That might not mean a damn thing to some of you. That's ok, "you believe what you wanna believe."

For those of you I've become pretty close with through email, etc., over the years, you know I don't post information without any justification. With something this important to the real fans of the music, that would not be funny. I consider myself a pretty good judge of what is funny. And believe it or not, I do know when to draw the line.

I love seeing this band live. It's probably my second favorite thing to do! I still plan on being at a show or two this summer. I hope in the almost six years I've kept this site going that I've earned some credibility and proven that I can back up what I say.

It's true, nothing has been made "official," but tickets may be sold out by the time it is! I just wanted the fans who have grown to trust me to get a heads up. Maybe share a little bit about what I know about this business with them, to make sure the people who want to see this great live band do.

I've learned that people aren't what they say, they're what they do. And people talk alot. I don't. If I take the time and breath to form the words, I mean them. Unless I'm being flat out sarcastic. And the best sarcasm always has a hint of truth in it.

If I'm wrong about this, I am deeply sorry. And I'll be the first to admit it. But, knowing what I do know about the industry, the proof is too strong. I still plan on seeing Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers this summer in a city or two.

You believe WHO you want to believe.

By the way, the Wisconsin date is still listed on Pollstar. And getting the information, basically, straight from a member of the band was official enough for me.

The idea of having film students document their own subculture was a method Zaritsky first used when making Ski Bums, a hilariously candid documentary about Whistler's working class, produced for the National Film Board.

"While I pride myself on being a good interviewer and getting good material, it's all done during the day in front of a professional crew, in a very artificial environment," Zaritsky explains. "When I sent ski bums out to cover other ski bums at a party with a small camera, the footage was much more real than anything I could have achieved by going in with a professional crew and huge lights and sound system."

His experimental methods didn't make this project any easier. "It was like running a three-ring circus," Zaritsky says. "We had so much footage we had to start editing very early, even before we finished shooting."

Fortunately, the soundtrack -- which includes such great Canadian indie bands as Winnipeg's Weakerthans and Vancouver's Spygirl -- proved much easier than any he had previously worked on. "For years and years, I've been cutting to guide tracks that would include the Smashing Pumpkins and Tom Petty or whatever. And then at the end of the game, you can never afford to include Tom Petty so you've got to go out and replace it all -- but it never looks as good without Tom Petty."

How do I know? Because I'm a freakin' genius and I know how to research information. Plus many years of music business experience and I know how the "live" end works.

So, you may say prove it Sean. Well, first off, bite me and secondly, I recommend to start checking your areas outdoor venues' website for season ticket type pages or 2005 possible Summer Concerts.

Oh, I don't know, maybe Pittsburgh, PA fans should check the Chevrolet Amphitheater (click here) site out!

And maybe the folks up in Darien Lake/Center? Who'd name a town Darien Center? should keep an eye out at darienlakeconcerts.com. or the Six Flags @ Darien Lake site. But I'll just tell ya... they'll BE THERE June 25th.

Isn't that mudcrutchzoo site based around there? Anyways...

You can even buy tickets for this show right now... for $600 a pop through Team One Tickets (click here) So that's what I've got so far. Look for more sporadically!!! Thank you, thank you, just send money!!!

Mostly guys saying "Man, I always wanted to say that" or funny as hell or Hell yeah! It's about time! Some from DJs around the Country asking if their band could use it for their morning show. A couple from women (possibly same sex oriented -- not that there's anything wrong with that), who loved it and hated it. Only a couple from women who couldn't believe I'd disrespect TP that way and shockingly didn't read the DISCLAIMER. One post on the official BBS from some crazy bitch who doesn't EVER shut the @#$# up and is apparently insanely jealous of the site. She talks like people listen to her or something and said it was disgusting. (I wonder what she looks like?)

But probably one of the most flattering, besides the post on the BBS, was one from a fan of the site who has written quite a few "parodies". They said it was one of the best they had read in a long time and that it might have been better than some of their own. This person was kind enough to give me some constructive criticism about the phrasing and syllables. I look forward to their thoughts on the updated version.

