One of the biggest names to ever impact the genre of classic rock music has to be Tom Petty. Whether solo, with his trusty band the Heartbreakers, or ed into a notable side project, the Gainesville, Florida, native and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member was a steady artistic presence for decades. Even though Petty sadly ed away suddenly due to an accidental overdose in 2017, the iconic impact of his creative stamp continues to hold a stable flame (even eight years later), and shows no signs of going up in smoke.

That enduring spirit is certainly aided by Petty's popularity as one of the best-selling musicians of all time, and his position as a vital beam in many different formats of strongly consistent radio airplay. But it also comes down to one simple factor: his songs. That may seem like an obvious point to make, but looking at the strengths of Petty's lengthy catalog reminds you of just how brawny with skillful muscle his many album tracks happen to be. Those fine examples of songwriting are aging well and still make for some stellar overall LPs.

10 "Wildflowers" - Wildflowers (1994)

A Slice Of Acoustic Carefree Love

Wildflowers was Petty's second solo album, and the first of three records he would have produced by the legendary Rick Rubin. While the 1994 effort was technically a solo album in name, it did primarily feature Petty's bandmates in the Heartbreakers as the LP's backing musicians. Originally intended to be released as a 25-song double disc, Petty's label felt like that made Wildflowers too long, and it was eventually shortened down to 15 tracks. The cut songs were eventually entirely released in 2020 on the extended album Wildflowers, Wildflowers & All the Rest.

As for the title track, it comes in and kicks Wildflowers off in a very sweetly buoyant, signature Petty country folk-tinged tone. Make no mistake, Tom Petty knew how to rock, and he always broke out the electric guitars well, but behind those big riffs, Petty also had a very soft, sincere, and heartfelt side where the lyrics could lead the way. "Wildflowers" is earnest and upbeat, but also sadly poignant in a way as well. Maybe that's due to Petty's death, but it feels like he's describing a peaceful place he's hopefully found to be free in.

9 "Mary Jane's Last Dance" - Greatest Hits (1993)

A Greatest Hit's Greatest Hit

"Mary Jane's Last Dance" first came to fruition during Petty's sessions for Wildflowers, where it was initially known as "Indiana Girl." After changing the chorus to what we know it as today, "Mary Jane" was never included on Wildflowers, but would find life on Petty and the Heartbreakers' 1993 Greatest Hits compilation. Needing some unreleased songs for the package, Petty included "Mary Jane" and a Thunderclap Newman cover of "Something in the Air." Instead of simply being a quick highlight to help boost album sales, "Mary Jane's Last Dance" became one of Petty's most successful tracks.

The song is an intoxicating fever that lingers somewhere between a dream and a nightmare.

This comes as no surprise once you give it a listen. While fans have never been able to decide if the lyrics are a reference to dealing with the breakup of a relationship or the usage of drugs, there's just something so enticing about "Mary Jane" from the moment the sharp, sinewy stings of the electric guitars kick in. The song is an intoxicating fever that lingers somewhere between a dream and a nightmare, and the wails of the harmonica throughout add a perfectly bluesy pain to the proceedings. Sit and drink it all up.

8 "American Girl" - Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers (1976)

A Capital A Classic Rock Staple

When Petty started down the path of his musical career in the early '70s, he began by forming a band in his hometown of Gainesville called the Epics (later changing to Mudcrutch). The group had area popularity but struggled to find a wider footing, and by 1975 had split up. Petty was reluctant to pursue a solo career, and by 1976 had formed a new band with fellow Mudcrutch Benmont Tench and Mike Campbell called Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. While their 1976 self-titled debut didn't immediately catch on at home, it did make a lasting statement.

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers is just a strong, straight-up, leather jackets and radiating coolness levels of rock and roll type of album. The closing song "American Girl," ironically, leads the way in that regard. It's triumphant yet listless all at once, hiding a longing sigh beneath a rave-up of rippling riffs, skittering percussion, and a jittery piano breakdown, as though "American Girl" embodies all the peppy, bombastic, maverick personality of the American Dream, with all the problems of that flawed image dwelling just beneath. It's a young band already coming into its own.

