How did you find TPATH?

[Aimee Wilbury]

I found 'em through the Wilburys. I found the Wilburys through George. I found George through the Beatles. I found the Beatles through a neighbor.

So, technically, I found him through the neighbor. :p

[Flower]

My uncle had Damn the torpedoes record. I seen this good looking guy with awsome blond hair. And thats all she wrote for me.Now 20 + years. I remember the day like it was yesterday.:1luvu::049::060:

[surfnburn]

I heard them on the radio about 20+ years ago.

[Relic]

Well,

Tom dated my mother once and.........

But seriously, Tom's music on the FM radio has been a part of my life ever since his music started getting played.

Then, not so very long ago, my sweetie Athena tempted me with tickets to go see Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers perform live. I've been 'addicted' to the live rock and roll experience ever since.

Its all HER fault! (And I love her for it)

The great thing about it all is that we are now making time in our busy lives to see live music on a regular basis. All kinds of bands. One artist leads you to another, who in turn also leads you to more in a never ending chain of musical greatness.

Looking back, I wonder how I could have lived for so long without live music as a regular part of my life. Its practically a food group now.

[Echosoftom]

My brother in law invited me to go to a concert. It turned out to be the Damn The Torpedoes tour at the L.A. Forum. I was so blown away! I bought the album and the rest is history.

[AmyLou]

^ I looked a few feet in front of Sharon, and there they were! :)

I prefer to think of it as - how did TPATH find me??? ;)

[AndreaM]

Used to hear them on the radio enough around the age of 14, that I wondered, 'Well, who's this guy/group?' So with money I got for Christmas that year (1981) I bought the album by TPATH that had most of the songs I had been hearing, Hard Promises. And I absolutely loved it! And I wasn't completely impressed by Tom's looks on the cover pic (his hair looks kind of greasy, and his ears seem huge elfin/alien things!), but that LP had the best innersleeve pictures EVER! He was so blond, so intense, so talented, and so . . . slinky!:heart:

[conmae]

I had heard a few of the songs and then one late night happened upon Tom Snyder interviewing Tom Petty. I was 12 years old and have had TPATH as a huge part of my life ever since...

[LizzieB]

I can picture it like it was yesterday. I was at the beach for spring break my senior year of high school, 1980. A group of people from my school were hanging out and one guy put on a cassette - DTT. As soon as I heard Refugee, I was like, "Who is that?", and I was forever hooked.

[Charlie T.Wilbury]

i found one of my moms cds their Greatest Hit cd and ever since then i've been a petty freak

[kelly]

oooh. This is tough. I think I first heard "American Girl" in the movie "Fast Times at Ridgemont High." I never bought an album until Full Moon Fever, which was about when I really became a fan. And I don't really come from concert-going folk. The first time I saw a TPATH show was July 2001 - I bought my Dad tickets for Father's Day. We sat on the lawn and it rained on us, but the adventure began right there and then. I think my Dad had a lot to do with my madness - I think he was a fan first, and I remember these countless ENDLESS weekend car trips when I was a kid, where he always played Tom Petty (or the Traveling Wilburys) tapes in the car and he and I always sang along. But I totally started the concert thing. He hasn't bought a ticket since I don't know when!

[Lindorie]

I found 'em through the Wilburys. I found the Wilburys through George. I found George through the Beatles. I found the Beatles through a neighbor.

So, technically, I found him through the neighbor. :p

:D Well...
I found TP&TH :heart: through the Wilburys. I found the Wilburys through George. I found George through the Beatles. I found the Beatles through Monty Python (and The Rutles). I found Pythons and Rutles through Star Wars (don't ask).
Pretty good. :D

[MJ§LastDance]

^ Haha! When you find a good musician you always find another.

