Today’s episode is a fan chat with a musician and podcaster who I’ve gotten to know a little over the last 12 months or so and wanted to learn more about. Greg Wolfe, or Wolfie as he’s more commonly known in the podcast universe, is a bass player and band leader for the Connecticut-based band Accidental Breakdown. He’s also one of the co-hosts of the Regarding Series of podcasts which breaks down a much-maligned album each season to see if it has any redeeming qualities. It’s a show I’ve been lucky to guest on a couple of times and I’ve always enjoyed Wolfie’s insights when we’ve chatted.

We talk Lou Reed, Bob Marley, starting a lifetime of music on bass guitar, the value of playing with people who are better than you, and of course, Tom Petty!

We talk about Tom being the quintessential American rocker and how Petty resonates with you at different stages in your life.

You can find Wolfie on Soundcloud here: https://soundcloud.com/greg-wolfe-927450616

And you can tune in to the Regarding Series here: https://go.goodpods.com/KrTXAN

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

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyproject

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/tompettyproject.bsky.social

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyproject

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@thetompettyproject

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

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way and when you’re looking for Tom’s music, please visit the official YouTube channel first and go to tompetty.com for official merchandise.

A last very special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research. And further thanks to Warren Zanes for his outstanding book "Petty, the Biography".

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producer: Paul Roberts

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

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

There’s a weight to the arrangement of this song, accentuated by that heavy kick pattern that Steve Ferrone opts for, along with Tom’s deliberate persistence in landing on the root note at the end of his phrases that makes this one compelling. It’s also noteworthy in not really having a defined chorus. We do have that A section and B section, but I wouldn’t necessarily call it a chorus, then you have a very short bridge at the end so you have an ABABAC structure that just adds to the unresolved tension and unease that pervades this little hidden gem of a song.

Song : https://youtu.be/x49C_T102iM

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

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Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/tompettyproject.bsky.social

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyproject

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@thetompettyproject

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

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way and when you’re looking for Tom’s music, please visit the official YouTube channel first and go to tompetty.com for official merchandise.

A last very special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research. And further thanks to Warren Zanes for his outstanding book "Petty, the Biography".

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producer: Paul Roberts

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

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

Welcome to a special episode of the Tom Petty Project where I’m going to take a break from our usual scheduling to pay tribute to one of the most influential performers of all time. I am your host and today’s episode is dedicated to the life and work of Ozzy Osbourne.

NOTE: There is some profanity in this episode, when quoting Ozzy.

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

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyproject

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/tompettyproject.bsky.social

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyproject

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@thetompettyproject

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

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way and when you’re looking for Tom’s music, please visit the official YouTube channel first and go to tompetty.com for official merchandise.

A last very special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research. And further thanks to Warren Zanes for his outstanding book "Petty, the Biography".

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producer: Paul Roberts

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

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

It’s often been remarked that Mike sometimes sounds like Tom when he sings. If you listen to the Dirty Knobs albums you do hear some of those inflections peeking out from time to time, as you’d expect. But this goes both ways and I think Tom actually sounds a lot like Mike on About to Give Out - particularly in the verses. If you heard this on a Dirty Knobs record I don’t think you’d immediately catch that it was Tom and not Mike.

Song : https://youtu.be/jerrKK0LRS0

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

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyproject

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YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyproject

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@thetompettyproject

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

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way and when you’re looking for Tom’s music, please visit the official YouTube channel first and go to tompetty.com for official merchandise.

A last very special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research. And further thanks to Warren Zanes for his outstanding book "Petty, the Biography".

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producer: Paul Roberts

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

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

"Pharmacists aren't here to save rock and roll. They don't have the budget, or the jackets. But they are *trying*, in a landscape where most bands are too busy refreshing their socials to finish a bridge.

Rock music doesn't die - it just downsizes. And Pharmacists are out here propping it up with their own shoulders, one open wound at a time."

Those are words of KWR Radion DJ Jim McCaulty, and I thought they might serve as a good jumping off point for my chat today with Will Porteous

Will has been on the show before and we sat down to talk all about his band Pharmacists and the route he’s taken back into recording and performing, before we moved on to chat about his thoughts on this season’s album, Echo.

WARNING : There’s a fair bit of profanity in this one as that’s just the way we tend to talk to each other, but it’s not gratuitous or aggressive so hopefully it’s OK for y’all!

Pharmacists Singles : https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9JRklgBG7NxPkI4Dmoj9tv89ZrUzZplW

Follow Will on Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/pharmacistsband/

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

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyproject

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/tompettyproject.bsky.social

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyproject

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@thetompettyproject

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

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way and when you’re looking for Tom’s music, please visit the official YouTube channel first and go to tompetty.com for official merchandise.

A last very special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research. And further thanks to Warren Zanes for his outstanding book "Petty, the Biography".

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producer: Paul Roberts

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

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

It’s an affirmation that after thinking about this problem, there’s a conviction to follow an ideal, if not a known direction yet. Whatever the direction we end up taking, it has to be something that we have certainty of authenticity. We’re not going to take a chance on something that feels half-dressed or unfinished, or flimsy in its intent. This course has to be real. I think a lot of us spend an awful lot of our lives being pulled and pushed by bad actors, bad advice, bad politics, bad faith, and bad ideas. So we have to wait for that crack in the cultural assault to see that clear path through the maelstrom that shows itself to us. And we have to be ready for it. We have to grasp it with both hands when it comes.

