In addition to the title track, there are several mainstream rock hits: “You Don’t Know How It Feels,” “You Wreck Me,” “It’s Good To Be King,” and “A Higher Place.” The album includes familiar staples of Petty’s catalog. There is a sense of self-awareness that didn’t strike me back then, but I recognize now that I’m 50 and have lived a little myself. The whole thing is ironic, given he’s less than a year from divorce, himself heartbroken. Wildflowers is a “solo” Petty album untethered from The Heartbreakers, yet most of the band plays on nearly every tune. But upon further listening, it’s a deep, sprawling journey of reflection, regret, hope and wistful freedom. Sure, the songs are predominantly spare, relying mostly on straightforward arrangements, basic chords and his trademark, accessible melodies. The song was “Wildflowers.” It was easy.īoy, was I in for a surprise, because Wildflowers is perhaps his most complex work. I picked up my guitar and played it by ear. One night I threw the new Tom Petty record on my stereo and all of a sudden something clicked. It was also the day of the week when new albums were released.
Tuesdays were for cramming after a week of procrastination.
But I was just going through the motions, barely practicing scales in between lessons. On Wednesdays, I’d carry my Martin acoustic on a walk along the water to see my instructor at his studio not far away. I was not quite engaged, living alone, killing time, learning guitar. Back in 1994, I lived in a gentrified old mill building set on a river, a short distance from a classic New England town center.
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