Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers – American Girl

“American Girl” – Single by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers from the album Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. B-side”The Wild One, Forever”
Released in February 1977
Recorded on July 4, 1976.

A track from the first Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers album, “American Girl” was never a hit, but it became one of their most popular songs. Part of its lasting appeal is its intrigue, as it is the subject of an urban myth that reads as follows:

The University of Florida is located in Petty’s hometown of Gainesville, Florida. A dorm at the school, Beatty Towers, provided the backdrop to a popular urban legend at UF as well as the story behind this song. The story was that there was this virginal, All-American, debutante sort of girl, blonde locks and all, who decided to take hallucinogens for the first time while in her room at Beatty Towers. This being the 1960’s and the age of limitless possibilities, it was pretty common to do something like that, especially in a college setting. Apparently, the girl thought she could fly, so she exited through the window and arrived face first on the concrete below. Some modern minstrels like to add that she jumped from the 13th floor, but this is probably part of campus lore. This incident was a big deal in Gainesville, which was still a picturesque Southern college town. It represented the end of innocence experienced by baby-boomers during the 1970’s. Using it as inspiration, Tom Petty wove a captivating and poignant song based on this story for his first album and the rest is history. Expanding on the concept of innocence lost, this song speaks volumes and resonates even today. Beatty Towers are by State Road 441, which is mentioned in the second verse.

Despite limited chart success, “American Girl” became one of Petty’s most popular songs and a staple of classic rock. It has been consistently rated as his best song, only surpassed by “Free Fallin'” otherwise, and one of the best rock songs of all time, and has been called “more than a classic rock standard — it’s practically part of the American literary canon.”[6][7][8][9][10] It has also been used in several movies and television shows, often during a scene in which a character, much like the protagonist in the song’s lyrics, is “longing for something bigger than their current existence.”[11]

“American Girl” was the last song performed in concert by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. They played it to close out the encore of their performance on September 25, 2017, at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, California, the final concert of their 40th Anniversary Tour. Petty died of complications from cardiac arrest after an accidental prescription medication overdose on October 2, just over a week later.

“American Girl” is widely considered one of Petty’s greatest works. The song was ranked number one on Billboard’s list of Petty’s 20 greatest songs and on Rolling Stone’s list of Petty’s 50 greatest songs