Tom Petty Recalls Getting 'Beat Up' by Fans in Resurfaced Film: They 'Thought They Could Just Take a Finger Home'
Mar. 15, 2025Tom Pettylooked back on an infamous concert in an interview from over 40 years ago.
The incident happened when he leaned too close to the crowd and fell in between the songs"Shout" and “I Fought the Law.““I just got a little too happy. I lean out over, and somebody just got me right around the legs. In we go, and that was pretty scary,” the “American Girl” singer recalled.
‘Tom Petty: Heartbreakers Beach Party’ poster.Paramount+
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Paramount+
“It was one of the first times it really registered to me that the crowd is dangerous. The crowd, out of control is dangerous. I was beat up pretty good there.”
Petty pointed out that on the tape it didn’t seem like it took him “very long” to get him out of there, but to him it was “a lifetime.” “I think they really thought they could just take a finger home. I got back up and finished the show.”
Tom Petty in San Francisco in 1978.Richard McCaffrey/ Michael Ochs Archive/ Getty
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Richard McCaffrey/ Michael Ochs Archive/ Getty
Petty is then pulled up from the crowd and back onstage. “It was a great show and I don’t hold anything against the audience because I’m the one who stirred it all up in the first place,” Petty added.
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers formed in Florida in the 1970s, featuring Petty, guitaristMike Campbell, keyboardist Benmont Tench, bassist Ron Blair and drummer Stan Lynch.
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The band became known for hits such as “Don’t Do Me Like That,” “Free Falling,” “Breakdown” and “I Won’t Back Down” and remained popular, releasing new music and touring for several decades.
They released their final studio album,Hypnotic Eye,in 2014. The last show Petty played in was during the band’s 40th anniversary tour, with his final song being “American Girl” which he sang at the Hollywood Bowl in September 2017, perRolling Stone.Petty died that October. He was 66.
Howie Epstein, Stan Lynch, Tom Petty, Benmont Tench and Mike Campbell.Aaron Rapoport/Paramount+.
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Aaron Rapoport/Paramount+.
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“Featuring nearly 20 minutes of never-before-seen bonus content, including new commentary from Crowe himself, alongside in-depth interviews, electrifying live performances and unprecedented intimate access to Petty and the band.”
Cameron Crowe and Tom Petty.Cameron Crowe/Paramount+
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Cameron Crowe/Paramount+
It’s an “era-defining look at rock & roll that captures Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers as they finish, promote and tour the groundbreakingLong After Darkalbum, the band’s third and final project with legendary producer Jimmy Iovine.”
Tom Petty: Heartbreakers Beach Partyis now available to stream on Paramount+.
source: people.com
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