"I Need to Know" is a song written by Tom Petty and recorded by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers were an American rock band from Gainesville, Florida. Formed in 1976, the band originally comprised lead singer and rhythm guitarist Tom Petty, lead guitarist Mike Campbell, keyboardist Benmont Tench, drummer S ...

. It was released in 1978 as the first single from their second album ''

You're Gonna Get It! ''You're Gonna Get It!'' is the second album by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, released in 1978. Design and art direction Kosh. Originally, the album was to be titled ''Terminal Romance''. It peaked at No. 23 on the ''Billboard'' Top LPs & T ...

''. It peaked at #41 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 singles chart in 1978. This song as well as "Listen to Her Heart" was already being played live in concert as early as June 14, 1977, as is evidenced in a performance on Germany's music television show "Rockpalast". ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' said that it is "hard driving rock 'n' roll" and that "the

hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved or indented, such that it can be used to grab onto, connect, or otherwise attach itself onto another object. In a number of uses, one e ...

repeats hypnotically as the guitars drive the message home." ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of the three main music industry trade magazines in the United States, along with '' Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 under the name ''Music Vendor'', but in 1964 it was changed to ''Record Wo ...

'' called it an "energetic rocker."

Other versions

Stevie Nicks Stephanie Lynn Nicks (born May 26, 1948) is an American singer, songwriter, and producer known for her work with the band Fleetwood Mac and as a solo artist. After starting her career as a duo with her then-boyfriend Lindsey Buckingham, releasi ...

(of

Fleetwood Mac Fleetwood Mac are a British-American rock band, formed in London in 1967. Fleetwood Mac were founded by guitarist Peter Green, drummer Mick Fleetwood and guitarist Jeremy Spencer, before bassist John McVie joined the line-up for their epony ...

) has been performing "I Need to Know" live in her solo concerts since 1981. Nicks also performed this song with Tom Petty together on Petty's 30th anniversary concert (which was filmed and released on DVD as ''

Runnin' Down a Dream "Runnin' Down a Dream" is a song co-written and recorded by Tom Petty. It was released in July 1989 as the second single from his first solo album ''Full Moon Fever''. "Runnin' Down a Dream" achieved reasonable chart success, reaching number 23 b ...

''). In 1981 the Swedish band

Gyllene Tider Gyllene Tider (; "Golden Times") was a Swedish pop group fronted by Roxette singer, guitarist and songwriter Per Gessle. They were one of the best-selling Swedish bands ever and have had numerous hits in Scandinavia, starting with the break-th ...

recorded a version of the song with Swedish lyrics, written by singer

Per Gessle Per Håkan Gessle (; born 12 January 1959) is a Swedish singer, songwriter and guitarist. He is best known as the male half and primary songwriter of the Swedish pop rock duo Roxette, which he formed with Marie Fredriksson in 1986 and which was d ...

(the male half of

Roxette Roxette was a Swedish pop rock duo, consisting of Marie Fredriksson (vocals and keyboards) and Per Gessle (vocals and guitar). Formed in 1986, the duo became an international act in the late 1980s, when they released their breakthrough second a ...

), named "Vill ha ett svar!"

Poison Poison is a chemical substance that has a detrimental effect to life. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figuratively, with a broa ...

recorded a cover of the song for their 2007 album ''

Poison'd! ''Poison'd!'' is the seventh and most recent studio album by American glam metal band Poison, released June 5, 2007. The 14-track album features recordings of Poison's favorite rock classics. Nine new tracks and five previously released covers m ...

''.

Hour of the Wolf ''Hour of the Wolf'' ( sv, Vargtimmen, lit=The Wolf Hour) is a 1968 Swedish psychological horror film directed by Ingmar Bergman and starring Max von Sydow and Liv Ullmann. The story explores the disappearance of fictional painter Johan Borg ...

recorded a cover for their 2012 greatest hits album, ''Decompositions Vol. II''. Following Petty's death on October 2, 2017,

Local H Local H is an American rock band originally formed by guitarist and vocalist Scott Lucas, bassist Matt Garcia, drummer Joe Daniels, and lead guitarist John Sparkman in Zion, Illinois in 1990. The members all met in high school in 1987 and founde ...

have been playing the song in concert. In 2020,

Starcrawler Starcrawler is an American rock band from Los Angeles, formed in 2015. The band consists of lead singer Arrow de Wilde, guitarist Henri Cash, bassist Tim Franco, drummer Seth Carolina, and pedal steel/guitar player Bill Cash. They have released ...

previewed a cover of the song for Tom Petty's 70th Birthday Bash on

SiriusXM Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is an American broadcasting company headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City that provides satellite radio and online radio services operating in the United States. It was formed by the 2008 merger of Sirius S ...

, featuring Mike Campbell on rhythm guitar. The band later officially released the cover as a single on music streaming services.

All appearances

*''

'' *'' Pack Up The Plantation: Live!'' *''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

'' *'' Playback'' *'' Anthology: Through The Years'' *''

The Live Anthology ''The Live Anthology'' is a live box set by American rock band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. The box set was released by Reprise Records on November 23, 2009, in a number of formats, with the standard CD and download formats, composed of 48 ...

'' *This song is part of the soundtrack in ''

Rock Band 3 ''Rock Band 3'' is a 2010 music video game developed by Harmonix. The game was initially published and distributed by MTV Games and Electronic Arts, respectively, in late October 2010. Mad Catz took over both roles and re-released the title on N ...

''.

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:I Need To Know 1978 singles Tom Petty songs Songs written by Tom Petty Song recordings produced by Denny Cordell 1977 songs

Other versions

All appearances

Charts

See also

References