The Tom Petty Project

Latest Episodes:

Damaged by Love May 13, 2026

Show notes

“There's rain on the road And the faithful have gone. In a crowd all alone, Walking 'round in a song”. It’s a great little snapshot or vignette, as Tom so often gives us, of perhaps a wedding or some other celebration at a small roadside church. That feeling of being alone in a crowd is beautifully phrased by changing the order of the words; rather than All alone in a crowd, “in a crowd all alone” feels more poetic and more deliberately focusing on the alone part rather than the crowd part. And, we have to tip our hat to Dana Petty of course here! Tom tells Paul Zollo “Dana actually helped me with two lines in that song. I was kind of stuck. It’s not something I would ordinarily do, but I said, “Hey, what would you put here? What would you say?” he then says “In a crowd all alone/Walking round in a song. That was hers”.

Song : https://youtu.be/DZa8wc2uoow

ADDITIONAL LINKS

Judge Timbers' tutorial: https://youtu.be/2ld4U8pvr3A

Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.

Follow: https://linktr.ee/tompettyproject

Listen: https://pod.link/1580769475

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

A special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research.

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way.

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producers: Paul Roberts, Steve Ursell

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-tom-petty-project.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Night Driver May 06, 2026

Show notes

Night Driver is one of those perfect album tracks that you always want to hear on great records. There’s something to be said for albums where any song could basically be a single, but I tend to gravitate more towards albums that are very carefully curated around a central idea and Highway Companion is definitely one of those. This track sits on the second half of the record, coming after the euphoric Big Weekend, as a mood piece and a moment in time for the central character on the album. It’s a wonderfully restrained and melodically comfortable song!

Song : https://youtu.be/7Fni5y-8wqo

REFERENCED IN THE EPISODE

Judge Timbers' tutorial: https://youtu.be/y-dKJ8bIUGY

Jake Thistle Fans Forever : https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1DQkHfK9mz/

Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.

Follow: https://linktr.ee/tompettyproject

Listen: https://pod.link/1580769475

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

A special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research.

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way.

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producers: Paul Roberts, Steve Ursell

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-tom-petty-project.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Big Weekend Apr 15, 2026

Show notes

The first verse contains one of my all time favourite lyrics. Not just one of my very favourite Tom Petty lyrics, just one of my favourite lyrics full stop. And it’s not a superb piece of word play or a huge emotionally charge line. It’s not a cuttingly brilliant philosophically brilliant observation - we get that later in the song - nor is it a playfully subversive line. It’s this line; “They live in a brick house, painted white and brown.” And specifically the last half of the line; “Painted white and brown.” I know that line probably doesn’t set off the fireworks of your imagination like it does mine, but I know there are others that do the same for you and not for me. One of the most glorious things about this podcast for me is discovering those little sideroads of imagination that you guys share with me from time to time!

Song : https://youtu.be/xBZr5nq0Yd0

REFERENCED IN THE EPISODE

Demo : https://youtu.be/kQRsDAVy3lU

Judge Timbers : https://youtu.be/MKAeM8Cc1o8

Anything That’s Rock n Roll (Old Grey Whistle Test) : https://youtu.be/qJMgWiqoLn4

Anything That’s Rock n Roll (Top of the Pops) : https://youtu.be/y0mYRnPXs2U

Jake Thistle Fans Forever : https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1DQkHfK9mz/

Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.

Follow: https://linktr.ee/tompettyproject

Listen: https://pod.link/1580769475

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

A special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research.

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way.

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producers: Paul Roberts, Steve Ursell

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-tom-petty-project.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anything That's Rock 'n' Roll (Revisited) Apr 08, 2026

Show notes

“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

Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.

Follow: https://linktr.ee/tompettyproject

Listen: https://pod.link/1580769475

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

A special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research.

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way.

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producers: Paul Roberts, Steve Ursell

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-tom-petty-project.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Turn This Car Around Apr 01, 2026

Show notes

In my mind’s eye, I see a younger couple, maybe mid to late twenties, driving an old cadillac along a dark desert highway... A kid, about 7 or 8 years is in the back seat having a bad dream: not exactly a nightmare but one of those dreams that feels you feeling really unsettled for the rest of the day once you wake up and you can’t quite remember it only, the feeling it’s left you with. The verses are the phases of the dream in which unseen forces threaten to harm the kid. The choruses are their internal monologue, reaching out to mom and dad and telling them to turn the car around, reverse course, go back to safety.

Song : https://youtu.be/hi6TEnKGV_g

REFERENCED IN THE EPISODE

Judge Timbers' cover and guitar lesson: https://youtu.be/Igz0u_LnjNY

Jake Thistle Fans Forever : https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1DQkHfK9mz/

Jake's Performance on Idol : https://youtu.be/qbZN4ogTW9w

Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.