Click here for updated "Just Do Me Like That"
THANK YOU ALL for the "Would You Hire This Guy" comments!

Historically, the bands one off gigs have been... call me crazy, but um COOLER!?!?!

Summer Tour Date Announced
There are always going to be some that doubt, but some are just jealous. Tell what's her name on the BBS to bite ME! The Summer Tour dates have begun to trickle in. Just because this is the first announced, doesn't mean it's the first date of the tour. Look for lots more to come SPORADICALLY!

Rock Fest
Sat 07/16/05
Cadott, WI
Chippewa Valley Festival Grounds

Here's the bill for that day. Maybe I'll work this show with my former partners in crime, Jackyl, and do "Just Do Me Like That." We should have it recorded by then. Whatcha think?

Saturday July 16, 2005 12:45 TBA
2:15 TBA
4:15 Jackyl
6:30 TBA
8:45 TBA
11:00 Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

Happy Valentines Day!

Another Grammy!
Best Long Form Music Video
(For video album packages consisting of more than one song or track. Award to the Artist and to the Video Director/Producer of at least 51% of the total playing time.)

Concert For George
Various Artists
David Leland, video director; Ray Cooper, Olivia Harrison & Jon Kamen, video producers
[Warner Strategic Marketing]

I don't know if anybody reads this crap, but I'm sure I'm going to get some phone calls and emails about this one if they do! Some of this could be fiction! My life's been kinda interesting lately. I'm not the best looking guy in the world, but I've met a few people and I know I'm sure as hell not the worst looking one out there. One of my many problems is that I'm really picky when it comes to women. Don't get me wrong, I'm incredibly respectful and nice to every woman I meet, but I have to be truly attracted to them before going any further. But I'm a guy and I probably love taking it further more than most. I know and have known some very beautiful women. The kind of women that make other women say "Damn!" Hell, I was married to one for a little while, but I'm a Scorpio and she was an annoying bitch! I'm just kidding, I'm really a Virgo.

Well, I'm single and have been more concerned with my career than relationships. Oprah did a story on the "Swinger" lifestyle a couple months ago, I think. I don't watch Oprah, just remembered the commercials. Recently, a girl brought me to one of these clubs and Holy shit! I walked into a porn movie minus the really bad 70's wah-wah pedal guitar music. I actually don't remember what music was playing!

A couple of days ago, "Don't Do Me Like That" came on the radio as I was driving home thinking about what this girl had said to me. It was along the lines of "I just want to @#$%$^! you." I'm pretty sure every guy has wanted to say that AND/OR have it said to them, but most I know wouldn't come right out and say it. I started thinking about the song that was playing and "Just Do Me Like That" comes to mind.

The only Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers parody I know of is that LOUSY "Stop Draggin' My Car Around" by Wierd Al. In my research, most parodies are considered "fair use" as long as you're not making a killing on someone else's copyrighted work. So, I'm not thinking about dressing up like Tom and making a video... yet, but I may record this with a friend's band backing me up.

NOTE/DISCLAIMER: I know that Tom Petty would NEVER write words like this! I probably wouldn't respect his lyrics if he did. I don't want any of his fans to think I'm SUGGESTING he would. I just figured all of you would know the song. If you know my sense of humor and like it, you'll love this. Publishing deal offers? sean@gonegator.com

Back in October(?!?!) 2003, gonegator.com got to get some fans into the UK premiere. Here's an email I got from one of the lucky fans.

Sean,
I had a great time. I got there at 7.20 p.m. There were barriers up and fans screaming, just like at a "proper" premiere, it was kind of freaky, and went and waited in the foyer where I happened to be standing next to Nick Rees (on your list) + his girlfriend (you and Tom brought us together as TP fans, ha ha). We managed to stay put in the foyer (they were trying to move everyone into the auditorium, but we hung on in there. So we saw most of the "stars" arrive. Dhani Harrison stood in front of me but I couldn't bring myself to say anything to him out of respect and because I didn't want to be moved on. He was very fresh-faced and innocent looking, quite small, and of course looks exactly like his father. Ringo Starr and his wife came in, Eric Clapton - and then Paul McCartney and his wife. Nick and his girl got Paul's autograph, just about the only one Paul signed. Paul said hullo to me and asked how I was and said it was nice to see me! (Wow!). We went into the auditorium then and sat in the front row. Olivia Harrison came onstage and made a little introductory speech, thanking all those who contributed to the concert and film.

The film was really great. The sound is great. Taxman and Handle with Care with TP & The HBs were on it. I was wanting to get up and dance again, like I did at the time; they lowered the sound in Handle With Care for bits of an interview with Tom talking about how they composed the song in the garage, throwing lines at each other. It was kind of a shock seeing Tom with all his long blonde hair and unshaven face and beard, looking like he could have auditioned for a Harry Potter film, he looked like a wizard, like Merlin! I got a thrill at hearing the band as I did at the time. It brings home to us over here what we are missing, I can tell you that! I was bug-eyed. You don't know how lucky you Americans are! I'm looking forward to seeing the complete dvd of the concert, rather than a documentary sort of version which is what this film is.

After the film the audience applauded the stars who were sitting half way back in the auditorium. Well, thanks very much for the tickets, I am so grateful - it was a big thrill to go there. It was a special occasion. As far as Tom in concerned, it is so difficult in this country where the band hardly ever comes. I love reading up what is going on on your website but of course everything, even TV appearances, is always over there, and I don't have any kind of advanced technology, like satellite tv or internet at home, so I can never download any of the audio or video bits. So I feel really pretty much left out of things. I guess if I knew TP fans in the US I'd have come over to see him on tour, but it's not that easy. I am getting desperate! SO - what I wanted to say is, that even though Tom wasn't there in person, it was still something for us, and I am grateful for it. Also it was nice to meet Nick Rees (unfortunately he is in Liverpool, but we have exchanged email addresses). So I feel I am not quite alone in the UK!

Thanks again,
Katherine.

Soundstage DVD Review
Webmasters comments: This is an extremely thorough review and a very good read. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers' shear talent shines again with these performances. I thought PBS was a "non-profit" organization. Last week I spoke to someone close to the band that said PBS knew they had incomplete imformation and released the DVD a month early anyway. They also told me the "Extra Features" were "shocking." My music business experience has been nowhere near this persons', but because of it, shocking is not in my vocabulary! I buy DVDs to see the band play live. But, PBS could have made this DVD so much cooler. They had access to an incredible amount of information. Companies (and most people for that matter) are never what they say, they're what they do. It seems, PBS just released it to reap the rewards of Tom Petty's talent and name alone. Non-profit my ass. Read Joe's comments on the extras below. Excluding the eight extra performances, I would have given that section an F.

Digitally Sound
Review By: Jeff Rosado
Published: January 18, 2005

Stars: Tom Petty, Mike Campbell, Benmont Tench (Jeff printed "Bentmont"), Ron Blair
Other Stars: Steve Ferrone, Scott Thurston
Director: Joe Thomas

MPAA Rating: Not Rated for (nothing objectionable)
Run Time: 02h:09m:00s
Release Date: January 11, 2005
Genre: rock

Style Grade - A+
Substance Grade - A+
Image Transfer Grade - A
Audio Transfer Grade - B+
Extras Grade - B+

DVD Review
Growing up in the Florida town of Gainesville in the mid-1960s, then-budding rocker Tom Petty was influenced by a wide range of artists including The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, classic '50s-era guitarists (like Chuck Berry and Buddy Holly), and assorted slices of country, psychedelia, and garage band 45s.

2005 marks a very special milestone for the artist and his five musical compatriots, who together collectively form Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Thirty years ago, the guitarist reconnected with fellow Sunshine State natives Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench in what became a partial reunion of a past band dubbed Mudcrutch. Drummer Stan Lynch and bassist Rob Blair completed the new line-up, which didn't take long to land a recording contract with ABC Records subsidiary, Shelter. Success was a little bit later in arriving, though, and not without a lot of stress, including record company changeover and Petty's filing for bankruptcy.

In the two and half decades since, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers have amassed a musical discography equal to that of their rock and roll heroes (with a recent induction into its Hall of Fame to boot). Soundstage: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers is a terrific dual-disc set that archives a recent pair of appearances by the group on PBS's popular live concert program.

In a refreshing change of pace from most high profile television gigs, the group downplays an expected greatest hits repertoire in favor of notable album cuts, engaging, rollickingly delivered cover tunes and new material, that taken on a whole, is mostly successful. In the latter category, two fresh offerings find Petty's songwriting chops in top form (the Wild West overtone of Melinda; Black Leather Woman, a classic Heartbreakers rave-up in the tradition of American Girl) while fans favoring the less appreciated cuts from terrific albums like Echo, The Last D.J., and Wildflowers will be happy to find the likes of Angel Dream, Crawling Back to You, and Lost Children amongst the set lists.

But it's the dips into the songbooks of Howlin' Wolf, J.J. Cale, and Ray Charles that offer the biggest satisfaction and most pleasant surprises (an Elvis-like run through I Got a Woman; the blues standard Little Red Rooster, featuring some excellent glass side work from Campbell; a downbeat Thirteen Days that sounds as though Cale conceived it with Petty's sneering vocals in mind. Still, some of you request shouters just won't be satisfied until you have a couple of hits in the mix, right? For you, I Won't Back Down, You Wreck Me, and a masterful Refugee (with yet another phenomenal piece of riffing from Campbell, one of rock's most underappreciated musicians).

Rating for Style: A+
Rating for Substance: A+

Image Transfer

Aspect Ratio:1.33:1 - Widescreen
Original Aspect Ratio:yes
Anamorphic:no

Image Transfer Review: When even audience members are shot well, nicely lighted and exhibited with superb clarity, we're talking top of the heap. Let me disperse with generic superlatives for once. Simply put, excellent. Still, I have to dock it a notch for not being 16:9.

Image Transfer Grade: A

Audio Transfer
DS 2.0 English yes
Dolby Digital
5.1 English yes

Audio Transfer Review: A solid if somewhat unspectacular 5.1 mix, mainly front heavy with very limited activity in the surrounds, which are mainly relegated to applause (and even that is more upfront). Nice bottom end, too.

Audio Transfer Grade: B+

Disc Extras
Full Motion menu with music
Music/Song Access with 22 cues and remote access
Packaging: Keep Case
Picture Disc
2 Discs
1-Sided disc(s)
Layers: single

Extra Extras:
Eight Additional Performances
Photo Gallery (18)
Discography/The Band
Backstage Pass
Text Biography/Interview
Extras Review: Most extras appearing on Soundstage DVD releases thus far have been so minor as to be laughable (the so-called "Interview" with Petty consists of a mere two quotes in text; I've read more post-game comments from a high school football coach in the local paper), but on this two-disc set, they've come up with one bonus section well worth commenting on.

No less than eight additional performances are contained on Disc 2, with six of those coming from the series' cutting room floor, including fun covers of Buddy Holly's Not Fade Away, and The Rolling Stones' Down Home Girl; a killer version of Petty's Yer So Bad (from the classic Full Moon Fever album) and the underrated Heartbreaker's track Walls (from the She's the One soundtrack). The remaining bonus tracks come from Petty's recently released DVD of The Last D.J.: Live at the Olympic (which the bandleader must still be trying to peddle; first came the album of the same name, then the live DVD companion, and now these samplings. Maybe he's got a surplus of compact discs in the attic to get rid of... a shame, because D.J. is a terrific piece of work).

It's ho-hum, twiddle your thumbs as far as the rest of the supplements: a photo-gallery of 18 freeze-frame shots from the show; a Meet The Band section with very little insight; Backstage Pass consists of nothing but tech-mumbo jumbo on the production techniques for the program; and a complete discography.

