LONG-AWAITED TRIBUTE ALBUM FEATURES DOLLY PARTON, CHRIS STAPLETON, GEORGE STRAIT, LUKE COMBS, WILLIE NELSON, HEARTBREAKERS MIKE CAMPBELL & BENMONT TENCH, WYNONNA JUDD, LAINEY WILSON AND MORE
COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME® AND MUSEUM UNVEILS TOM PETTY ADDITION HIGHLIGHTING HIS CONNECTIONS TO COUNTRY MUSIC
PETTY COUNTRY, USA (June 21, 2024) — Petty Country: A Country Music Celebration of Tom Petty, the tribute album lovingly curated by some of legendary musician Tom Petty’s closest friends and collaborators in Country and Americana music, is out now via Big Machine Records in partnership with the Tom Petty Estate—listen HERE. An inside look at the story behind the album was also released today—watch “Welcome To Petty Country” HERE.
“There’s a saying in Nashville ‘it all begins with a song’,” says Bluegrass pioneer and featured tribute artist Marty Stuart. “Well, in this case, it begins with the song and the songwriter. I don’t think anybody can challenge Tom Petty when it comes to songwriting. He touched the American heart—critics, fans, the musicians, everyone agrees on Tom’s songs. There’s just a special magic about him.”
Stuart continues, “It’s incredibly rare to find musicians who can navigate and completely understand the intersection of Rock & Roll, Country, Gospel and Folk. That’s what Tom (Petty) & The Heartbreakers did so well. They’re America’s greatest Rock & Roll band.”
The new music has already begun to receive early praise:
WATCH: Dolly Parton is among some of Country’s biggest stars honoring the music of Tom Petty with the new album Petty Country: A Country Music Celebration of Tom Petty
– CBS Mornings
“First of all, the Tom Petty country thing makes perfect sense, but then those two in particular [Wynonna Judd and Lainey Wilson] doing ‘Refugee,’ you can hear it, it’s a perfect fit.”
– TODAY
WATCH: Dierks Bentley performs ‘American Girl’ on “GMA”
– GMA
[Of Dolly Parton’s ‘Southern Accents’] “Petty’s original ‘Southern Accents’ is a classic Heartbreakers jam, full of restless, ragged Rock & Roll energy…Parton takes a completely different path, turning the song in a soaring Country ballad, and juicing the poignancy further with a music video filled with old archival footage of Petty.”
– Rolling Stone
[Of Dierks Bentley’s ‘American Girl’] “Spry banjo, mandolin and guitar fusions lead this jaunty number, which melds perfectly with Bentley’s own grainy, Rock-leaning vocal.”
– Billboard
“[Of Chris Stapleton’s ‘I Should Have Known It’] It’s a big-riff stomper, and Stapleton really leans into it, roaring and headbanging for all he’s worth.”
– Stereogum
Executive produced by Petty’s close confidant, 2x Grammy® award-winner George Drakoulias (Barbie, The Black Crowes, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers), with 2x Grammy award-winner Randall Poster (Killers of the Flower Moon, Skyfall, Wes Anderson) and Scott Borchetta (Big Machine Label Group), Petty Country finds some of the most lauded voices in Country music exploring the extensive Petty catalog and putting their own personal touches on some of his greatest hits. Highlights include a handful of songs by Petty’s longtime friends and collaborators, such as George Strait, Steve Earle, Willie Nelson with Lukas Nelson, Bluegrass pioneer Marty Stuart and The Heartbreakers’ Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench. Contemporary Country superstars Luke Combs, Chris Stapleton, Wynonna Judd, Carly Pearce, Lady A, Margo Price, Rhiannon Giddens—who most recently played banjo and viola on Beyoncé’s “Texas Hold ‘Em”—Thomas Rhett and Lainey Wilson also pay tribute to the late musician with their own spin on fan favorites.
In celebration of the new music, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s Tom Petty: Where I Come From is open now. The special showcase highlights how the late rocker’s southern roots shaped his music and his continued influence on new generations of Country music artists, featuring several artifacts seen in the “Southern Accents” music video, from Petty’s wide-ranging and generation-defining career—such as tour assets from his 2001 Way Out West tour, an iconic Nudie suit inspired “Planets” blazer worn famously during his 1985 Southern Accents tour, “Southern Accents” handwritten song lyrics, western style wardrobe pieces worn on and off stage and Petty’s Gretsch 6130 Roundup Western electric guitar. The display is included with museum admission and runs through summer 2025 as an extension of their acclaimed “Western Edge” exhibit.
