governor James Blanchard declares today "Four Tops Day" in honor of the Motown legends .

Tom Petty Concludes "Lawsuit Tour"

Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers conclude their "Lawsuit Tour" with a show at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles. Petty embarked on the tour to raise money for his legal battles with MCA Records.

Petty's corporate nemesis, MCA, happens to own the venue, but the rocker is on good terms with the booking agent, Danny Bramson, who a year earlier introduced him to Bob Dylan In May, Petty declared bankruptcy to keep his label, Shelter Records, from transferring his contract to MCA, which has bought Shelter. Bramson, who has formed a subsidiary with MCA called Backstreet Records (named after the Bruce Springsteen song ), helps broker a deal where Petty signs with Backstreet under new terms. This ends the legal wrangling and frees up the Damn The Torpedoes album, which is released on Backstreet in October.

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Artist who’s played with Tom Petty, Chris Stapleton, Fleetwood Mac: ‘Dare to Dream’

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In the video for his newest single, “Dare to Dream,” Mike Campbell sings confidently about a life of promise.

His location: The Church Studio in Tulsa, a locale roughly half-way between his longtime home of Los Angeles and the Northern Florida haunts of his youth that gave rise to a remarkable rock ‘n’ roll career.

The video balances a studio performance by Campbell and his side project-turned-full time band The Dirty Knobs and home movie footage from decades earlier of the guitarist at play on his own and with the band he is most readily associated with: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

It’s an unassuming but affirmative tune, one in step with much of the positive-leaning music on Campbell’s just-released third album with The Dirty Knobs, “Vagabonds, Virgins & Misfits.” But the hopeful stance of “Dare to Dream” holds considerable weight. It’s a celebration of the days ahead from an artist who, at age 74, has lived a truly charmed artistic existence.

“The song goes, ‘These are the best of times, this is the good life,’” Campbell said by phone last week. “That’s kind of how I feel. Maybe it’s cheeky to write a song like that with all the crap going on in the world right now with politics and war. I thought, ‘You know, I’m just going to put out a positive statement about how I feel.’ I think most people can relate to that, to staying positive and thinking that things are going to be okay. That’s the message I’m trying to send.”

Charmed career with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

A nearly half-century alliance with Petty ended in 2017 with the rock titan’s sudden passing. Campbell was lead guitarist for the Heartbreakers’ entire history. He was also co-writer with Petty on some of the band’s biggest hits, including “Refugee,” “A Woman in Love (It’s Not Me),” “You Got Lucky,” “Runnin’ Down a Dream,” “Into the Great Wide Open” and “You Wreck Me.”

That alone would qualify Campbell for legendary status, a title made real when he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002 as a member of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

But Campbell has also amassed a ridiculous dossier of other collaborations through the decades that have included recordings with Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Aretha Franklin, Roy Orbison, Stevie Nicks, John Prine, Joe Cocker, Linda Ronstadt, Don Henley and Neil Diamond.

“Everyone you work with becomes an influence and an inspiration for you,” Campbell said. “I pay attention and try to learn from them. They all leave a lasting impression on your musicality, so I have that experience to draw from as I go ahead. I treasure that.”

That experience runs both ways. Along with The Dirty Knobs, Campbell has bonded with a legion of newer generation artists. Several are showcased on a newly released Petty tribute album boasting a team of young country music stars aptly titled “Petty Country.” One of the record’s highlights has Campbell playing with Margo Price on “Ways to Be Wicked,” a ’70s-era tune he penned with Petty. The song wasn’t a Heartbreakers tune, but rather a stellar part of the 1985 debut album by the short-lived country-rock upstart troupe Lone Justice.

Working with Chris Stapleton , Fleetwood Mac

But perhaps Campbell’s most high-profile country comrade has been Kentucky celeb Chris Stapleton. Aside from contributing to “Petty Country,” Stapleton adds to the crunchy charge of “Don’t Wait Up” on the “Vagabonds” album with further honky tonk fervor provided by Heartbreakers keyboardist Benmont Tench.

The Stapleton connection isn’t new. In 2000, both artists contributed to each other’s records. Campbell co-wrote two tunes with Stapleton for the latter’s “Starting Over” album, adding guitar work to both. Stapleton co-penned another pair of songs and sang on a third for Campbell’s first Dirty Knobs record, “Wreckless Abandon.” Both albums were released with a week of each other that November.

“Chris Stapleton is the king of the crop right now,” Campbell said. “He is so talented and so natural. He reached out to me to write some songs and we immediately became friends. I was just in New York playing with him at Giants Stadium. He is so good. He is just gifted with one of those voices that is undeniably great. I’m very honored to have him as a friend.”

Perhaps the most curious chapter in Campbell’s far-reaching career came in 2018, roughly a year after Petty’s death, when he was asked to take over guitar duties for Lindsey Buckingham in what will likely serve as the final global tour by Fleetwood Mac. Campbell’s ties to the band were already strong, having played on eight solo albums by Mac empress Stevie Nicks dating back to 1981.

“That’s an example of my charmed life. I’ve had so many things fall into my lap along the way by luck or whatever. But I was digging in back then. Tom had passed away. I was deep in grief. I’m still grieving. I’ll probably be grieving for the rest of my life because he was a big part of my life. Then on my birthday, I got a phone call out of the blue from Mick Fleetwood offering me me the gig. It came at a really good time for me because it gave me something to do that was really high quality. And maybe it was also something to get my mind off just feeling sorry for myself. It was a challenge for me, but I had a great time. They took me around the world, treated me like royalty. That was pretty much a blessing.”

