"Make It Better (Forget About Me)" by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

Song#:  2355
Date:  06/08/1985
Debut:  85
Peak:  54
Weeks:  8
Genre:  Rock



Pop Bits:  Petty's collaboration with Eurythmics' Dave Stewart, "Don't Come Around Here No More," was an odd hit reaching #13 Pop and #2 Rock. It was helped along by an Alice in Wonderland-themed video that won an MTV Video Music Award. The song was taken from the album Southern Accents as was this second single, which was the LP's second Petty/Stewart collaboration. This effort didn't fare quite as well peaking at #12 at Rock while missing the top half of the Pop chart. However, it kept sales of the album going and eventually it would be Petty's third platinum seller.

ReduxReview:  This horn-driven tune is nothing like the psychedelic rock of "Don't Come Around Here No More." It's also a bit different from Petty's typical output. It sounds more like something that the J. Geils Band would record. While it all worked fine, it just wasn't the right choice for a single. Actually, there weren't many single contenders on the album to begin with, so it probably didn't matter what was selected. Petty had always been more of an album artist anyway, so just getting "Don't" high up the chart was a solid win.

ReduxRating:  5/10

Trivia:  In 1970, Petty formed a band called Mudcrutch and for a long while they were the house band at a local Gainsville, Florida, bar. Later in '74, the band got signed to the L.A.-based label Shelter Records and was able to issue one single. Nothing came from it and the band broke up late in '75. The following year, Petty and a couple of his Mudcrutch band mates would form Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers. Flash forward to 2007 when a wave of nostalgia found Petty reforming Mudcrutch with several of its original members. An album was recorded and released the following year. It reached #8 on the Album chart. In 2016, the band got back in the studio once again to record a follow-up. Simply titled Mudcrutch 2, the album would contain a re-recording of a song Petty originally wrote for inclusion on the Southern Accents LP titled "Trailer." The album replicated the success of the first one and reach #10. Unfortunately, it would be the last full album project to be released by Petty prior to his unexpected death in the fall of 2017.

_________________________________________________________________________________