Tom Petty passing away brought back a lot of memories and sadness. For me, it was a reminder of days past filled with ideals and future that I could make.
I was a freshman at college, my second roommate Kyle was a skinny, long haired rocker. He studied Mechanical Engineering. He drove a Monza with a V8. More importantly he listened to music that was totally different to what I had grown up hearing. I heard albums by Black Sabbath, Aerosmith, the Who, Nazareth and eventually Tom Petty. It was early 1980 when he started playing Damn the Torpedoes. It wasn't my style at all. In those days you listened to the entire album on vinyl or tape. You listened a lot. Sometimes you sat by the record player and moved the needle, but generally you listened a lot. I started to appreciate the music and the innovation of Tom Petty. Breakdown is what really happened.
This time in my life, I did some good things and some not so good.
What I learned was that I had not one to blame for anything that I did or didn't do. I regret what I didn't do.
Tom Petty this past weekend was totally overwhelmed on TV and social media because of the incident in Las Vegas. A tragedy that will be remembered for awhile. It will be a piece of American history that is replayed over and over, and less so as the years pass. Much like 9/11, it will become an annual memory with less and less impact on the coming generations.
Tom Petty will sell a lot of music during this week. Probably his greatest hits albums.
Much like music, history is a greatest hits event. You have to survey the entire history of America to understand what makes the country great.
If you want to pay tribute to Tom Petty listen to an entire album or 2 a few times. Understand the songs to understand the vision and the man. Don't just play a hit or 2.
America, remember why your country came to be. There is a lot of sacrifice for what we perceived to be right, but there was a lot sacrificed for what was really right. Play the entire album, just not a few songs to know America.