Additionally, Nashville’s downtown will transform this weekend into Petty Country, USA to honor the icon’s legacy and the album’s release. Beginning at midnight on June 21 through Sunday, June 23, dozens of bars and honky tonks around Broadway will host hour-long “Petty Power Hours,” give away exclusive merch and more.
Tom Petty, albeit widely known for his rocker grit and California anthems, is often credited as contemporary Country music’s biggest Rock influence. A Gainesville, Florida native, Petty straddled the American coasts, leaving his native Florida for his adopted home of Los Angeles, while keeping one foot firmly rooted in the south. The region’s influence can be heard throughout Petty’s discography, with lyrics about growing up in the south paired with his famous airtight melodies and rough vocal character that defines the state of Country music today.
Petty’s deep roots in Country music saw collaborations and long-lasting friendships with a number of the genre’s greatest artists, including Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash (The Heartbreakers were the backing band on Cash’s Unchained), June Carter Cash, Marty Stuart, John Prine, Dolly Parton, Tammy Wynette, George Strait, Hank Williams Jr. and Willie Nelson. Today, Country songwriters consistently reference their love and admiration for Petty, and in many ways, how Petty’s influence shaped their own sound.
Over his 40-year career, Tom Petty became one of the biggest cultural icons in the world. In addition to the 13 studio albums he made with the Heartbreakers, Petty recorded three solo albums, including the acclaimed Full Moon Fever and Wildflowers. Petty was also a member of the supergroup, Traveling Wilburys, and in the pre-Heartbreakers band, Mudcrutch. Hailed as one of the greatest Rock artists of all time, Petty’s list of achievements include multiple Grammy Award winner, 80+ million records sold, and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee. Tom Petty passed away in 2017 shortly after completing his 40th anniversary tour, but his music continues to reach fans, both new and old, around the world today.
PETTY COUNTRY—TRACKLIST
1. “I Should Have Known It” by Chris Stapleton
2. “Wildflowers” by Thomas Rhett
3. “Runnin’ Down A Dream” by Luke Combs
4. “Southern Accents” by Dolly Parton
5. “Here Comes My Girl” by Justin Moore
6. “American Girl” by Dierks Bentley
7. “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around” by Lady A
8. “I Forgive It All” by Jamey Johnson
9. “I Won’t Back Down” by Brothers Osborne
10. “Refugee” by Wynonna Judd & Lainey Wilson
11. “Angel Dream No. 2” by Willie Nelson & Lukas Nelson
12. “Learning To Fly” by Eli Young Band
13. “Breakdown” by Ryan Hurd feat. Carly Pearce
14. “Yer So Bad” by Steve Earle
15. “Ways To Be Wicked” by Margo Price feat. Mike Campbell
16. “Mary Jane’s Last Dance” by Midland
17. “Free Fallin’” by The Cadillac Three feat. Breland
18. “I Need To Know” by Marty Stuart And His Fabulous Superlatives
19. “Don’t Come Around Here No More” by Rhiannon Giddens feat. Silkroad Ensemble and Benmont Tench
20. “You Wreck Me (Live)” by George Strait
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ABOUT PETTY COUNTRY:
Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers was one of the most singular and distinctly American bands. Beyond the west coast Rock-Folk jangle, San Francisco psychedelia and a blast of British invasion, the south’s influence was a constant throughout Petty’s songwriting in his words, truths and especially his defiance and dignity. Petty Country: A Country Celebration of Tom Petty draws on all the aspects and flavors of the Gainesville-raised icon’s roots and leans into the genre that defines the region, bringing the top talent in Country and Americana music together to create a 20-song tribute to Petty’s dynamic musical legacy (out June 21 via Big Machine Records). Executive produced by Scott Borchetta (Big Machine Label Group), George Drakoulias (Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, The Black Crowes) and Randall Poster (Wes Anderson, Skyfall) with the oversite of the late icon’s daughter, Adria Petty, the collection pulls from across various realms and seasons of music to create a full picture of Petty’s impressive catalog. Artists lending their talents to the project include: Dierks Bentley, Brothers Osborne, Luke Combs, Steve Earle, Wynonna Judd, Lady A, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Carly Pearce, Thomas Rhett, George Strait, Chris Stapleton, Lainey Wilson and many more. True to the originals, true to what those songs could be, Petty Country, like Traveling Wilbury, shows vast the influence and reach of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee and highlights the previously unseen breadth and Country reach of Petty’s songs.
