Free Fallin'


"Free Fallin'" is the opening track from Tom Petty's debut solo album, Full Moon Fever. 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 for Full Moon Fever.
"Free Fallin'" is one of Petty's most famous tracks as well as his highest- and longest-charting. It peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in January 1990. Petty and The Heartbreakers performed the song at the MTV Video Music Awards in 1989, with Axl Rose and Izzy Stradlin, and at the February 2008 Super Bowl XLII Halftime Show. The song is ranked No. 179 on Rolling Stones 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. It was featured in the film Jerry Maguire and The Sopranos episode 2.13, "Funhouse". Lou Reed selected the song as one of his "picks of 1989". The song was #2 on the Spotify Global Viral 50 following the death of Petty.

Los Angeles-area references

The song's lyrics make references to the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, including:
Petty explained in an interview with Billboard magazine that he and Jeff Lynne were sitting around trying to come up with a song, and Lynne got him to say "free falling". The next day they went and recorded the song. He didn't write it about any person, but instead what he saw on his frequent drives along Ventura Boulevard.

Personnel

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Cover versions