Into the great wide open: Tom Petty’s greatest songs

Damn the torpedoes.
Damn the torpedoes.
Image: AP Photo/Mark Humphrey
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Update at 5:30pm ET on Oct. 2: This story has been corrected. Los Angeles police say they have no information on Tom Petty.

Update at 12:05am ET on Oct. 3: A statement from Petty’s family obtained by BuzzFeed confirms the singer died at 8:40pm PT on Oct. 2.

Tom Petty, leader of the Heartbreakers, and onetime Traveling Wilbury, suffered cardiac arrest and was rushed to a Los Angeles hospital Sunday.

(An initial report from CBS News, citing information from the Los Angeles police department, had said Petty had died. Police have since retracted that statement.)

Petty, 66, has sold over 80 million records as a rock frontman, including the Heartbreakers’ 12-time platinum greatest-hits album. Here are a few examples of Petty’s best work, showcasing just what has made him so popular over a 40-year career that has included 18 Grammy nominations and three wins:

I Won’t Back Down

Free Fallin’

You Don’t Know How It Feels

Learning To Fly

Mary Jane’s Last Dance

Runnin’ Down A Dream

Don’t Come Around Here No More

Handle With Care

End Of The Line

And in case you want to take Petty with you into the great wide open, here’s a quick Spotify playlist of some his best work: