I was very sad about the death of Tom Petty. He was originally famous in the 70s but I didn’t really learn to appreciate him until Full Moon Fever. Runnin’ Down a Dream got played on my Walkman over and over again.
I saw Petty in concert four times. The first was 8/24/1995 at Merriweather Post, then again there on 7/27/2005. At that show, I won ‘upgraded’ tickets after getting in, and got to sit much closer.
Then, in Bristow, I saw him on 6/12/2006 with Stevie Nicks (which I wrote about) where I got really good seats, and once more on 6/8/2008.
When musicians pass away, especially ones that I love, I take solace in the fact that they left behind wonderful music that I can listen to whenever I want. I feel this way about many of the artists who died recently, including David Bowie, Prince, and Chester Bennington (I’m grateful I got to see Linkin Park in concert a few years ago). In the arts, it’s way easier to more frequently enjoy good music than a movie, book, or artwork. I’ll be listening to Petty for the rest of my life.