MANCHESTER, NH – Tom Petty’s untimely passing in 2017 sent shockwaves throughout the music world—for fans and artists, alike.
But at The Rex Theatre in Manchester on Friday, Oct. 2, his legacy was resurrected—and revered—by a group of New Hampshire musicians who did exactly what Petty spent the span of five decades doing himself.
They rocked the hell out of his tunes.
The organizer of the event, emcee and “Granite State of Mind” radio host Rob Azevedo, had a strange prescience approaching the tribute.
“On the very same night of his death, three years later, the songs chosen will creep deep into your heart and leave you weepy at times,” he said. “At other times, you will be singing at the top of your lungs.”
It proved a poignant prognostication, and the musicians didn’t disappoint.
The evening kicked off with The Jonny Friday Band playing a raucous version of “Runnin’ Down a Dream” from Petty’s 1989 solo album “Full Moon Fever.” Friday said Petty’s influence left an indelible impression on him.
“[Petty’s] lyrics, Mike Campell’s lead guitar playing and the simplicity of four-chords—and the truth—made Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers one of my favorite bands of all-time,” Friday said.
Concord-bard Lucas Gallo followed with a contemplative acoustic set that included a mash-up of “Last Dance with Mary Jane” and “Breakdown,” where Friday joined him on stage to layer some of the aforementioned Mike Campell solo licks.
For Gallo, Petty’s music remains transcendent. “There are many songs that live deep in my subconscious. He is one of those cultural strings that connect us through space and time,” he said.
If Tom Petty and Joey Ramone had illegitimate love-children, they appeared in the form of The Graniteers, whose edgy punk-version of “Yer So Bad” sent tremors through The Rex. For Graniteers bassist Monica Grasso, covering Petty’s songs made for a perfect blend of rock and punk.
“Tom’s simplicity and uniqueness always drew me to him,” said Grasso. “He definitely had his own style. He was a simple, straightforward musician, and I think it’s safe to say that we take a lot away from that.”
Derry’s Becca Myari then lent her dulcet voice to the tribute, covering “Free Fallin’” and a deeper cut from Petty’s 1994 classic “Wildflowers,” an arresting version of “Cabin Down Below.”
An amalgam of the musicians next took the stage for a handful of songs, including a show-stopping cover of “Stop Draggin My Heart Around” with Grasso and The Jonny Friday Band’s Jenny Lynne Hurley on lead vocals.
“We all came together to celebrate Tom’s legacy. But it helps that we all genuinely like each other,” Friday said.
Manchester’s Who Knows What finished the evening with a high-energy set that included “Don’t Come Around Here No More” and a bone-rattling “Refugee.”
As an encore, the musicians took the stage for the evening’s swan song, and the audience joined to sing “I Won’t Back Down,” a song that seemed every bit as relevant now—especially as our nation battles the current pandemic—as it was when it was released.
Ultimately, the night proved to be an apt tribute to both Petty and the people who attended.
“I see how much Tom Petty’s music brings people together, and I can appreciate that myself,” said Myari. “As a musician whose goal is to unite people in music, he accomplished that task a hundred times over.”
And Azevedo—with his crystal ball—seemed to hit the nail on the head.
“If you missed it, well, you missed it. And there is no getting it back,” he said. “You wanted to be here. Trust me.”
