Virginian-Pilot review of the Portsmouth show

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Concert review: Tom Petty at nTelos Pavilion
By JEFF MAISEY, The Virginian-Pilot
© June 13, 2006
Last updated: 8:15 AM

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers brought their Highway Companion Tour to the nTelos Pavilion at Harbor Center on Monday in celebration of the band's 30th anniversary.

Midway through the nearly two-hour set, Fleetwood Mac singer Stevie Nicks joined the band on stage. She wasn't the only musical star at the venue, though. The members of Nine Inch Nails and Bauhaus, who performed the night before at the Verizon Wireless Virginia Beach Amphitheater, were seated in the audience.

"I had the day off from our tour," said Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor. "From a songwriting point of view, Tom Petty has been a big influence on my career."

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers -- Mike Campbell (guitars), Benmont Tench (keyboards), Ron Blair (bass), Scott Thurston (guitars) and Steve Ferrone (drums) -- gave a well-balanced performance of their signature hits, familiar covers and a sampling of new material from the upcoming album "Highway Companion," due to be released next month.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees opened with "Listen to Her Heart," with Petty strumming his tear-shaped guitar. An overhead curved video panel provided colorful images of the band members throughout the night.

Petty then switched to his trademark Rickenbacher six-string for "You Don't Know How It Feels."

Petty was keen on supplying the hits, such as "Refuge," "I Won't Back Down," "Don't Come Around Here No More" and "Free Fallin'." He also shared some of the songs that influence his songwriting, including The Yardbirds' "I'm a Man" and "Oh Well," a Fleetwood Mac tune that pre-dates Stevie Nicks' membership in that group. They also played "Handle With Care," a song Petty co-wrote with Bob Dylan, Jeff Lynne, George Harrison and Roy Orbison as a member of Traveling Wilburys,

Petty's new material, while nice to hear, doesn't hold a candle to the songs from his last studio album, "Last DJ." "Square One" smacked of Bob Seger's "Against the Wind," and "Saving Grace" grooved like ZZ Top's "La Grange," specifically the lifted John Lee Hooker guitar riff.

Stevie Nicks received a thunderous round of applause when Petty introduced her as she strode across the stage to join the band for "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around," the 1981 duet Petty wrote for her solo debut. The version was done exceptionally well. It was followed by "I Need to Know," with Nicks singing the lead part. Afterward she exited the stage briefly and rejoined the band as a guest backup singer for the remainder of the concert.

Toss in "Learning to Fly" and "Mary Jane's Last Dance" and the sold-out crowd certainly got its money's worth.

On a cool, misty night more indicative of a late spring concert in Portsmouth, England than Portsmouth, Va., Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers gave a magical performance that will go down as one of this year's best.