7 "Refugee" - Damn The Torpedoes (1979)

A Moody Yet Uplifting Rocker

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers released their third studio album, Damn the Torpedoes, in the latter half of 1979, and continued to grow their commercial success across the span of the record's nine tracks. In just under 37 minutes, the group showed off their signature brand calling card of rock and roll, which is lush yet loose, built up with fills of instrumentation, yet still maintaining a carefully manicured and keen sense of edge. The style won't be mistaken for punk rock anytime soon, but it certainly always showed off a variety of innate influences.

When it comes to Damn the Torpedoes opening track "Refugee," that inheritance is a mixture of murky strides through introspective organ-backed blues-pop lows, and upright drawls of Southern rock chorus heights. The narrator feels like he's trying to coax a lover into being together after the bad experiences they've had in the past, and Petty makes a convincing case. There are no unnecessary frills, studio tricks, or overcomplicated approaches. There's just the emotion of the instruments, the flowing chemistry of the musicians, and Petty bringing it all together through his unmistakable voice.

6 "I Won't Back Down" - Full Moon Fever (1989)

An Ode To Defiant Resilience

Released in 1989, Full Moon Fever was Petty's first record billed as being solo without the Heartbreakers. Though much like Wildflowers, Full Moon Fever would still feature contributions from the band, including being primarily recorded at guitarist Mike Campbell's studio. Petty would also have some All-Star-level friends lending assistance, such as The Beatles' George Harrison, Jeff Lynne from the group ELO (who'd also help produce), and famed solo artist Roy Orbison. This was likely spurred by Petty recently ing the trio back then as part of the rock supergroup The Traveling Wilburys.

ed by Harrison and Lynne (as well as Beatles drummer Ringo Starr for the music video), "I Won't Back Down" may arguably be Petty at his most straightforward. Reportedly written because of an incident of arson he'd experienced, the musician's lyrics refuse to be pushed around or to be cowed by the actions of others that he's facing. "I Won't Back Down" may be a simple message of resiliency, but the song makes for a fine anthem of defying odds and pushing back on outside pressures.

5 "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" (With Stevie Nicks) - Bella Donna (1981)

An Uneasy Relationship Upending

Fleetwood Mac vocalist Stevie Nicks released her first solo album in 1981 (entitled Bella Donna) while the band was on an extended hiatus after a tour for their 1979 release Tusk. Free of the instrumentation of her Fleetwood Mac songs typically arranged by the group's guitarist Lindsey Buckingham, Nicks was able to let Bella Donna session musicians dictate the pace of demos she provided - all except the song "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around," which began as a track Petty and his Heartbreakers had tried to cut for their 1981 album Hard Promises.

Written from the point of view of a woman attempting to end an uneasy relationship despite the connection she feels, Petty was initially told to discard the song, as the tone felt wrong in its original form. But Hard Promises producer Jimmy Iovine was also working with Nicks on Bella Donna at the time, and thought she should try to record it. They discovered that "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" worked much better as a duet, with Nicks essentially grafted into that signature Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers sound.

There isn't a hair that feels out of place putting Nicks as the lead on this song.

The result was an unsurprising success. Not only do Nicks and Petty blend and play off each other's vocal styles perfectly, but Nicks is a natural within that calmly gnarly Heartbreakers instrumental backbeat. Petty's lyrics also fit the defiant mystique of Nicks' best works about her relationship breakdown with Buckingham, making "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" never once sound like it isn't already a Stevie Nicks track. There isn't a hair that feels out of place putting Nicks as the lead on this song.