But for me it was different.
It was Halloween and my mom and I were watching something like "The most scary music videos" on TV. :D
I just waited for the Thriller video and after it was up, I wanted to turn the TV off but my mom said, wait!
The moderator said, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers... Mary Jane´s Last Dance... but I didn´t really pay attention. I´ve never heard of them before. My mother said, oh that´s a great song, turn it up! :003:
So I turned it up and we watched the video. And when Tom carried Kim into his house, I thought, heyyy! I know this video! I asked my mom if that is the video where she´s opening her eyes in the end and he doesn´t recognize it and walks away. So she said yes it is, and I remembered that I had watched it when I was little, 6 or 7 years old and I was so sad about the video and everytime it was up I screamed, turn around, she´s alive!!! LOL
Ok, this wasn´t that interesting, but that´s how it all started and I think it´s funny that I remembered that video so well. I must have been, even back then, fascinated about it. I was just too young to fall in love, lol. I wish I´d been older.
So I looked for the video on YouTube and watched it again and again and I just loved that song so much. I was lucky, because my mom had the "Anthology Through The Years" with so many other great songs.

[Aimee Wilbury]

Which song of theirs made you want to find out more about them?

I know this is TP solo, but for me its "I Won't Back Down." Actually, it was the video. :)

[Ladywiz]

Hmmm....I bought the Greatest Hits album years and years ago because I buy a lot of greatest hits albums, its a good way to get a sample of an artist's works. But I knew I already liked "Refugee" and the other hits I had heard from TPatH. Then the Wilburys came. Being a Beatle and ELO fan I was all about George and Jeff back then, but "blondie" kept getting my attention, hahaha! So I bought the Full Moon Fever album. And I went to see TPatH for the Full Moon Fever (or was it Great Wide Open?) tour. Life got REALLY busy for a few years and I was overwhelmed with musical acts due to my job back then. Years passed............see them passing?............and I heard about the Highway Companion album and FINALLY I fell hard for "blondie" last year. I saw TPatH last year and when Tom said, "Will you go with me people?" Well--I WENT! And I have been so happy---even felt YOUNG and FREE again.

Thanks, TPatH!

[EpiphanyDH]

Around 1985 I heard for the first time the song "Rebels". I thought, Good God that is one of the greatest things I've ever heard in my life! Who the hell is that?!! When I discovered it was Tom and the band, I thought Oh Yeah! I know them, that's the blonde guy in The Waiting video. I had liked them before but was pretty casual about it, I hadn't really heard that much from them yet.

Then I heard "Don't Come Around Here No More". Oh man oh man that searing guitar at the end... I was hooked. Got "Southern Accents" and loved it and then all the rest. And then I had to see the video of "Pack Up The Plantation". I can't even say on here what that did to me. What a fantastic show and the CD as well. "Shout" on there absolutely blew my mind. Devastating performance, the absolute best. Still love it to death! I had seen so many bands live but they certainly were the best I've ever seen and that was just on video.

Hooked I was and hooked I will forever be... :045:

[TheWildOne]

Once upon a time I had this boyfriend that I met when I was a junior in high school (1972-1973). Then he ran away and joined the Navy (or re-joined, there was some sort of mystery there that I never got the whole gist of). Anyway, he ended up in California with the Navy. We split up, he stayed in California for a few years, got married, had a baby, eventually he and his wife split, and eventually he came back home to Houston. And eventually he looked me up and we started seeing each other again. This is in 1978. So one day, he shows up with a CASSETTE tape, and says, 'Hey you gotta hear these guys, I saw them when I was in California'. So the tape was 'You're Gonna Get It' and the 'guys' were Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers! I liked the album a lot: Too Much Ain't Enough, I Need To Know, Listen To Her Heart!! And THEN, TPATH came to Houston and played at The Houston Music Hall, and we went to see them. I was hooked for life! Small venue, young, energetic band, it was an amazing show! It was 'American Girl' that totally sucked me in then and still does today. I LOVE that opening guitar 'jangle'! So I am still here today with TPATH. And that boyfriend, well he didn't last long the second time around either! But I sure have to thank him for turning me on to TPATH!

