Into the Great Wide Open

2025-06-25T14:55:23Z

2001:BB6:EA4:5F00:5DF9:89E3:C7EB:930:

{{For|the song|Into the Great Wide Open (song)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2025}}
{{Infobox album
| name = Into the Great Wide Open
| type = studio
| artist = [[Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers]]
| cover = Tom Petty ITGWO.jpg
| alt =
| released = July 2, 1991
| recorded = 1990−91
| venue =
| studio = {{hlist|[[Rumbo Recorders|Rumbo]] Studio C (Canoga Park, California)|M.C. Studios}}
| genre = [[Rock music|Rock]]
| length = 43:55
| label = [[MCA Records|MCA]]
| producer = {{hlist|[[Jeff Lynne]]|[[Tom Petty]]|[[Mike Campbell (musician)|Mike Campbell]]}}
| prev_title = [[Full Moon Fever]]
| prev_year = 1989
| next_title = [[Greatest Hits (Tom Petty album)|Greatest Hits]]
| next_year = 1993
| misc = {{Singles
| name = Into the Great Wide Open
| type = studio
| single1 = [[Learning to Fly (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers song)|Learning to Fly]]
| single1date = June 17, 1991
| single2 = [[Into the Great Wide Open (song)|Into the Great Wide Open]]
| single2date = September 9, 1991
| single3 = Too Good to Be True
| single3date = March 23, 1992 (UK and Germany)
| single4 = Kings Highway
| single4date = 1992 (UK)
| single5 = All or Nothin'
| single5date = 1992 (Germany)
}}
}}

'''''Into the Great Wide Open''''' is the eighth studio album by American [[rock band]] [[Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers]] but ninth overall for Tom Petty. Released in July 1991, it was the band's last with [[MCA Records]] and the last with drummer [[Stan Lynch]] who left in 1993. The album was the second that Petty produced with [[Jeff Lynne]], following the successful ''[[Full Moon Fever]]'' (1989).

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers recorded the album in Studio C at [[Rumbo Recorders]], which charged a rate of $600 per day. The studio was equipped with a 24-input Trident 80 B console and an Otari MTR90 MkII two-inch, 24-track machine.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Buskin |first=Richard|date=February 2014|title=Classic Tracks: Tom Petty 'Learning To Fly' |url=https://www.soundonsound.com/techniques/classic-tracks-tom-petty-learning-fly |access-date=18 November 2024|website=Sound on Sound}}</ref>

"[[Learning to Fly (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers song)|Learning to Fly]]", the first single from the album, spent six weeks at No. 1 on ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]''{{'}}s [[Mainstream Rock Tracks]] chart, tying "[[The Waiting (song)|The Waiting]]" (1981) for the band's longest run atop the chart. The album's second single, "Out in the Cold", also topped the Mainstream Rock chart, though for two weeks.

The [[music video]] for the [[Into the Great Wide Open (song)|title track]] stars [[Johnny Depp]] as "Eddie", who moves to [[Los Angeles]] as a teenager to seek rock stardom, along with [[Gabrielle Anwar]], [[Faye Dunaway]], [[Matt LeBlanc]], [[Terence Trent D'Arby]], and [[Chynna Phillips]].

== Artwork ==
Featured on the album's cover is the (slightly-cropped) painting ''Autumn Landscape'' (1921) by Czech artist [[Jan Matulka]]. The original is owned by the [[Los Angeles County Museum of Art]].

==Singles==
The album's first single, "[[Learning to Fly (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers song)#Chart history|Learning to Fly]]", was released on June 17, 1991, two weeks prior to the album,<ref>{{cite magazine|title=New Releases: Singles|magazine=Music Week|page=21|date=June 15, 1991}}</ref> and was a substantial hit for Petty. The second single, the [[Into the Great Wide Open (song)|title track]], was released just over two months after the album's release, and also became one of the band's biggest hits. Both songs were top 10 singles on various charts. The third single, "Out in the Cold", was a minor hit, not achieving the commercial success of the first two. Throughout 1992, four additional singles were released: "Makin' Some Noise", "All Or Nothin'", "Too Good To Be True", and "King's Highway".

