You can bet that the Grammys will stage one hell of a tribute to the memory of Tom Petty at Madison Square Garden on January 28th, 2018.
Think of the line up: in addition to Petty’s group, The Heartbreakers, the ensemble would include Bob Dylan and Jeff Lynne of the Traveling Wilburys, plus the sons of the fallen Wilburys– Dhani Harrison and Roy Kelton Orbison.
And what about Sam Smith? It turned out last year that Smith’s hit “Stand by Me,” was inadvertently lifted from Petty’s hit, “I Won’t Back Down,” co-written with Lynne. The lawyers wouldn’t back down, so Smith had to give writing credit to Petty and Lynne. Smith will no doubt be jockeying for a place on the Grammys to promote his new album. Why not have him sing “I Won’t Back Down”?
That’s called karma.
Others who could join in: Ringo Starr, Joe Walsh, Robbie Robertson.
There won’t be a dry eye in the house.
