The pivotal advice Tom Petty gave Stevie Nicks at her lowest moment
The late Tom Petty left an irreplaceable void in the musical landscape upon his passing in 2017. For 40 years, he was an immovable cultural object who embodied the essence of Americana and produced a body of work which continues to inspire artists today.
Following his departure from the world, millions across the globe were devastated. However, few felt as despondent as his long-time friend Stevie Nicks. Not only did the Fleetwood Mac singer collaborate with Petty, but he was a close ally that she could always rely upon to pick up the phone.
Petty had wisdom running through his veins; he was a courageous creative who had an immeasurable impact on both the artists he would work with and those who soaked up his material as fans. While Nicks was significantly affected by his output, which touched her soul, Petty proved to be a source of inspiration that went way beyond the songs.
Most notably, the Fleetwood Mac vocalist became influenced by Petty in an entirely different way in 1994. Although it didn’t feel particularly seismic at the time, his words single-handedly made Nicks view herself as a person and an artist in a whole new light.
The friendship between the two began in 1981. At this stage, Fleetwood Mac were one of the biggest acts on the planet and had attained a level of success which wouldn’t have seemed plausible a few years prior. Nevertheless, Nicks surprisingly decided she desperately wanted to be a part of Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers.
While this would have been an undeniably magnificent meeting of musical minds, Nicks’ wish wasn’t granted. The potential addition to the band would have broken Petty’s archaic rule of “no girls allowed”, which halted her idea. However, they still collaborated, even if Nicks never became a full-time member of Petty’s boys club.
A few weeks before Petty’s death, Nicks took to the stage at the Covelli Centre in Youngstown and coincidentally lifted the lid on their relationship, which went off to a rocky start.
At the concert, she discussed making her 1981 solo album, Bella Donna. Nicks detailed her visit to Atlantic Records’ then-president Doug Morris, who asked her to pitch an idea. She recalled: “So, listen, what I’d really like to do is be in Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ band. He says, ‘No. That’s not going to happen'”. Nicks smiled and relayed Morris’ next comment: “You obviously haven’t heard Tom Petty’s mantra: ‘No girls allowed.'”
When faced with the reality of being unable to become one of The Heartbreakers, Nicks decided to settle for the next best thing: working with Petty’s producer, Jimmy Iovine. The pair hit it off, leading to a romantic relationship and cohabitation. Furthermore, by getting closer to Iovine, Nicks earned an intimate look inside the world of Petty, and it was an experience she would never forget.
The Heartbreakers leader would often come around to her home with Iovine to listen to mixes of the record. Nicks later recalled hiding in the basement in an attempt to listen to Petty at work, which she jokingly likened to being “a secret reporter at the White House”.
When she wasn’t spying on Petty, Nicks was working on Bella Donna. However, one major issue arose: Iovine didn’t believe the album had a stand-out single, so he recruited Petty to write and perform ‘Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around’ with Nicks. Poignantly, that track would become one of Nicks’ biggest solo hits and cement her long friendship with Tom.
While the collaboration on ‘Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around’ elevated her status as a solo star, it was less impactful on Nicks than Petty’s friendship. Following the late singer-songwriter’s death, Nicks spoke with Rolling Stone and revealed the life-changing yet stern advice he handed her back in 1994.
The mid-1990s was an awkward time for Nicks; not only had she departed Fleetwood Mac, but her latest solo album, Street Angel, was a resounding failure. She had also been in and out of rehab while trying to get clean from substance abuse.
Understandably, Nicks was low on self-belief and was struggling to find answers. At this challenging juncture, she turned to Petty to help her create art from this less-than-pleasant experience that had become an all-encompassing nightmare.
Nicks recalled: “I asked Tom if he would help me write a song. And he said, ‘No. You are one of the premier songwriters of all time. You don’t need me to write a song for you.’ He said, ‘Just go to your piano and write a good song. You can do that.'”
While those words weren’t what Nicks wanted to hear from Petty, she later became grateful for his support in her talent. The advice that Nicks was given from Petty would later inspire her 2014 song ‘Hard Advice’.
The track is a thank-you note to Petty’s method of tough love, which forced Nicks to fend for herself and rely on her songwriting instincts to dig her career out of trouble. It was a daunting task, but ultimately, she listened to Petty, and he was proved right in the end. She once said of the song: “The chorus goes, ‘Sometimes he’s my best friend.’ It was really ‘Sometimes Tom’s my best friend. I changed it because I knew Tom would not want me to say his name. That’s how well I know him.”
While she can no longer rely on Petty to pick up his phone when she needs someone to pick her up out of a creative rut, those words of wisdom he shared continue to ring in her ear.