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Everyone should see Tom Petty in concert. He has always been on my bucket list, and we were able to put a satisfying check mark by his name when he performed with Joe Walsh at the Chespeake Arena in Oklahoma City. We took Michelle's parents who were also fans of both Walsh and Petty. Joe's vocals were hard to understand and he mostly let his backup girls do most of the singing on the choruses of his songs, but his guitar playing made up for it in a big way. Inbetween shows, they played videos of Tom Petty and his crew in different parts around the city and so the crowd was fully revved up when the Travelling Wilbury stepped on stage.

Petty controlled the crowd with the greatest of ease, bringing the crowd to ovation with a wink or a tip on one of his worn out hats. He played for nearly 3 hours and I knew all but 2 of the 20 plus songs he performed. And just when you think he had made it through his whole catalog, he would crank out Refugee, Running Down a Dream or American Girl. His set was more like an MTV storytellers set with pianos and other instruments strung out on stage, and a treasure chest that he ended up unlocking and opening to reveal his Mad Hatter headwear he worn in the Alice in Wonderland themed video "Don't Come Around Here no More". My favorite song he performed was the acoustic Wildflowers, followed by the singalong "free Fallin" which was choreographed with LED's that dropped and fell between the verses and the chorus. Tom is truly a rock star, yet humble and appreciative along the way making for one really great night. Go see him if he comes to your town.