YOU RANK ME BABY, YEAH YOU RATE ME 1-2 - ILM Artist Poll #71 - Tom Petty (results)

Apparently Jim Steinman did it first, though I doubt Westerberg stole it from him. Right, not hard to come up with. But Petty was touring with the Replacements when that was their quasi-hit, there's no way he didn't pick it up from them. Not that it matters much, it was just a little weird.

From an AV Club Westerberg interview: I'd steal something back from him, if I could find something I liked.

quality zing but also LIES

For some reason, I really hate that descending 3-chord progression during the 'rebel without a clue' part. I blame smash mouth.

Paul knows he stole it from somewhere too.

"Learning to Fly" may be my absolute least favorite of Petty's hits. Something about it just feels so lazy to me, and not in the good way.

Thematically and musically, it feels like the rebound of "Free Fallin'."

there's a song on ITGWO called "All the Wrong Reasons" that's closer to a "Free Fallin'" retread.

xp It seems like it takes all the worst elements of that and "I Won't Back Down" and combines them in the least effective ways. I know when he worked with Lynne the whole idea was to work in a different, more spontaneous way and not overthink everything, but LTF just doesn't work for me. (Actually the whole ITGWO album is my least favorite.)

https://i.imgur.com/GyhNrKG.jpg

24. Wildflowers - 155 points (9 votes)
http://youtu.be/AldoDm2bV04

Love this. It's one I find myself singing in my head a lot. One of those deceptively simple songs that felt classic the first time I heard it.

so fun to play on the guitar

nice song. i don't really rate Wildflowers, but if Petty had had to make it 20 minutes shorter to fit on vinyl it would've been pretty strong. the '90s gave us so many overlong CDs from people who used to make concise albums.

Completely arbitrary recap:

40. Casa Dega
39. A One Story Town (tied)
39. Kings Highway (tied)
38. A Thing About You
37. A Face in the Crowd
36. Something Big
35. Time to Move On
34. The Wild One, Forever
33. Nightwatchman
32. Love is a Long Road
31. Walls
30. Dogs on the Run
29. You Don’t Know How It Feels
28. Insider
27. Runaway Trains
26. Southern Accents (tied)
26. Mary Jane’s Last Dance (tied)
25. Learning To Fly
24. Wildflowers

a lot of songs I don't know at all so far tbh

listen to em! they're good!

Based on the middling placement of Runaway Trains, it would appear that the Let Me Up (I've Had Enough) album is gonna get robbed.

Anyone doing a spotify list yet?

Based on the middling placement of Runaway Trains, it would appear that the Let Me Up (I've Had Enough) album is gonna get robbed.

― kornrulez6969,

"Jammin' Me" might show.

I had the same reaction to "Wildflowers" the moment I heard it: it's a classic. Apparently he wrote and recorded it in one sitting.

spotify list goes up when we hit 21 :-)

http://i.imgur.com/nKZqMnV.jpg

23. Shadow of a Doubt (A Complex Kid) - 156 points (6 votes, one #1)
http://youtu.be/1pdscKJp_58

Apparently he wrote and recorded it in one sitting.

it sounds like it. it seems unlikely that a line like "who compaaaaaaaaaaares with you" would've survived a second sitting. fucking love this song. the wild flowers, forever.

Surprised "Shadow of a Doubt" is so high, but I guess that one #1 vote gave it a kick. I didn't vote for it, but it's pretty great. (If I was gonna vote for a non-hit from Torpedoes, I would've gone with "Louisiana Rain," which is the Dirty South song Southern Accents never matched.)

"shadow of a doubt" snuck up higher on my ballot than I expected, but I wasn't the #1. great representative of the "don't bore us, get to the chorus!" ethos and a nice little rocker.

http://i.imgur.com/IIm4aTb.jpg

22. Yer So Bad - 157 points (7 votes, one #1)
http://youtu.be/WdRViFCvvUo

http://www.tbs.com/videos/cougar-town/season-6/episode-10/yer-so-bad.html

had no idea there was so much love for "yer so bad." i don't think i ever even realized it was a single with a video and everything...

http://i.imgur.com/RCwIst2.jpg

21. Crawling Back to You - 170 points (7 votes, one #1)
http://youtu.be/gxsKi9MD6Bs

god I love this song

is the highest charting song recorded in 1994?

man you guys really like this post-FMF stuff

lotta Wildflowers, still holding out hope that "You Wreck Me" made the cut

man you guys really like this post-FMF stuff

― Οὖτις,

Lots of it is better than stuff on FMF though (and better than some eighties stuff).

iirc Wildflowers is generally considered to be a pretty good record?

oh yeah

right. what Alfred said. like "yer so bad" at 22 is a lot more baffling to me personally.

I didn't vote so I can't complain but "Shadow of a Doubt" TOO LOW

"Yer So Bad" was #16 on my ballot. Would much rather hear it then most of the other FMF singles!

it also pulled a #1 and a #2, so you're in good company!

placing ahead of Insider though... all the proof you'll ever need that your poll-runner has not tampered with the results

did not vote but I'm pretty sure crawling back to you would've been my #1

http://i.imgur.com/e1xlJQy.jpg

20. I Need To Know - 171 points (9 votes)
http://youtu.be/lBuIM-ekVjA

that was the one i felt most conflicted about cutting from my ballot, so i'm glad it did well without my help

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7brDWa7xCg

Like how Campbell appears to be looking at Lynch like, "Uh, I think you have gum in your hair" on that sleeve.

This is the closest so far to matching my own ballot choice -- #18.

I looooove "I Need to Know." Lookit the ROCK.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBuIM-ekVjA

Stan Lynch looks like your lesbian big sis in so many of the early pictures.

RECAP

40. Casa Dega
39. A One Story Town (tied)
39. Kings Highway (tied)
38. A Thing About You
37. A Face in the Crowd
36. Something Big
35. Time to Move On

34. The Wild One, Forever
33. Nightwatchman
32. Love is a Long Road
31. Walls (1 shoutout for Circus, 1 shoutout for No. 3)
30. Dogs on the Run

29. You Don’t Know How It Feels
28. Insider
27. Runaway Trains
26. Southern Accents (tied)
26. Mary Jane’s Last Dance (tied)

25. Learning To Fly (1 shoutout for Live w/Stevie Nicks)
24. Wildflowers
23. Shadow of a Doubt (A Complex Kid)
22. Yer So Bad
21. Crawling Back to You
20. I Need To Know

SPOTIFY PLAYLIST: http://open.spotify.com/user/dustradio/playlist/2VZLJQ5wrhbDspcOy9Y0mR

man you guys really like this post-FMF stuff

Full Moon Fever, Into The Great Wide Open, Wildflowers and maybe She's The One all feel like the same era - sort of the commercial renaissance.

Not sure if anything post-1996 is going to place at this point.

LIKE BENNY GOODMAN!