Greatest Hits (Tom Petty album)

Greatest Hits is a compilation album by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, released in 1993. It is Petty's best-selling album to date and was certified 12× Platinum by the RIAA on April 28, 2015. The single "Mary Jane's Last Dance" became one of Petty's most popular songs, reaching No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. The other new song on the album is a cover of the Thunderclap Newman hit "Something in the Air". The album contains no songs from 1987's Let Me Up (I've Had Enough). However, three songs from Petty's 1989 solo album Full Moon Fever were included.

Greatest Hits
Original album cover
Greatest hits album by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Released	November 16, 1993 (1993-11-16)
Recorded	1976–1993
Genre	Rock, heartland rock
Length	65:17
Label	MCA Geffen
Producer	Mike Campbell Denny Cordell Jimmy Iovine Jeff Lynne Tom Petty Rick Rubin Noah Shark David A. Stewart
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers chronology
Into the Great Wide Open (1991) Greatest Hits (1993) Wildflowers (1994)
Alternative cover
Replacement cover, since 2008
Singles from Greatest Hits
"Mary Jane's Last Dance" Released: November 16, 1993

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Blender	[2]
Christgau's Consumer Guide	A–[3]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[4]
Entertainment Weekly	A+[5]
The Essential Rock Discography	9/10[6]
MusicHound	4.5/5[7]
Q	[8]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[9]

On its original release in November 1993, the album debuted at No. 8 on Billboard 200,[10] and first peaked at No. 5 on the chart in February 1994.[11] It reached a new peak of No. 2 following Petty's death in 2017.[12]

The new tracks "Mary Jane's Last Dance" and "Something in the Air" would prove to be the band's last recordings with drummer Stan Lynch.

Reissues

In 2008, Greatest Hits was reissued by Geffen Records. This edition replaced "Something In The Air" with "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around", Petty's duet with Stevie Nicks from her 1981 album Bella Donna. The album's photos & artwork replaced the Wildflowers and Into the Great Wide Open session photos with outtakes from You're Gonna Get It! . In 2010 the album was once again reissued, this time reverting to the original 1993 track listing but keeping the artwork from the 2008 edition. In 2017 the album was made available on vinyl for the first time since 1993.

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Original album/notes	Length
1.	"American Girl"	Tom Petty	Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 1976	3:33
2.	"Breakdown"	Petty	Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers	2:44
3.	"Listen to Her Heart"	Petty	You're Gonna Get It!, 1978	3:03
4.	"I Need to Know"	Petty	You're Gonna Get It!	2:24
5.	"Refugee"	Petty, Mike Campbell	Damn the Torpedoes, 1979	3:21
6.	"Don't Do Me Like That"	Petty	Damn the Torpedoes	2:42
7.	"Even the Losers"	Petty	Damn the Torpedoes	3:38
8.	"Here Comes My Girl"	Petty, Campbell	Damn the Torpedoes	4:25
9.	"The Waiting"	Petty	Hard Promises, 1981	4:00
10.	"You Got Lucky"	Petty, Campbell	Long After Dark, 1982	3:36
11.	"Don't Come Around Here No More"	Petty, David A. Stewart	Southern Accents, 1985	5:04
12.	"I Won't Back Down"	Petty, Jeff Lynne	Full Moon Fever, 1989	2:57
13.	"Runnin' Down a Dream"	Petty, Lynne, Campbell	Full Moon Fever	4:23
14.	"Free Fallin'"	Petty, Lynne	Full Moon Fever	4:15
15.	"Learning to Fly"	Petty, Lynne	Into the Great Wide Open, 1991	4:01
16.	"Into the Great Wide Open"	Petty, Lynne	Into the Great Wide Open	3:44
17.	"Mary Jane's Last Dance"	Petty	New song	4:33
18.	"Something in the Air"	Speedy Keen	Thunderclap Newman cover	3:21
Total length:				65:44

2008 reissue

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Original album/notes	Length
18.	"Stop Draggin' My Heart Around"	Petty, Campbell	Stevie Nicks' Bella Donna, 1981	4:03
Total length:				66:26

"Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" replaces "Something In The Air" on the 2008 reissue.

The U.K. release also includes the track "Anything That's Rock 'n' Roll", originally from the album Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, as track 3, with all subsequent tracks in the same order. The 2008 reissue has the same track listing as the American release.

Personnel

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

• Tom Petty – vocals, guitar, piano, harmonica, percussion
• Mike Campbell – guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, accordion
• Benmont Tench – keyboards, piano, backing vocals
• Ron Blair – bass guitar on tracks 1–7
• Howie Epstein – bass guitar, backing vocals on 10–12 and 15–18
• Stan Lynch – drums, percussion, backing vocals on tracks 1–11 and 15–18

Additional musicians

• George Harrison – acoustic guitar, backing vocals on track 12
• Jeff Lynne – bass guitar, guitar, guitar synthesizer, piano, keyboards, backing vocals on tracks 12–16
• David A. Stewart – sitar, keyboards, backing vocals on track 11

