Compared with recent Super Bowl halftime shows, Tom Petty’s appearance at Super Bowl XLII was a fairly low-key affair. It was enough that he ran through “American Girl,” “I Won’t Back Down,” “Free Fallin’” and “Runnin’ Down a Dream” in a performance that lasted 12 minutes and left everybody Googling for more.
Petty kicked things off with “American Girl,” a 1976 song from the Heartbreakers self-titled debut album. It’s a song that just doesn’t age. He followed that up with the aggressive “Won’t Back Down,” from 1989’s “Full Moon Fever.” Next up was “Free Fallin’,” probably the top commercial single song Petty ever produced, also from “Full Moon Fever.” Then the rocker and his band capped it off with a rousing performance of “Runnin’ Down a Dream,” the third straight song from “Full Moon Fever” to close out a strong four-song performance.
The 2008 game in Glendale, Arizona., was memorable for other things, such as the New England Patriots’ bid for a 19-0 season falling short and David Tyree’s miraculous catch for the New York Giants. Against that backdrop, it’s easy to forget that Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers delivered a great show, hitting on some of his best material.
0:15 – American Girl 3:29 – I Won’t Back Down 5:54 – Free Fallin’ 9:19 – Runnin’ Down a Dream
The Fat Angel Sings 