==Critical reception==
{{Music ratings
| rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
| rev1Score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref name="AMR">{{cite web |url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r15156|tab=review|pure_url=yes}} |title=Into the Great Wide Open - Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers |first=Stephen Thomas |last=Erlewine |author-link=Stephen Thomas Erlewine |website=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=July 11, 2011}}</ref>
|rev2 = ''[[Blender (magazine)|Blender]]''
|rev2score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.blender.com:80/guide/reviews.aspx?ID=5172|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080615225037/http://www.blender.com/guide/reviews.aspx?ID=5172|archive-date=June 15, 2008|title=Tom Petty: Into the Great Wide Open|magazine=[[Blender (magazine)|Blender]]|access-date=November 5, 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| rev3 = ''[[Chicago Tribune]]''
| rev3score = {{Rating|3|4}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1991/09/01/through-the-years-with-tom-petty/|last=Kot|first=Greg|work=Chicago Tribune|title=Through The Years With Tom Petty|date=September 1, 1991|access-date=May 1, 2014}}</ref>
|rev4 = ''[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]''
|rev4Score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite book|editor-first=Colin|editor-last=Larkin|year=2011|title=The Encyclopedia of Popular Music ''(5th edn)''|location=London|publisher=Omnibus Press|isbn=978-0-85712-595-8|page=2005}}</ref>
| rev5 = ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''
| rev5Score = B+<ref name="EW">{{cite magazine |last=DiMartino |first=Dave |date=July 19, 1991 |title=Into the Great Wide Open Review |magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] |issue=75 |issn=1049-0434 |access-date=July 11, 2011 |url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,314892,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090421202745/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,314892,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 21, 2009}}</ref>
| rev6 = ''[[Los Angeles Times]]''
| rev6score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-06-30-ca-2268-story.html|last=Cromelin|first=Richard|work=Los Angeles Times|title=SUMMER ALBUM ROUNDUP : A Wilbury's Further Travels|date=June 30, 1991|access-date=May 1, 2014}}</ref>
|rev7 = [[MusicHound]]
|rev7score = 2.5/5<ref>{{cite book|editor1=Graff, Gary|editor2=Durchholz, Daniel |title=MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide|publisher=Visible Ink Press|location=Farmington Hills, MI|year=1999|isbn=1-57859-061-2|page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781578590612/page/870 870]|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781578590612/page/870}}</ref>
| rev8 = [[Music Story]]
| rev8Score = {{Rating|3|5}}{{Citation needed|date=December 2023}}
| rev9 = ''[[The New York Times]]''
| rev9Score = (favorable)<ref name="NYT">{{cite news |last=Schoemer |first=Karen |date=January 1, 1992 |title=The Pop Life; Top 12's, or So |work=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=January 2, 2013 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/01/01/arts/the-pop-life-top-12-s-or-so-196392.html}}</ref>
| rev10 = ''[[People (magazine)|People]]''
| rev10score = (favorable)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20115663,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141226160853/http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20115663,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 26, 2014|work=People|title=Picks and Pans Review: ''Full Moon Fever''|date=1991-12-08|access-date=May 1, 2014}}</ref>
| rev11 = ''[[Q (magazine)|Q]]''
| rev11Score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="CDU">{{cite web |title=Tom Petty / Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – Into the Great Wide Open CD Album |publisher=[[CD Universe]] |access-date=January 2, 2013 |url=http://www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?pid=1103440&style=music}}</ref>
| rev12 = ''[[Rolling Stone]]''
| rev12Score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="RS">{{cite magazine |last=Puterbaugh |first=Parke |date=July 11, 1991 |title=Into the Great Wide Open |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |access-date=July 11, 2011 |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/into-the-great-wide-open-19910711 |archive-date=January 4, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130104175545/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/into-the-great-wide-open-19910711 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
}}
''Into the Great Wide Open'' was warmly received by critics. Dave DiMartino, reviewing the album for ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'', called it the closest thing to a "classic" album that Petty and the Heartbreakers had made in 15 years, and a return to the quality of their first two albums. He felt this was likely due to the involvement of [[Jeff Lynne]], and commented that he felt the songs on ''Into the Great Wide Open'' are "obviously" better than those on ''[[Full Moon Fever]]'', which had also been created in collaboration with Lynne.<ref name="EW" /> ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' critic Parke Puterbaugh said the album features Petty's best lyrics and is like a cross between ''Full Moon Fever'' and ''[[Damn the Torpedoes (album)|Damn the Torpedoes]]'' (1979), and much better than ''[[Let Me Up (I've Had Enough)]]'' (1987), the most recent album credited to Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.<ref name="RS" />

