(Credits: Far Out / The Traveling Wilburys)
Tom Petty never took a second of his time in the spotlight for granted.
He knew that there were millions of people who were responsible for getting him to the top of the musical world, and there was no way for him to possibly thank every single person during his lifetime. The only thing that he could do was live up to his name as one of the greatest songwriters of his time, but even he had a few times when he lucked out with the right kind of people like The Traveling Wilburys.
Compared to every other heartland rocker from around that time, Petty seemed to be friends with nearly every single rock and roll legend that he bothered to work with. Anyone else would have killed to have had the contacts that he did, but the idea of him coming into a Roger McGuinn recording session or going out on the road with Bob Dylan for a few years wasn’t all that out of the ordinary for him after a while.
There would still be moments when he would get starstruck, but those were few and far between. He knew not to lose his cool around some of his favourite acts for fear that they would think he was a fanboy, but even he had to slam his hands down on the mixing desk and geek out when someone like Carl Perkins walked into the control room or correct himself when referring to Johnny Cash as ‘Mr Cash’ when working with ‘The Man in Black’ on his comeback record Unchained.
If there’s one moment that solidified his legacy, though, it would be the Traveling Wilburys. He had already been a hitmaker since the late 1970s, but bringing him into a band of fellow legends was going to be a test for him. All of the band members were friends to begin with, but compared to everyone else in the group, no one had a more emotional impact on him than hanging out with George Harrison.
Even when looking back on his time, Petty felt that Harrison was sent from the heavens working with the former Beatle in the Wilburys, saying, “It was great having George Harrison as our lead guitarist — very convenient. Thank you, God. He was just the best fellow we ever met.” But it was about more than having someone that could rip up the best leads on a slide guitar whenever they played.
Compared to his fellow Fabs, a lot of what made Harrison so lovable was how honest he was. He always tried to see the world for what it was, and whenever he was hanging out with Petty, Jeff Lynne, or any of the other Wilburys, he was more than happy to take the piss out of his old band every now and again rather than put himself up on a pedestal whenever it came time to take a solo.
It’s not exactly a mistake that Petty thanked God, either. Harrison was always indebted to his spiritual beliefs up until the day he died, and he was more than happy to thank his higher power for gifting him with every day he had, whether that was the opportunity to play some music or tending to his garden.
So while Petty did his best to induct his friend into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame after his death, the real heart behind his speech came when he had the entire crowd say ‘Hare Krishna’ for his old friend. Because as much as Harrison loved the idea of playing his favourite Carl Perkins riffs with his mates, he knew that none of it would be possible without his beliefs setting him on the right track.
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