"You Wreck Me" is a song by American musician
Tom Petty, the fourth track on his second solo studio album, ''
Wildflowers'' (1994). The song was released as the second single from the album and became a concert staple. While the song did not chart on the US
''Billboard'' Hot 100, it did peak at number two on the
Album Rock Tracks
Mainstream Rock is a music chart in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States, a category that combines the formats of active rock and heritage rock. The chart was launched in Ma ...
chart.
History
The music for this song was written by Petty's longtime partner and guitarist Mike Campbell. Petty originally wrote some words to the song and called it "You Rock Me". Campbell thought the title was a little ordinary and very cliché, but the song sounded fine and they recorded it. Eventually, Petty came back and decided to change the title to "You Wreck Me", and the new title changed the whole meaning of the song.
Live performances
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 ...
performed the song on 494 different occasions, including their last show at the
Hollywood Bowl
The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in America by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018.
The Hollywood Bowl is known for its distin ...
in
Los Angeles in 2017. It was a regular song during every tour after 1995, as well as at the Fillmore residencies in 1997 and 1999. The song was first performed in concert in 1995 at the Louisville Gardens in Kentucky.
It was commonly played as an encore.
Track listing
The song was released on a maxi CD single and a cassette single. The cassette and CD versions both include alternate versions of two other tracks from ''Wildflowers'': "Only a Broken Heart" and "Cabin Down Below".
#"You Wreck Me" – 3:22
#"Cabin Down Below" – 2:45
#"Only a Broken Heart" – 4:41
Personnel
*
Tom Petty – vocals, electric guitar
*
Mike Campbell – electric guitar
*
Benmont Tench – piano,
Hammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated s ...
*
Howie Epstein – bass guitar, harmony vocals
*
Steve Ferrone
Steve Ferrone (born 25 April 1950) is an English drummer. He is known as a member of the rock band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers from 1994 to 2017, replacing original drummer Stan Lynch, and as part of the "classic lineup" of the Average Whi ...
– drums
Charts
References
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Tom Petty songs
1994 singles
1994 songs
Song recordings produced by Rick Rubin
Songs written by Mike Campbell (musician)
Songs written by Tom Petty