[[Stephen Thomas Erlewine]] of [[AllMusic]] was less impressed, calling the album "pleasant", but not Petty at his best, and saying that it sounds too much like ''Full Moon Fever''.<ref name="AMR" /> In his Consumer Guide, [[Robert Christgau]] gave the album a one-star honorable mention,<ref name="RC">{{cite web |last=Christgau |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Christgau |title=CG: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers |publisher=RobertChristgau.com |access-date=May 1, 2014|url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?name=tom+petty+and+the+heartbreakers}}</ref> which indicates a "worthy effort consumers attuned to its overriding aesthetic or individual vision may well like".<ref>{{cite web |last=Christgau |first=Robert |title=CG 90s: Key to Icons |publisher=RobertChristgau.com |access-date=January 2, 2013 |url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/bk-cg90/grades-90s.php}}</ref>

==Track listing==
{{Track listing

| headline = Side one
| title1 = [[Learning to Fly (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers song)|Learning to Fly]]
| writer1 = {{hlist|[[Tom Petty]]|[[Jeff Lynne]]}}
| length1 = 4:02
| title2 = Kings Highway
| writer2 = Petty
| length2 = 3:08
| title3 = [[Into the Great Wide Open (song)|Into the Great Wide Open]]
| writer3 = {{hlist|Petty|Lynne}}
| length3 = 3:43
| title4 = Two Gunslingers
| writer4 = Petty
| length4 = 3:09
| title5 = The Dark of the Sun
| writer5 = {{hlist|Petty|Lynne}}
| length5 = 3:23
| title6 = All or Nothin{{'-}}
| writer6 = {{hlist|Petty|Lynne|[[Mike Campbell (musician)|Mike Campbell]]}}
| length6 = 4:07
}}
{{Track listing
| headline = Side two
| title1 = All the Wrong Reasons
| writer1 = {{hlist|Petty|Lynne}}
| length1 = 3:46
| title2 = Too Good to Be True
| writer2 = Petty
| length2 = 3:59
| title3 = Out in the Cold
| writer3 = {{hlist|Petty|Lynne}}
| length3 = 3:40
| title4 = You and I Will Meet Again
| writer4 = Petty
| length4 = 3:42
| title5 = Makin' Some Noise
| writer5 = {{hlist|Petty|Lynne|Campbell}}
| length5 = 3:27
| title6 = Built to Last
|writer6 = {{hlist|Petty|Lynne}}
| length6 = 4:00
|total_length = 43:55
}}

===Spoken interlude===
As a tongue-in-cheek reference to the "Hello, CD Listeners" interlude on [[compact disc]] releases of ''[[Full Moon Fever]]'', on [[cassette tape]] releases of this album there is a brief spoken interlude at the end of Side One. In it, Petty instructs cassette listeners how to properly flip over their tape and prepare it for Side Two.

==Personnel==
'''Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers'''

*[[Tom Petty]] – lead and backing vocals, rhythm guitars (acoustic, electric, 12-string), keyboards, percussion
*[[Mike Campbell (musician)|Mike Campbell]] – guitars (lead, 12-string, baritone, bass, resonator, slide), keyboards, [[bouzouki]], mandolin, hammer dulcimer, backing vocals on "Learning to Fly"
*[[Benmont Tench]] – electric and upright pianos, accordion
*[[Howie Epstein]] – harmony and backing vocals, bass
*[[Stan Lynch]] – drums, percussion

'''Additional musicians'''

* [[Jeff Lynne]] – guitars, bass, backing vocals, piano, synthesizer, percussion, sound effects
*[[Roger McGuinn]] – backing vocals on "All The Wrong Reasons"
*[[Richard Tandy]] – synthesizer on "Two Gunslingers"

'''Additional personnel'''<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/Tom-Petty-And-The-Heartbreakers-Into-The-Great-Wide-Open/release/930891|title=Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers - Into The Great Wide Open|website=Discogs|language=en|access-date=2019-04-04}}</ref>

* Jeff Lynne – producer
* Tom Petty – producer
* Mike Campbell – producer
* Richard Dodd – engineer