Follow: https://linktr.ee/tompettyproject

Listen: https://pod.link/1580769475

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

A special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research.

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way.

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producers: Paul Roberts, Steve Ursell

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-tom-petty-project.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jack Mar 25, 2026

Show notes

Jack is a peculiar song. It doesn’t have a typical structure and it’s much more a mood piece. As I said, I sort of consider this one to be a chance encounter on the Highway Tom is taking us down. We don’t spend any quality time with this character but we’re left with a slightly gnawing, maybe slightly uneasy feeling about bumping into him. He’s gonna get his baby back and we’re not really sure whether she wants to be got!

Song : https://youtu.be/j60LIOgHbtY

REFERENCED IN THE EPISODE

Judge Timbers' cover and guitar lesson: https://youtu.be/LdiGGLYIsx4

Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.

Follow: https://linktr.ee/tompettyproject

Listen: https://pod.link/1580769475

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

A special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research.

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way.

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producers: Paul Roberts, Steve Ursell

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-tom-petty-project.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Down South Mar 18, 2026

Show notes

Every now and then I try to think about my top ten Tom Petty deep cuts. There are so many that I love and that I’ve discovered, rediscovered, or come to appreciate so much more as I’ve been on this podcast journey, but Down South is at the very top table for me in that regard. Going down south for the first time to the Tom Petty Weekend last year made this song resonate doubly with me. Not only does it tap into that connection I have with going home myself, but heading to Gainesville and feeling the bones of the place, I feel this song in a very different way. I can see the song now as well as hear it.

Song : https://youtu.be/sQwvkeHGSH4

REFERENCED IN THE EPISODE

Judge Timbers' guitar lesson: https://youtu.be/AKnyC2PhTcA

Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.

Follow: https://linktr.ee/tompettyproject

Listen: https://pod.link/1580769475

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

A special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research.

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way.

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producers: Paul Roberts, Steve Ursell

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-tom-petty-project.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Flirting with Time Mar 04, 2026

Show notes

“You’re flirting with time”, Tom sings. And I like that idea of not fully committing to time, just flirting with it. That’s definitely how life feels when you’re in your twenties and thirties. You don’t really have to enter into a serious relationship with time because there’s so much of it still ahead. You can mess around on it and you know it will always be there when you get home. There’s an implicit transience to that title line that I absolutely love.

Song : https://youtu.be/DSt4jArJo7M

REFERENCED IN THE EPISODE

Judge Timbers: https://youtu.be/s4fHgamxWXk

Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.

Follow: https://linktr.ee/tompettyproject

Listen: https://pod.link/1580769475

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

A special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research.

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way.

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producers: Paul Roberts, Steve Ursell

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-tom-petty-project.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Square One Feb 25, 2026

Show notes

Saving Grace is the work of a middle-aged man who fully knows himself and knows how to articulate the past and the present in three very vivid dimensions. Critical to retaining the song’s pathos though, Tom doesn’t project a future down this new path. It’s important that Square One is here and now. It’s important that being present in a moment and recognizing that every day and every minute is a chance for rebirth and reinvention is unconstrained by a prescribed destination. It’s the ultimate expression of freedom.

Song : https://youtu.be/Ux-RDvSHcI0

REFERENCED IN THE EPISODE

Judge Timbers: https://youtu.be/dTiYuYykaMk

Jake Thistle on American Idol : https://youtu.be/EVUI_FYlScM

Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.

Follow: https://linktr.ee/tompettyproject

Listen: https://pod.link/1580769475

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

A special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research.

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way.

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producers: Paul Roberts, Steve Ursell

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-tom-petty-project.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Saving Grace Feb 18, 2026

Show notes

“You keep running for another place To find that saving grace” probably doesn’t hit in the same place for most Pettyheads as “Most things I worry about never happen anyway” but I think there’s a comparable profundity to it. That search for spiritual, or social, or emotional redemption is a journey and one that can often feel just out of reach and unattainable, but you run on anyway. Maybe it isn’t given equal billing with the sensational line in Crawling Back to You because this song is more of an uptempo rocker rather than a baleful mid tempo ballad. Either way, it’s another excellent line that examines the human condition without either prescribing a remedy or casting any judgement.

Song : https://youtu.be/vPYFWnzjIy0

REFERENCED IN THE EPISODE

Judge Timbers: https://youtu.be/RVFSiRUAkys

Jack McNey - Turn this Car Around : https://youtu.be/SGhvLR6dCiw

Honest and Unmerciful Podcast: https://tinyurl.com/ysz3cd2d

Boogie Chillen : https://youtu.be/w512YXe75mg

Don't forget to follow me on social media, like, subscribe, and please, leave a rating if you like the show.

Follow: https://linktr.ee/tompettyproject

Listen: https://pod.link/1580769475

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

A special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research.

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way.