[Barnburner]

I had just turned seventeen and I was in the middle of a major depression. I remember riding home with several other Garland-area girls from our prestigeous (translation: Snob City) all-girls school in North Dallas. My friend had the radio on the classic rock station, and all of a sudden, I heard this voice singing, "And I'm free ... free fallin' ..." And, holy cow, I felt like somebody had just cut through the fog around me. God knows, I felt like I was doing a free fall most of the way through high school ... Anyway, about midway through the song, I asked, "Who is that?" My friend turned slightly and said, in the most disinterested voice she could muster, "I think it's Tom Petty." That weekend, I walked to the nearby Wally World, bought the recently released Greatest Hits tape, and I got hooked in one hell of a hurry!

[Aimee Wilbury]

LOL, well, I started my Wilburys forum a few months ago. A few weeks later, it was going good -- but they were posting about solo Wilbury songs. I thought "If I want to be a good Wilbury forum admin, I better listen to the other Wilburys stuff!" and there we go. :) The first song I got was "I Won't Back Down".

[wildgator]

I was watching MuchMusic one day while vacuuming and this hot looking blonde guy comes on the screen with this Alice and Wonderland video. I stopped the vacuum and sat down and watched it. I wrote the name of the band down on a sheet on paper. The next time I went to the music store I picked up the recently release Greatest Hits album. The rest is history.

[asakitten]

^ That video was the first video I saw. It also got me into a lot of trouble with my mom. She didn't want us to watch or hear that kind of music. I was so into the video I didn't see her come in. She lectured me for an hour about how bad the music was from a religious view point. After that I listen to them whenever I got the chance.

[jawallac]

I can't remember exactly what it was or when. I remember hearing 'Breakdown' on the radio in the mid-late 70s and loving the song. I remember really liking the picture of TP on the cover of that first LP. I don't remember if I bought the first LP first or the 2nd - it's all a blur anymore. But I do know I played those LPs constantly!

[Pettylicious81]

I must tell mine. Well my dad always collected top 10 singles and albums and I always knew Tom and the Heartbreakers existed but never really got into them till, oh, last year when a friend of mine who is on this forum (Aimee) finally convinced me to give Tom a shot and well...the rest is history

[FattyPumbaa]

My Grandma is where I 1st heard Tom Petty so I've pretty much been listening to it for my whole life

[Echosoftom]

Welcome to the farm, FattyPumbaa! I love that avatar!

[HeartbreakerFan]

My first recollection of TP and the Heartbreakers is hearing American Girl on the radio. I remember seeing them on The Midnight Special, but the song that hooked me (or I should say the video) was Refugee. I remember thinking what a really rocking group with such a cute keyboard player and drummer. I have loved their music ever since.

[EddieRebel27]

Yeah, Refugee is one of those classic music videos, ya know? My first encounter with TPATH music came when I was 12 years old....seeing "You Don't Know How it Feels" video on MTV. From that day forward, I started playin the guitar and following Tom's music...haven't looked back since.

[Flower]

What is it with Tom Petty and 12 year olds? ^
I was 12 when I fell for TPATH ( some years ago):109:

[EddieRebel27]

Yeah...I know what you mean...I think the "12" year old thing is about the age where you start to really find your own interests...instead of completely latching on to just what your friends like.

I am celebrating my 50% Anniversary, if you could call it that...I just turned 25 and now have been listening to Tom for just over half of my life.....and it's all the better for it!

[Athena]

In 1977, when I was 15, I was at a neighbor's house "partying" and he was playing this album that I fell in love with immediately! I asked who it was and he handed me the album cover, their first album. I saw the picture of Tom on the front and fell in love with him immediately!! That was all she wrote for me. They have been my favorite band ever since.

I also remember that day well because my friend had a black light in his bedroom and I realized that it made my top transparent so my white bra was glowing through it. I was so embrarrsed I stayed lying on my stomach on the bed the whole time, drooling over the album cover. :055: