Tom Petty, Heartbreakers Plan Summer Tour
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers will hit the road in June to promote
Echo, which comes out Tuesday (April 13), according to an itinerary
posted on the band's official website.
The two months' worth of announced dates posted begin June 14 in Grand
Rapids, Mich., and will culminate Aug. 13 in Irvine, Calif.
Petty and the Heartbreakers are in the middle of a string of club shows
in New York to promote the album's release. They played to a sold-out
crowd at Irving Plaza on Sunday, and have shows scheduled there Monday
(April 12) and Thursday.
Last month the group played seven shows at San Francisco's Fillmore
Auditorium.
During a freewheeling, two-hour set in New York on Sunday, Petty and
company played four songs from Echo -- the single
(RealAudio excerpt), which was briefly posted as an MP3 file last month,
"Swingin'," "Room at the Top" and "I Don't Wanna Fight," which featured
Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell on lead vocals.
In addition to the new songs, the band, which also includes bassist
Howie Epstein, drummer Steve Ferrone and keyboardist Benmont Tench, gave
fans a mix of hits and oddball covers. Songs by such early rockers and
forebears as Little Richard, Ricky Nelson, Slim Harpo, Booker T. and the
MGs, Them and bluegrass star Ralph Stanley were mixed in with acoustic
versions of "Even the Losers" and "I Won't Back Down"
(RealAudio excerpt) and up-tempo rock takes on "Jammin' Me" and "Runnin'
Down a Dream."
After completing the three-night stand at Irving Plaza, Petty and the
Heartbreakers will head to Europe for a week of shows.
Petty and his band taped an episode of the VH1 show "Storytellers" two
weeks ago in Los Angeles, during which Petty talked about the songwriting
process. "It's kind of like an orgasm," he said. "You know, you don't
know how you did that."
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Tour Dates:
June 14; Grand Rapids, Mich., Van Andel Arena
June 16; Cleveland, Ohio, Gund Arena
June 18; Clarkston, Mich., Pine Knob Music Theatre
June 22; Darien Center, N.Y., Darien Lake PAC
June 23; Burgettstown, Pa., Star Lake Amphitheatre
June 25; Bristow, Va., Nissan Pavilion
June 26; Camden, N.J., E Center
June 29; Hartford, Conn., Meadows Music Theatre
June 30; Holmdel, N.J., Garden St. Arts Center.
July 2-3; Wantagh, N.Y., Jones Beach Amphitheatre
July 9; Mansfield, Mass., Great Woods Center
July 21; Louisville, Ky., Freedom Hall
July 23; Noblesville, Ind., Deer Creek Music Center
July 24; Maryland Heights, Mo., Riverport Amphitheatre
July 27; Cincinnati, Ohio, Riverbend Music Center
July 28; Columbus, Ohio, Polaris Amphitheatre
July 30; Milwaukee, Wis., Marcus Amphitheatre
July 31; Tinley Park, Ill., World Music Theatre
Aug. 3; Minneapolis, Minn., Target Center
Aug. 4; Bonner Springs, Kan., Sandstone Amphitheatre
Aug. 6; Antioch, Tenn., The Pyramid
Aug. 7; Memphis, Tenn., First American Music Center
Aug. 13; Irvine, Calif., Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre