As initially reported by TMZ, the legendary rock musician suffered a cardiac arrest. His death has been confirmed by Tony Dimitriades, longtime manager of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, on the band's Facebook page. He issued a statement:
"On behalf of the Tom Petty family we are devastated to announce the untimely death of our father, husband, brother, leader and friend Tom Petty. He suffered cardiac arrest at his home in Malibu in the early hours of this morning and was taken to UCLA Medical Center but could not be revived. He died peacefully at 8:40pm PST surrounded by family, his bandmates and friends."
Petty and the Heartbreakers completed a six month world tour last week, which celebrated the 40th anniversary of his band.
Born in Gainesville, Florida in 1950, Petty emerged first with Mudcrutch before establishing himself with the Heartbreakers. They released several records regarded as classics, including their breakthrough third LP, 'Damn the Torpedoes'.
Petty also played with the Travelling Wilburys, a supergroup featuring Bob Dylan, Jeff Lynne, George Harrison and Roy Orbison.
NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
We don't run any advertising! Our editorial content is solely funded by lovely people like yourself using Stereoboard's listings when buying tickets for live events. To keep supporting us, next time you're looking for concert, festival, sport or theatre tickets, please search for "Stereoboard". It costs you nothing, you may find a better price than the usual outlets, and save yourself from waiting in an endless queue on Friday mornings as we list ALL available sellers!