‘We ran down a dream’

Of course, any conversation on Campbell’s wondrous career eventually comes down to one person: Tom Petty. The two were more than mere bandmates. They essentially grew up together, meeting up in the pre-Heartbreakers band Mudcrutch and playing side-by-side until the Heartbreakers’ final tour concluded on Sept. 25, 2017, at the Hollywood Bowl. Petty died a week later.

“I always feel his spirit, and his shadow, on my shoulder, guiding me along, reminding me of what my dream is,” Campbell said. “We both just had the same dream, the same instincts, the same musicality and desire and style. From the day we met, we were fast, deep friends and, eventually, songwriting partners.

“We ran down a dream, to borrow a phrase. We had a dream to make music that we loved, so we just went after it. We complimented each other. We gave each other a partner to ride the river with.”

With “Vagabonds” now opening a new career chapter for Campbell and a revamped Dirty Knobs lineup that reteams him with longtime Heartbreakers drummer Steve Ferrone, retirement from rock ‘n’ roll isn’t on any table anywhere.

“Retirement, to me, is a non-concept. I don’t understand it. If I physically couldn’t do what I do for some reason, I would still play music at home. Otherwise, I have no idea what retirement is. I would never quit playing music. As long as I can play live, I’ll keep going. It’s the most spiritually rewarding thing in the world for me.”

Mike Campbell and The Dirty Knobs

Opening act: Shannon McNally

When: June 27, 8 p.m.

Where: Lexington Opera House, 401 W. Short

Tickets: $49.50-$74.50 through ticketmaster.com .

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• What Is Cinema?

Tom Cruise Dances and Grins at Taylor Swift Eras Tour Show in London

By Eve Batey

It seemed impossible to top the star power at Friday’s Taylor Swift show at Wembley Stadium, but that was before Tom Cruise —Mr. Impossible , himself—showed up on Saturday at the second London stop in the billionaire singer’s Eras Tour. And Cruise wasn’t the only big name at Saturday’s Swift show, as Hugh Grant , Princess Olivia of Greece , Greta Gerwig , and a number of other stars packed the stadium’s VIP area as Swift sang—and threw shade—from the stage.

Cruise has reportedly lived in London since 2021, making his presence at this show (as opposed to one in, say, LA or New York) less brow-raising than it might otherwise be. And yet, it still feels surprising (did you know he was a Swiftie? I sure didn’t!) that he was there , and that he arrived—as numerous users of social media noted—with a Swift fans' now-familiar handful of DIY friendship bracelets that he traded with his fellow VIPers. Did Tom Cruise make his own friendship bracelets for this thing? Wouldn’t it be wild if he did? ( Vanity Fair reached out to a Cruise representative for more information on his Swift interest, but has not received a response as of publication time.)

Taylor Swift performs onstage during “Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour” at Wembley Stadium on June 22, 2024, in London, England, UK.

The 61-year-old star was seemingly good-natured even when a huge man in the tent grabbed him by the shoulders and started shaking him about, as was captured in footage shared by fans . It helps, perhaps, that the big guy was Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce , who is also known as Swift’s boyfriend and/or the guy the royal family didn’t want a selfie with the night before.

Actor Hugh Grant, who was also at Saturday’s show, was similarly struck by Kelce’s size and charm. Via X (formerly Twitter), the 63-year-old Grant wrote of his Saturday night concert experience, “Dear @taylorswift13, You have an incredible show, an amazing and v hospitable team and excellent if gigantic boyfriend (#tequilashots.). Thanks so much from one ageing London boy, wife and thrilled 8 year old #halfgirlhalfbracelet." It's a tweet that leaves this correspondent wondering what seemed less likely likely a decade ago: the star of Eyes Wide Shut playing with beaded bracelets, or the star of Four Weddings and a Funeral using hashtags?

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Other luminaries at the show included Barbie director Greta Gerwig, who danced shoulder-to-shoulder with Cruise and Kelce; Danny Masterson apologists Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher ; and YA dystopia poster boys Liam Hemsworth and Theo James , among many others.

But the drama wasn’t just in the VIP tent, as Swift went a bit off script to celebrate the crowd, as well as slam her enemies, footage posted to social media shows . As she transitioned into the acoustic portion of her set, Swift said, “I was thinking about getting to play Wembley Stadium. That’s not remotely normal [and] it is so insane for you to [have] done that for me … and for my crew because we get to play Wembley Stadium eight times this summer,” she said, a reference to the Era Tour’s return to England in August.

“You clearly thought this was a good idea [and] you wanted this to happen. Blows me away. I’ll spend forever trying to thank you for that.”

“On the other hand,” Swift continued, “it really makes me think about how every time someone talks shit, it just makes me work even harder and it makes me even tougher. So, it also makes me incredibly thankful for those people.” Swift then launched into “thanK you aIMee,” a song from The Tortured Poets Department widely believed to be a dig at Kim Kardashian , a Swift nemesis since 2006 .

Swift has one more show at Wembley Stadium on Sunday night, and then it’s off to Aviba Stadium in Dublin for a three-show stand from Friday, June 18 to Sunday, June 30.

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