4 "Scare Easy" - Mudcrutch (2008)

A Bit Of Classic Rock Reformation

The band Mudcrutch made for a great late-era comeback story in Petty's career. Initially formed by the artist along with guitarist Tom Leadon in 1970, the group struggled to find a wider audience outside their Gainesville, Florida roots. Moving to Los Angeles in 1974 to try and sign with a major record label, Mudcrutch released a failed single before breaking up in 1975, leading to Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers rising from the ashes. Petty long felt that the band had never gotten its deserved due, though, and in 2007, he called Mudcrutch back together to try again.

What resulted was the group's long-overdue 2008 debut self-titled LP (one of two records they would release before Petty's death). Featuring lead contributions from Petty, Leadon, and keyboardist Benmont Tench, Mudcrutch is a full-band effort led by songs like "Scare Easy." The track feels like a sequel to solo Petty's "I Won't Back Down," but with a rootsier stroll that's reminiscent of both the Heartbreakers and the ease of Mudcrutch's Southern rock leanings. This was a band that still had something else to say, and even decades of inactivity couldn't slow that down.

3 "End Of The Line" - Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 (1988)

A Star-Studded Level Of Collaboration

The Traveling Wilburys may be one of the greatest supergroups ever formed, especially when it comes to the A-list names that chose to give the band its signature shape. The idea for the Wilburys initially formed when former Beatle George Harrison was having dinner with ELO's Jeff Lynne and singer Roy Orbison. Harrison needed to record a B-side for a European vinyl single release and asked Lynne for his help. Lynne agreed, and Orbison volunteered to assist as well. Bob Dylan was roped in after Harrison called him to use his studio, and Petty came along at Harrison's invitation.

The song Harrison had in mind was "Handle with Care," and a band formed after Harrison felt the track was too good to be a B-side. Their resulting album, Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1, was not only well-received but helped provide a spark to the careers of Dylan, Lynne, and Orbison (who would die suddenly just months later) at that point in time.

The experience was highly collaborative, and that can also be heard on the closing track, "End of the Line." Petty shares lead vocal duties with Lynne, Harrison, and Orbison on the track, and the country folk toe-tapper feels as free, easy, and fun as the best Wilburys songs. You won't often get a chance to hear so many great and varied voices working together so well in one place.

2 "Learning To Fly" - Into The Great Wide Open (1991)

An Exultant Free Floater

Into the Great Wide Open is the eighth studio album from the Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers catalog, and the second Petty produced with Jeff Lynne following his 1989 solo debut Full Moon Fever. Much like a lot of the band's output over the years, Into the Great Wide Open continued Petty and the group's knack for consistently strong and memorable material, led by the title track as well as the soaring "Learning To Fly."

Acting as the first single from the record, "Learning To Fly" has an acoustic rock sound with the type of glossy polish that would've also fit in well on Full Moon Fever. This is likely due to the production contributions of Lynne, giving the song an almost pop-leaning veneer. But Petty's sincerity still bleeds through, giving the listener an opportunity to connect with his lyrics about overcoming struggle and dealing with both the highs and the lows in life. "Learning To Fly" feels like it still takes flight, even without wings.

1 "Free Fallin'" - Full Moon Fever (1989)

A Gentle Acoustic Strummer Heartbreak

Another highlight from Tom Petty's 1989 first solo album Full Moon Fever easily has to be the dreamy ache of the opening track, "Free Fallin'." The song feels warm and magical in a way, but also has this inner sadness of longing within it. The track has been said to be about some of the things Petty would see while traveling in California, and "Free Fallin'" certainly has that sensation of golden, nostalgic sunlight and a somewhat carefree nature.

Underneath that is Petty acting as the lyrical escapist to a relationship.

Underneath that is Petty acting as the lyrical escapist to a relationship, either between two people or about a person's feelings for this sunny place, depending on how you observe it. The breakup of the way the words free and fallin' are sung in the chorus adds to the overall feeling of the narrator's depression. Is this person free of the chains they left behind, or did that change only lead to them falling from the sky? Is Icarus soaring, or are his wax wings melting from the sun? There's a tremendous creative ambivalence by Tom Petty here.