Title: Tom Petty dies of heart attack -- age 66 Source:
Internet URL Source:[None] Published:Oct 2, 2017 Author:YouTubes Post Date:2017-10-02 16:40:35 by Willie Green Ping List:*Music*Subscribe to *Music* Keywords:None Views:1076 Comments:12
Before recording Full Moon Fever, an arsonist burned down Tom Petty's house while he was in it with his family and their housekeeper. They escaped and spent much of the next few months driving between hotel rooms and a rented house, but Petty was badly shaken.
It was on these drives that he came up with many of the songs for the album, and the fire was a huge influence, especially on this song. Petty felt grateful to be alive, but also traumatized - understandable since someone had tried to kill him.
"I Won't Back Down" was his way of reclaiming his life and getting past the torment - he said that writing and recording the song had a calming effect on him.
The arsonist was never caught, which made Petty's plight even more challenging. As for motive, there was no direct connection made, but 11 days earlier, Petty won a lawsuit against the B.F. Goodrich tire company for $1 million. Goodrich wanted to use Petty's song "Mary's New Car" in a TV commercial, and when he wouldn't let them, their advertising agency commissioned a copycat song that the judge felt was too similar. http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=1070