==Charts==
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}

===Weekly charts===
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|+Weekly chart performance for ''Into the Great Wide Open''
! scope="col"| Chart (1991)
! scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
{{album chart|Australia|28|artist=Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers|album=Into the Great Wide Open|rowheader=true|access-date=April 8, 2021}}
|-
{{album chart|Austria|7|artist=Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers|album=Into the Great Wide Open|rowheader=true|access-date=April 8, 2021}}
|-
! scope="row"| Canadian Albums (''[[RPM (magazine)|RPM]]'')<ref>{{cite magazine |date=August 24, 1991 |title=100 Albums (CDs & Cassettes) |magazine=[[RPM (magazine)|RPM]] |volume=54 |issue=12 |format=PHP | issn=0315-5994 |access-date=July 11, 2011 |url=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?brws_s=1&file_num=nlc008388.1605&type=2&interval=24&PHPSESSID=m89iq841abagb37ld9c0fdc1f3 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140419025046/http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?brws_s=1&file_num=nlc008388.1605&type=2&interval=24&PHPSESSID=m89iq841abagb37ld9c0fdc1f3 |archive-date=April 19, 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
| 4
|-
{{album chart|Netherlands|53|artist=Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers|album=Into the Great Wide Open|rowheader=true|access-date=April 8, 2021}}
|-
{{album chart|Germany4|8|id=1265|artist=Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers|album=Into the Great Wide Open|rowheader=true|access-date=April 8, 2021}}
|-
! scope="row"| Japanese Albums ([[Oricon]])<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.oricon.co.jp/music/release/d/162437/1/|title= トム・ペティ＆ザ・ハートブレイカーズ-リリース-ORICON STYLE-ミュージック|trans-title=Highest position and charting weeks of ''Into the Great Wide Open'' by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers| language=ja| publisher=[[Oricon|Oricon Style]]| access-date=May 1, 2014}}</ref>
| 96
|-
{{album chart|New Zealand|12|artist=Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers|album=Into the Great Wide Open|rowheader=true|access-date=April 8, 2021}}
|-
{{album chart|Norway|5|artist=Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers|album=Into the Great Wide Open|rowheader=true|access-date=April 8, 2021}}
|-
{{album chart|Sweden|2|artist=Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers|album=Into the Great Wide Open|rowheader=true|access-date=April 8, 2021}}
|-
{{album chart|Switzerland|12|artist=Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers|album=Into the Great Wide Open|rowheader=true|access-date=April 8, 2021}}
|-
{{album chart|UK|3|artist=Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers|rowheader=true|access-date=April 8, 2021}}
|-
{{album chart|Billboard200|13|artist=Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers|rowheader=true|access-date=April 8, 2021}}
|}
{{col-2}}

===Year-end charts===
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|+1991 annual chart performance for ''Into the Great Wide Open''
! scope="col"| Chart (1991)
! scope="col"| Position
|-
! scope="row"| Canadian Albums (''[[RPM Year-End|RPM]]'')<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?brws_s=1&file_num=nlc008388.1702&type=1&interval=24&PHPSESSID=mhe12pta2k83e08udtq66ot062 |title=RPM 100 Albums (CDs & Cassettes) of 1991 |magazine=RPM |date=December 21, 1991 |access-date=May 1, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140408213817/http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?brws_s=1&file_num=nlc008388.1702&type=1&interval=24&PHPSESSID=mhe12pta2k83e08udtq66ot062 |archive-date=April 8, 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
| 21
|-
! scope="row"| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.offiziellecharts.de/charts/album-jahr/for-date-1991|title=Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts|language=de|publisher=[[GfK Entertainment]]|access-date=April 8, 2021}}</ref>
| 53
|-
! scope="row"| US ''Billboard'' 200<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/1991/top-billboard-200-albums|title=Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1991|magazine=Billboard|access-date=April 8, 2021}}</ref>
| 71
|}
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|+1992 annual chart performance for ''Into the Great Wide Open''
! scope="col"| Chart (1992)
! scope="col"| Position
|-
! scope="row"| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.offiziellecharts.de/charts/album-jahr/for-date-1992|title=Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts|language=de|publisher=[[GfK Entertainment]]|access-date=April 8, 2021}}</ref>
| 90
|}
{{col-end}}

==Certifications==
{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for ''Into the Great Wide Open''}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|title=Into the Great Wide Open|artist=Tom Petty|type=album|award=Platinum|number=2|relyear=1991}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Germany|title=Into the Great Wide Open|artist=Tom Petty|type=album|award=Gold|relyear=1991}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Sweden|title=Into the Great Wide Open|artist=Tom Petty|type=album|award=Platinum|certyear=1991|relyear=1991}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Switzerland|title=Into the Great Wide Open|artist=Tom Petty|type=album|award=Gold|relyear=1991}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|title=Into the Great Wide Open|artist=Tom Petty|type=album|award=Gold|relyear=1991|certyear=1992|id=3363-3028-2}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|title=Into the Great Wide Open|artist=Tom Petty|type=album|award=Platinum|number=2|relyear=1991}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=yes}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{TPHeartbreakers}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Into The Great Wide Open}}
[[Category:Tom Petty albums]]
[[Category:Albums produced by Jeff Lynne]]
[[Category:Albums produced by Tom Petty]]
[[Category:1991 albums]]
[[Category:MCA Records albums]]

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Into the Great Wide Open