Bowery Ballroom
6 Delancey St.
Thursday, October 28, $20, 8:00
www.boweryballroom.com
When we recently saw Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers at the Garden, one of the things that struck us most was what a truly great songwriter he is, and just how many great songs he has written. His vast catalog will be unleashed at the Bowery Ballroom Thursday night for the annual PettyFest. Billed as “a night to get drunk and celebrate Tom Petty’s sixtieth birthday,” this year’s extravaganza features another all-star lineup of musicians paying tribute to one of Florida’s favorite sons. The Gainesville native might have turned sixty on October 20, but he’s still making vital rock and roll, as evidenced by his latest record, June’s MOJO (his first studio disc with the Heartbreakers since 2002’s THE LAST DJ), on which the grizzled veteran plays with a renewed bluesy swagger, proving that he’s not just a greatest hits act resting on his laurels. Among those who will be covering songs from such classic albums as YOU’RE GONNA GET IT! (1978), DAMN THE TORPEDOES (1979), HARD PROMISES (1981), LONG AFTER DARK (1982), SOUTHERN ACCENTS (1985), LET ME UP (I’VE HAD ENOUGH) (1987), FULL MOON FEVER (1989), INTO THE GREAT WIDE OPEN (1991), WILDFLOWERS (1994), ECHO (1999), and HIGHWAY COMPANION (2006) are Norah Jones, Jesse Malin, Nicole Atkins, Adam Green, Hymns, SNL’s Will Forte and Jason Sudeikis, Catherine Pierce, and members of such groups as Fountains of Wayne, the Mooney Suzuki, the Strokes, and the All American Rejects, joining the Cabin Down Below Band.