Tom Petty, band gleefully kick off anniversary tour in OKC

tepping out on stage, the boots, the vest under a long black coat, Tom Petty looked like a man a bit younger than his 66 years.

Petty and his Heartbreakers kicked off their 40th anniversary tour April 20 in Oklahoma City, and the steadfast rockers were in fine form for the packed house at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.

Petty always has had a mellow way about him, his speaking voice never really registering above that of Matthew McConaughey in “Dazed and Confused,” but the first thing he did on April 20 was tell the crowd how he and the Heartbreakers could barely wait backstage to get up there and officially start the tour.

“We’ve got a lot of songs to play tonight,” Petty told the energized crowd. “Hopefully, we’ll get to all of them.”

As a longtime fan of Petty, I have to say, they did just that. After the set, I was having trouble thinking of a hit they didn’t play (of course, there were a few). I admit I was a little surprised how well his voice has held up after all these years. He sounded amazing. And so did the Heartbreakers. Most of their classics sounded much like their studio recordings, with a couple exceptions: a somewhat acoustic version of “Learning to Fly” that was sans drums, and an intense rendition of “It’s Good to be King.”

At one point, Petty appeared to almost stumble by a large chest placed near the front of the stage, acting as if he had just noticed the brown trunk for the first time. Stopping, in a seemingly bewildered manner, Petty reached down and slowly opened the chest. Bright light poured out, and Petty reached in and removed a top hat. Of course, those of us in the crowd who remember that trippy music video for “Don’t Come Around Here No More,” in which Petty played the Mad Hatter in an homage to “Alice in Wonderland,” jumped out of our seats. The whole arena was again on its feet as the band played the catchy 1980s tune.

It was just one of many opportunities Petty found to engage the crowd. There were several moments were he invited us to sing along, even going silent as he gave us the mic during some of our favorite lyrical hooks a couple times. This has long been a staple of Petty’s live shows and a testament to the personal impact of his music. Opener Joe Walsh had a similar effect on the crowd as he tore through all of his classics. While Joe’s voice has gotten a little gravely recently, he did not disappoint.

Petty played for close to two hours, returning for an encore, as you would expect from such a seasoned performer. He didn’t say a whole lot outside of his songs, but it was obvious he was having just as much fun as the audience. He often would turn to the crowd, and sometimes his band, with his arms wide open, grinning with obvious joy.

Petty and the Heartbreakers will be on tour until August, but as he told “Rolling Stone” in December, this might be the band’s last U.S. tour.

“It’s very likely we’ll keep playing, but will we take on 50 shows in one tour? I don’t think so,” Petty told Andy Greene, of “Rolling Stone.” “I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was thinking this might be the last big one. We’re all on the backside of our 60s. I have a granddaughter now I’d like to see as much as I can. I don’t want to spend my life on the road. This tour will take me away for four months. With a little kid, that’s a lot of time.”

Although, he also told the magazine he would consider touring for his masterpiece 1994 solo album, “Wildflowers.”

Until then.