"Free Fallin'" is the opening track from American musicianTom Petty's debut solo album,Full Moon Fever (1989). The song was written by Petty and his writing partner for the album,Jeff Lynne, and features Lynne on backing vocals and bass guitar. The duo wrote and recorded the single in two days, making it the first song completed forFull Moon Fever.
"Free Fallin'" is one of Petty's most famous tracks as well as his highest- and longest-charting song.[4] It peaked at No. 7 on the USBillboard Hot 100 singles chart in January 1990, becoming his third and final top-10 hit. It also charted in several other countries, peaking at No. 5 in Canada and No. 4 in New Zealand. Petty andthe Heartbreakers performed the song at theMTV Video Music Awards in 1989, withAxl Rose andIzzy Stradlin, and at the February 2008Super Bowl XLII Halftime Show.[5]
Petty explained in an interview withBillboard magazine that he andJeff Lynne were sitting around trying to come up with a song, and Lynne got him to say "free falling". The next day they recorded the song. Petty did not write the song about a specific person, but instead about what he saw during his frequent drives alongVentura Boulevard.[8] Lynne said "Probably the second song we wrote [forFull Moon Fever] was 'Free Fallin'.' I got the chords to it and we both fleshed out the chorus. It was like 'Evil Woman' in that we got a repetitive chord sequence and then the melody turns into a chorus. Everyone who heard it knew it was a hit, and the next song we did was 'I Won’t Back Down.'"[9]
"Free Fallin'" is widely regarded as one of Petty's best songs.Billboard andRolling Stone both ranked the song number four on their lists of the greatest Tom Petty songs,[10][11] whileWatchMojo considers it to be Tom Petty's best song.[12]
The music video for the song was directed by Piers Garland andJulien Temple and features a teenage girl seen in various places aroundLos Angeles, including a 1960s pool party and a 1980s skate park. Petty is also seen performing in these places and others, such as the formerWestside Pavilion mall.[13]
In 1996,Stevie Nicks covered the song for theParty of Five soundtrack. This cover was also included on herEnchanted (Stevie Nicks album) box set (Released 1998.) Nicks frequently has included the song in both her shows withFleetwood Mac, as well as solo, since Petty’s death in 2017. The performances are often accompanied by a video tribute to Petty.
