Graham Reid | | <1 min read
The late Tom Petty knew a lot of rock history, having been inspired by the blues and the British Invasion in addition to Southern rock. Which is why on the four CD Live Anthology released in 2009 we find covers of I'm a Man, Diddy Wah Diddy, I Just Want to Make Love to You, Grateful Dead's Friend of the Devil, Green Onions, Fleetwood Mac's Oh Well and the theme to Goldfinger.
And this very straight cover of Thunderclap Newman's sole hit in '69.
Written by the band's drummer/guitarist John “Speedy” Kean who had been the Who's chauffeur and with producer Pete Townshend on bass, it topped the UK charts
The other guitarist was 15-year old Jimmy McCulloch who later ended up in McCartney's Wings and died of an overdose 10 years after Something in the Air.
It was a band with an age gap, the pianist Andrew Newman (known as Thunderclap) was 27.
Subsequent singles and the band's sole album didn't do well, despite the latter being critically acclaimed.
They broke up in early '71 . . but the song has lived on in movies, television shows and wherever a good covers band plays.
Petty and the Heartbreakers were, among many other things, a great covers band.
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For more oddities, one-offs or songs with an interesting backstory check the massive back-catalogue at From the Vaults.
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