Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers play Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida on May 6, 2017. Credit: Chris Rodroguez
Just before his death, Tom Petty was mapping out an intimate tour celebrating his second solo album Wildflowers. He even got Norah Jones to agree to appear at a few shows. Floridaโ€™s patron saint of Americana was also working on a reissue of the Rick Rubin-produced record (which emerged in 2020), that would display Pettyโ€™s original, double-album vision that Warner Brothers Records rejected.

Some of us had $75 saved for those tour tickets on Oct. 2, 2017, but at the very least, WMNF Tampa 88.5-FM continues to host an annual, locally-built birthday tribute to one of the truest rock stars of all time.

Though Tommyโ€™s birthday isnโ€™t until Oct. 20, the demographic may widen at the Skipperdome this weekend thanks to โ€œLove Is A Long Roadโ€ making waves in the recent โ€œGrand Theft Auto 6โ€ trailer.

Tickets to WMNF’s Tom Petty tribute concert at Skipperโ€™s Smokehouse in Tampa on Saturday, Oct. 5 are still available and start at $20.
Readers are invited to submit their own events to Creative Loafing Tampa Bayโ€™s things to do calendar.

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Josh Bradley is Creative Loafing Tampa's resident live music freak. He started freelancing with the paper in 2020 at the age of 18, and has since covered, announced, and previewed numerous live shows in...