Eli Young Band releases new version of Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers' hit 'Learning To Fly'

Latest song from ‘Petty Country: A Country Music Celebration of Tom Petty,’ set for June 21

Press Release

Eli Young Band’s version of Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers’ hit song “Learning To Fly” debuts as the latest single shared from the highly anticipated June 21 tribute album “Petty Country: A Country Music Celebration of Tom Petty” (via Big Machine Records). Listen/share the track here and preorder/pre-save the album here.

“Tom Petty’s influence on Eli Young Band runs deep, as he has always been, in one way or another, a road map for us,” Eli Young Band frontman Mike Eli said. “ ‘Learning To Fly’ has long been a fixture in our show, as well as many of his other songs. We are so pumped to be part of such an incredible salute to one of the masters!”

Ahead of the album’s release, several tracks have been shared with fans, including Wynonna Judd’s take on the classic “Refugee” featuring Lainey Wilson, Steve Earle’s rendition of “Yer So Bad,” Chris Stapleton’s take on Tom Petty’s “I Should Have Known It” (which debuted as the No. 1 most added track at Triple A), and “Southern Accents,” reimagined by Petty’s friend and fellow Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee Dolly Parton. Dierks Bentley’s version of the Petty classic, “American Girl,” also premiered earlier this year as Bentley’s highest charting single upon launch and is currently climbing through the Top 35 on country radio. Watch Bentley perform “American Girl” on “Good Morning America” here.

More on ‘Petty Country’

Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers was one of the most singular and distinctly American bands. Beyond the west coast rock-folk jangle, San Francisco psychedelia and a blast of British invasion, the south’s influence was a constant throughout Petty’s songwriting in his words, truths and especially his defiance and dignity. “Petty Country: A Country Celebration of Tom Petty” draws on all the aspects and flavors of the Gainesville-raised icon’s roots and leans into the genre that defines the region, bringing the top talent in country and Americana music together to create a 20-song tribute to Petty’s dynamic musical legacy (out June 21 via Big Machine Records).

Executive produced by Scott Borchetta (Big Machine Label Group), George Drakoulias (Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, The Black Crowes) and Randall Poster (Wes Anderson, “Skyfall”), with the oversite of the late icon’s daughter, Adria Petty, the collection pulls from across various realms and seasons of music to create a full picture of Petty’s impressive catalog. Artists lending their talents to the project include: Dierks Bentley, Brothers Osborne, Luke Combs, Steve Earle, Wynonna Judd, Lady A, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Carly Pearce, Thomas Rhettt, George Strait, Chris Stapleton and Lainey Wilson. True to the originals – true to what those songs could be – “Petty Country,” like Traveling Wilbury, shows vast the influence and reach of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee and highlights the previously unseen breadth and country reach of Petty’s songs.