Song : https://youtu.be/RjrUxTBPpf8

Randy Woods Band : https://music.youtube.com/channel/UCf-OsPLOU-bgsrrweS8YswQ

Absofunkinlutely : https://music.youtube.com/channel/UC5PzVGhMRRPUt7QXSfGl2sQ

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

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyproject

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Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyproject

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@thetompettyproject

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

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way and when you’re looking for Tom’s music, please visit the official YouTube channel first and go to tompetty.com for official merchandise.

A last very special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research. And further thanks to Warren Zanes for his outstanding book "Petty, the Biography".

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producer: Paul Roberts

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

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

 I think this is a perfectly neat, tidy, compact, fun little bouncy piece of music, with a nicely constructed, easy to remember lyric. The problem is, this one has always felt to me like Tom could crank out something like this on the way to the grocery store in about 5 minutes, on any given day of the week. It’s pretty much the only song on this album that I think is really safe and could really be considered filler.

Song : https://youtu.be/sRPPYaJYC8U

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

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyproject

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/tompettyproject.bsky.social

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyproject

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@thetompettyproject

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

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way and when you’re looking for Tom’s music, please visit the official YouTube channel first and go to tompetty.com for official merchandise.

A last very special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research. And further thanks to Warren Zanes for his outstanding book "Petty, the Biography".

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producer: Paul Roberts

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

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

It’s interesting that Mike has never dusted this one off with the Dirty Knobs and I think this goes back to him talking about how difficult a period this was and given the circumstances around its conception you can see why it might be ground he wouldn’t want to revisit. The song was a mainstay on the Echo tour however and in "Spotlight on a Heartbreaker" series, which appeared on the official website many years ago and saw fans email questions in for one of the band to answer, Mike was asked “What is your favourite song to perform live and why”, His response? “This tour I liked "I Don't Wanna Fight" 'cause I got to be king!”

Song : https://youtu.be/_Lf7eM9qCTc

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

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyproject

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/tompettyproject.bsky.social

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyproject

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@thetompettyproject

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

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way and when you’re looking for Tom’s music, please visit the official YouTube channel first and go to tompetty.com for official merchandise.

A last very special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research. And further thanks to Warren Zanes for his outstanding book "Petty, the Biography".

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producer: Paul Roberts

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

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

OK, let’s get into the song! In Conversations with Tom Petty, Tom tells author Paul Zollo “I wrote that on the drive to the studio in Bugs’ truck. My trusty roadie Bugs was driving me to work—and I got this idea for this song, “Billy The Kid.” I pulled out a pad as we were going over Topanga Canyon with all those curves, so I was really writing on the edge of the paper, and back and forth in the truck. And I wrote it all out on the way to work, and I had the tune in my head.”  Any songwriter will tell you that it’s massively exciting when that thunderbolt of inspiration hits and words or music come at you all at once. In this case, Tom had the words flowing and the tune only in his head, rather than it coming from sitting around noodling on the guitar and then framing in lyrics later. It’s especially gratifying to hear for me because that’s almost always how I write; a specific line or chorus and then some basic melody.

Song : https://youtu.be/WHVywrWjjrQ

Live from the Fonda - 2013: https://tinyurl.com/26yv2c2f

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

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyproject

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Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyproject

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@thetompettyproject

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

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way and when you’re looking for Tom’s music, please visit the official YouTube channel first and go to tompetty.com for official merchandise.

A last very special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research. And further thanks to Warren Zanes for his outstanding book "Petty, the Biography".

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producer: Paul Roberts

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

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

Today’s episode is a very focused conversation I had with my pal and previous guest Nic Apostoleries. When we chatted way back in 2022, Nic told me that when I reached Echo, that he’d love to come onto the show and talk about it. We dive specifically into the lyrics on this season’s album and speculate on possible meanings to specific songs and overall moods and intent that album may hold. As a professional in the mental health field, Nic is always very careful to present his opinions as just that, but they’re very thoughtful, very well considered and articulated opinions and it was an absolute joy to spend a couple of hours in Nic’s company again! Even though he didn’t want to focus on his music, do go check out the links in the episode notes if you do want to check out Nic’s music. It’s personal, passionate, and I love it, so maybe you’ll love it too!

NOTE: There is one curse-word in the episode, when I quote the poet, Phillip Larkin.

Nic's latest release can be found here, please do go support him! https://nicapostoleris.bandcamp.com/album/loved-ones

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

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thetompettyproject

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/tompettyproject.bsky.social

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetompettyproject

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thetompettyproject

Threads: https://www.threads.net/@thetompettyproject

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

The Tom Petty Project is not affiliated with the Tom Petty estate in any way and when you’re looking for Tom’s music, please visit the official YouTube channel first and go to tompetty.com for official merchandise.

A last very special thanks to Paul Zollo. Without his book, "Conversations with Tom Petty", this podcast wouldn't be nearly as much fun to research. And further thanks to Warren Zanes for his outstanding book "Petty, the Biography".

Producer: Kevin Brown

Executive Producer: Paul Roberts

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

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