Click On The Picture to see a really HUGE picture.
You may even spot TFD in the audience!
You may well be wondering why I am writing a post about the Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers concert at the Albert Hall last Wednesday. It was the 5th (or was it the 6th?) that Treefrogdemon has been to since May. The reason is that I went too.
I was curious to see what all the fuss was about, more than anything. (She knows this!) I’ve sort of liked TP&H since the early 80s, in pretty much the same way as I liked Bruce Springsteen, Bruce Hornsby etc… great American R&R, but wondering now whether it’s just a little bit dated, you know? Of course I didn’t particularly know, and hadn’t made it my business to find out, so I went to the concert on Wednesday, to see what the big deal was and why TFD is so enthusiastic.
The concerts have received good reviews in the press. This is not surprising. Tom, Mike, Scott and the rest of the band were consummate professionals and highly skilled musicians. There was not one bum note for the whole 2 and a half hours they played, even when Tom stumbled over a microphone cable; he recovered from that really fast. The set was excellent – lots of hits that I recognised and other stuff too that I did not. I was so impressed with the growth in their sound; the richness and the sophistication that wasn’t there in the 80s. There was no stagnation and no sense of a bunch of aging rockers coming out to thrash out their old hits in a mind-numbing way.
There was also a surprise.
Steve Winwood came out and joined them. Playing guitar and singing Can’t Find My Way Home, then moving over to keyboards to sing and play Gimme Some Loving.
The concert was an absolute treat. Incidentally, Helen Mirren was sitting directly behind us. TFD thought it wasn’t her because she looked too young. I am sure it was (as were Anne-Marie and Brad with us). She’s had work. 
My faith in the frog was not wanting. Thanks TFD!
oh I love Can’t Find My Way Home! Glad to hear that you enjoyed yourself, it sounds like a great gig. I saw Helen Mirren on TV presenting a bit of the Queen’s horses thing and thought she might have visited a surgeon, she still looks good though.
Wow, Steve Winwood and Helen Mirren !
OK, it was Helen Mirren – it says so at tompetty.com. Sorry, SR! Nick Lowe and Jimmy Page were also there.
Nick Lowe !
And Glyn Johns and his son Ethan.
A commenter on the music pages in The G posted that he ran into Jimmy Page in the restrooms, so it must be true
It sounds great ! ! ! I wish I could have joined you ! ! !
You would have loved it. It was awesome!
So I see your pic of Steve W is about 12 times the size of your TP&TH one.
I did that because I knew that you weren’t done with the TP concerts and would be adding more. And I wanted to highlight the guest appearance. Besides, if you click on the TP pic it is HUGE!
I have made some small modifications which I hope meet with your approval
Plus, I’m in it (you forgot to say).
Look again!
Ha!
Okay, there he is, folks! Cute as a button.
Yeah, that’s him. I may do an IoW post, in case you’re not tired of hearing about TP yet. (But it will be mostly about mud.)
Let’s wallow a while…
Or you could write a post about what happened at Glastonbury this weekend.
I don’t understand how you can watch those 1977/8 vids and not be moved, though. If I’d seen either of those at the time it wouldn’t have taken me so long.