Uncredited musicians

• Donald "Duck" Dunn – bass guitar on "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" (2008 release)
• Dean Garcia – intro bass guitar on track 11
• Phil Jones – percussion on tracks 6–14, drums on tracks 12–14
• Jeff Jourard – guitar on track 2
• Jim Keltner – percussion on track 5
• Stevie Nicks – co-lead vocal on "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" (2008 release)
• Daniel Rothmuller – cello on track 11
• Phil Seymour – backing vocals on tracks 1–2
• Chris Trujillo – percussion on tracks 17–18
• Alan "Bugs" Weidel – "wild dog" piano on track 11
• Sharon Celani, Marilyn Martin, Stephanie Sprull – backing vocals on track 11

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1993) Peak position German Albums[13] 62 Netherlands Top 100 Albums[14] 18 Norwegian Top 40 Albums[15] 9 Swedish Top 60 Albums[16] 9 Swiss Top 100 Albums[17] 23 UK Albums Chart[18] 18 Chart (1994) Peak position Australian Top 50 Albums[19] 16 Austrian Top 75 Albums[20] 22 Canadian Top Albums[21] 4 New Zealand Top 40 Albums[22] 2 US Billboard 200[23] 5 Chart (2017) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[24] 9 Canadian Albums (Billboard)[25] 5 UK Albums Chart[26] 14 US Billboard 200[12] 2

Year-end charts Chart (2017) Position US Billboard 200[27] 116 Chart (2018) Position US Billboard 200[28] 74

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Germany (BVMI)[29]	Gold	250,000^^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[30]	4× Platinum	60,000
Norway (IFPI Norway)[31]	Gold	25,000^*
Sweden (GLF)[32]	Gold	50,000^^
United Kingdom (BPI)[33]	Platinum	300,000^^
United States (RIAA)[34]	12× Platinum	12,000,000^^
^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone

Release history

Region	Date	Label	Format	Catalog
Europe	October 30, 1993	MCA Records	double LP	MCA 10964
			Cassette	MCC 10964
			CD	MCD 10964
North America	November 16, 1993		Cassette	MCAC 10813
			CD	MCAD 10813
	May 20, 2008	Geffen Records		B0010327-02
Europe				1774395

See also

• List of best-selling albums in the United States

References

1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Greatest Hits – Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
2. "Tom Petty: Greatest Hits". Blender. Archived from the original on June 15, 2008. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
3. Christgau, Robert. "CG: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers". RobertChristgau.com. Retrieved January 2, 2013.
4. Larkin, Colin (ed.) (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th edn). London: Omnibus Press. p. 2005. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
5. Sinclair, Tom (November 19, 1993). "Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers: Greatest Hits Review". Entertainment Weekly. p. 92. Retrieved January 2, 2013.
6. Strong, Martin C. (2006). The Essential Rock Discography. Edinburgh, UK: Canongate. p. 816. ISBN 978-1-84195-827-9.
7. Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel (eds) (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 870. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
8. "Tom Petty / Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – Greatest Hits CD Album". CD Universe. Retrieved January 2, 2013.
9. "Tom Petty: Album Guide". rollingstone.com. Archived from the original on July 14, 2011. Retrieved January 2, 2013.
10. "Billboard 200". Billboard. December 4, 1993.
11. "Billboard 200". Billboard. February 5, 1994.
12. Caulfield, Keith (October 8, 2017). "Tom Petty's 'Greatest Hits' Returns to Billboard 200 Albums Chart at No. 2". Billboard. Retrieved October 8, 2017.
13. "Chartverfolgung / Petty, Tom & The Heartbreakers / Longplay". Music Line (in German). Media Control Charts. Archived from the original on 2012-10-17. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
14. "Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – Greatest Hits (Album)" (ASP). Dutch Charts. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
15. "Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – Greatest Hits (Album)" (ASP). Norwegian Charts. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
16. "Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – Greatest Hits (Album)" (ASP). Swedish Charts. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
17. "Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – Greatest Hits (Album)" (ASP). Schweizer Hitparade. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
18. "Chart Archive: Top 40 Official UK Albums Archive – 20th November 1993". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
19. "Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – Greatest Hits (Album)" (ASP). Australian Charts. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
20. "Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – Greatest Hits (Album)" (ASP). Austrian Charts. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
21. "100 Albums (CD's & Cassettes)". RPM. 59 (3). February 7, 1994. ISSN 0315-5994. Archived from the original (PHP) on 2012-10-23. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
22. "Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – Greatest Hits (Album)" (ASP). New Zealand Charts. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
23. "Greatest Hits – Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
24. "ARIA Australian Top 50 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. October 9, 2017. Retrieved October 7, 2017.
25. "Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 10, 2017.
26. "Official Album Chart: Top 100 Official UK Albums". Official Charts Company. October 6, 2017. Retrieved October 7, 2017.
27. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2017". Billboard. Retrieved December 12, 2017.
28. "Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2018". Billboard. Retrieved December 5, 2018.
29. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers; 'Greatest Hits')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
30. "New Zealand album certifications – Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – Greatest Hits". Recorded Music NZ.
31. "Norwegian album certifications – Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – Greatest Hits" (in Norwegian). IFPI Norway.
32. "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 1987−1998" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
33. "British album certifications – Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – Greatest Hits". British Phonographic Industry.
34. "American album certifications – Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – Greatest Hits". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH.