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Weve been blessed with a fascinating treasure trove ofdemos,box sets, andpreviously unreleased musicsince 2017.
Thats the litmus test.
Does that mean a museum?
Well, thats another story.
Your dad says in archival footage thatWildflowerswas the best album he ever made.
Do you also feel that way?I think its probably his greatest album.
ButWildflowersis the greatest album, I think, from a songwriting perspective.
Its not a pop album.
Its a confessional, novelistic, Americana masterpiece.
Its not writing the perfect rock song, or a guitar ballad, or a hot song.
Its his beautiful autobiographical work.
Its my favorite album in terms of feeling the closest to my dad.
His humor is in it.
Even a line like, Its time to move on, its time to get going.
I liked that Tom referred to himself as a soul singer in the documentary.
I dont think Ive ever heard that characterization of his music before.Yeah, it was interesting.
I think it works because hes saying it with humility.
He did come from that Baptist Christian background.
He loved all kinds of soul, R&B, and rock music.
Its an interesting insight, isnt it?
Its the first time you would think of him in that way.
I do think its accurate.
But for the most part, they would roll onto stage in plaid shirts and jeans.
Theyre very pure with their rock and roll.
I think that whenNevermindandTenhit, my dad just thought,Theres a lot of value here.
It has this sort of watery sound.
it’s possible for you to hear that in bands like Soundgarden.
My dad thought Nirvana and Pearl Jam were legitimate.
You mentioned your dads sense of humor.
Can you tell me more?I laugh just thinking about his jokes sometimes.
I mean, my dads humor is in everything he does.
Even onDamn the Torpedoes, you hearMarcie Campbellin one ofthe songssaying, Its just the normal noises in here!
He wanted to incorporate her talking in the recording booth for no reason besides it being amusing to him.
He crops up with these little dad jokes all the time.
The documentary is the biggest project you and the estate have worked on since Tom died four years ago.
What made you want to tell the fullWildflowersstory?It was a very natural evolution.
He worked really hard on sequencing that second disc before he died.
Also, I happened to be there a lot while they were recording the album.
I knew there were a lot of people with cameras and Rick Rubin had a camera.
Can we see if we can find some of the energy and the mood from the studio?
It was like lightning in a bottle.
The film gives you this deeper ability to feel who Tom really was.
For me, its just like,Thats my dad.
Thats really my dad.
Then hed come home and hed be dad or Tommy.
He would calm down and stop yelling at everybody to get him stuff.
He was sort of like two different people, but the guy in the studio was the normal guy.
He wasnt a rock star.
He was very comfortable and very much like the same person he would be in a laymans life.
You really see him the way that I see him as a person.
What do you remember about that time?A lot of musicians …
They had been fighting a lot.
It was not a pleasant environment in the house.
I think that for my dad, it was very difficult.
He was very loyal to my mom.
He credited her with a lot of his success.
My mom cut my dads hair and went vintage shopping to find his clothes.
There was no conscious uncoupling at that point.
So it was a really heavy journey for him.
He was going through it and he wasnt talking to a lot of people about it.
But I dont think he was talking to the band.
What did your mom think when she heard the album?Ive never asked her, actually.
She used to always say, Change your love, change your wife, change your life.
But its cheaper to keep her.
She joked about getting divorcedand it happened.
My dad overthought everything and was very protective of the presentation so that it seemed effortless.
But actually, it was, like, perfect every time.
Youre now managing the estate and legacy of one of the most popular musicians in American history.
I even made sure that they subtitled the songs in several languages so youre feeling the music.
But the way weve been doing it has been pretty organic.
Its very important to her that the younger fans are recruited.
We want younger people.
We want people of color.
We want queer people.
My dad was a person of integrity, decency, and depth.
We wanted to broaden the scope of it.
Funny enough, thats totally my dads shit.
He loved that stuff.
I cant count how many times my dad made me watchNinotchkaorGrand Hotel.
Sometimes the fans get a little uncomfortable when we do collaborations like Rodarte,and I knew they would.
But a lot of moneywent to charity.
We dont exploit the music.
Thats pretty much a definite no.
All of them have tried.
But, you know, sometimes you really should back down.
You dont want to be a dick and not back down when you really should.
He said it from much more of a mantra of self-awareness and strength.
My dad was very adamant that representations of his music be diverse and inclusive.
We say no to commercials.
Remember when Fleetwood Mac licensed Go Your Own Way?
Thats actually kind of cool.
This is how people are starting to hear about music now that theres not really a radio culture anymore.
He had regrets about saying that hell never, ever put his music in a commercial.
I want people to feel like theyre alone in their car and thats their song.
I think theres a sacredness to the work that the band did that were really protective of.
Its our job to be great students and gentle handlers, not egomaniacs.
What are your biggest ambitions for Toms estate now?
Do I personally want a jukebox musical about Tom Petty on Broadway?
Id love to see a museum dedicated to my father.