Extras Grade: B+ (gonegator.com's grade - F!)

Final Comments Soundstage: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers finds one of rock's most entertaining, dependable and just plain rockin' bands in top form. Highly recommended.

DAMN THE TORPEDOS (1979) Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

MCA

5 out of 5

Amid wrangling with label control - which almost became the man's hobby - Tom Petty's third-album breakthrough was an awesome, solid rock kickoff to a distinguished career that few could say is annoying, unlike the work of so many of his sagging contemporaries.

Even though nasal-singing Petty has receded to the shadows these days, he continues to bring us great albums, tight in composition, always interesting. They don't make songs like Refugee any more, which you can easily picture Mick Jagger singing in front of half a million people in Rio - pretty impressive for the work of some goofy-looking kid from Florida.

Tom Petty's comes off a nice loser stoner and his lyrics are often about the way love doesn't really work that well most of the time, like on the seminal Don't Do Me Like That. You Tell Me is a secret gem. I don't need to tell you Petty basically worships the foundation of rock 'n' roll, including constant flirting with blues, R&B and country sounds - not to mention membership in the Traveling Wilburys. Tom Petty is a guy you want to hang out with, and his records have yet to sound dated.

Webmasters comments: I agree with his (God, I hope there aren't any women out there with that first name!) opinion of my favorite album, but should a guy with a last name like Griwkowsky be calling someone goofy-looking? How do you pronounce that? Buy a vowel Fish!

Happy Birthday Mike Campbell!!! - Happy Birthday to the greatest guitarist in Rock 'N Roll! Mike turns 55 today. Born in Panama City, Florida, February 1, 1950. There's just something about Mike's playing that I've always admired, respected and strived to show other guitarists. Remember in th 80s when all the Heavy Metal guitarists were playing as many notes as humanly possible in the least amount of time? Mike Campbell can pick up a guitar and tell them all to f#$k off in 10 notes or less. Actually, I guess he has. On stage he's a humble guy who steals the show without stealin' the show. I just know I'd be embarassed to look at a guitar, yet alone pick one up anywhere near him.

Happy Birthday Mike and Thanks!

Founded in April 1996, Alexa Internet grew out of a vision of Web navigation that is intelligent and constantly improving with the participation of its users. Alexa Related Links and Traffic Rankings are the embodiment of this vision, growing and getting better as more people join the Alexa community of smart Web surfers. ~ from their about page

Owned by Amazon, I thought it sounded like a pretty good idea. Build a search engine based upon what people are actually using. So, I added gonegator.com because fans come here for information on Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers. But Alexa doesn't work. It holds no credibility with me and it sure as hell shouldn't with you! And I will show you why.

Anyone with a website can download software like Alexa Pro and change their ranking significantly. Almost over night.

Case in point: (alexa stats 2/1/05)
Traffic Rank for tompetty.com: 270,120
Speed: Slow (76% of sites are faster), Avg Load Time: 3.0 Seconds
Other sites that link to this site: 135
Popups: Many (21% of sessions have popups)
Online Since: 27-Apr-1998

Traffic Rank for gonegator.com: 918,938
Speed: Not available
Other sites that link to this site: 16
Popups: None
Online Since: 05-May-1999

Traffic Rank for mudcrutchfarm.com: 182,351
Speed: Average, Avg Load Time: 1.6 Seconds
Other sites that link to this site: 10
Popups: None
Online Since: ???

Ok, the lower the number the higher the Alexa Traffic Rank. Does anybody see anything a little odd with these numbers?

I don't know about you, but I use Google to find real information. Alexa supposedly bases it's ranking on links from other sites. gonegator.com has been and is linked to from usatoday.com and the Atlanta Journal. Are they listed on Alexa? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! And yes, I'm bragging. How many fan sites do you know that have received National press? None? For what I do, that's f#$king awesome!

There are actually about 500 sites that link to gonegator.com. Click here to see!

Done with rant.