Mixtapemotions

"Free Fallin'" by The Almost (Tom Petty Cover), Friday, October 14, 2022

“Free Fallin’” is certainly bigger than any artist who has sung the three-chorded song. Today, we’ll look at a few versions of the song, but due to the Christian Rock theme of the last few days, ultimately I chose The Almost‘s version to be the official version for my blog. As pointed out in an excellent video by 12Tone (see below), there is a lot of meaning packed in the musical theory of the song, ultimately illustrating that there are pros and cons to being free. 

ALL THE VAMPIRES  WALKIN’ DOWN THE VALLEY MOVE WEST DOWN VENTURA BOULEVARD.  Tom Petty released his first solo record Full Moon Fever in 1989. The first song recorded for the record and first track on the record is “Free Fallin’.” The song is one of Petty’s biggest and most recognizable tracks. It was also his last top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. The simple ballad is partly a breakup song and partly a love song for his then home of Los Angelos. The Gainesville, Florida, native always kept a rebellious Southern flair in his music, but California was where he and The Heartbreakers forged their career. Freedom in this Tom Petty classic refers to a break up between the speaker and a “good girl.” The speaker claims not to miss her but also wants to “write her name in the sky.” The speaker is free, which feels good, but also without that “good girl” to ground him, he is heading for a crash. For Petty, that crash came  seven years later, in 1996, when he divorced his high school sweetheart Jane Benyo. He turned to using heroin, which he claimed was due to depression from the dissolution of his marriage. Petty’s new music lost cultural relevance in the ’90s, as many musicians fail to keep momentum over multiple decades. But by his death in 2017, and as of today with nearly 8 million monthly listeners on Spotify, countless spins on classic rock stations, and movie placements, it’s safe to say that the rebel spirit of Tom Petty won’t be backing down anytime soon.


I’M A BAD BOY FOR BREAKING HER HEART.  A staple at a John Mayer concert and covered countless times by everyone from Guns ‘N’ Roses to Coldplay, the legacy of “Free Fallin’” has become a late 20th century standard. Indie band The Pains of Being Pure At Heart even recorded a cover version of Petty’s entire Full Moon Fever. But today’s version comes from Punk Goes Classic Rock. The Almost covers “Free Fallin’.” Released in 2010, the cover coincides with the band’s 2009 sophomore record, 
Monster Monster. A fellow Floridian, Aaron Gillespie the then former drummer for Underoath left the band to focus on his alternative rock band The Almost, during a turbulent time in Underoath. But Gillespie, like Petty, found that the freedom wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. The Almost’s third record, The Fear Inside Our Bones failed, which caused Gillespie to pursue a career recording worship music. Worship music didn’t work out either, which led him to give up releasing his own music for several years, touring as the drummer for Paramore. All the while Gillespie was going through a change in his beliefs and a divorce. Finally in 2015, Gillespie rejoined Underoath and has been with them ever since, though releasing solo records and another Almost record in 2019 called Fear Caller.

The Almost cover:


Tom Petty original:




John Mayer cover:



The Pains of Being Pure At Heart cover:

“Understanding Free Fallin’”: