The Tom Petty Greatest Non-Hits Collection

Seems like whenever you pick up an artist "Greatest Hits" or "Best Of" or "Anthology", they always {always!} leave off two or three (or four) of your favorites. Well, we've just solved that.

For what should have been Tom's 70th birthday, we're celebrating with the 10 best and greatest Tom Petty tracks that were not hits and practically never got heard on the radio...

Tom Petty's Greatest Non-Hits:

1. "When The Time Comes" (2:46) -The kick-off to The Heartbreakers' underrated second album "You're Gonna Get It!" (1978). Great psychedelic pop, catchy as hell.

2. "Spike" (3:33) - TP's vision of Good Ol' Boys vs. Punk Rocker Types is a hoot all right, but with an undercurrent of darkness. From 1985's "Southern Accents".

3. "You And I Will Meet Again" (3:45) - How this gem from "Into The Great Wide Open" (1991) didn't become a radio staple completely escapes us.

4. "Swingin'" (5:29) - One of the best songs ever written about fighting the good fight. 1999's "Echo" was a tad inconsistent, but this one was a grand slam.

5. "Power Drunk" (4:47) - Hard to pick just one off The Heartbreakers final studio album "Hypnotic Eye" (2014), but hey, the band was in top form, TP knew it and they all went full-tilt bang-o on what's got to be one of Tom's most political workouts.

6. "The Wild One, Forever" (3:02) - A sort-of ballad that induces goose-bumps still. From their 1976 self-titled debut, a killer all around actually...

7. "Lost Children" (4:27) - Like a monster Zeppelin riff attached to a beautiful McCartney melody. A real scorcher from "The Last DJ" (2002).

8. "You Tell Me" (4:34) - Put these guys in saucy Stones mode then get the hell out of the way. Absolutely as perfect as anything else on 1979's breakthrough "Damn The Torpedoes!".

9. "It'll All Work Out" (3:12) - He could do acoustic Dylan, too. From the "You've-Got-To-Go-Back-And-Listen-Again-To" section of his catalog, 1987's "Let Me Up (I've Had Enough)" here likely being his most under-appreciated work. This song's rather like a prayer of sorts, and as per usual with his best stuff, the band 's understated simplicity deceives big time.

10. "Cry To Me" (3:30) - This live cover of an old soul classic was also done by The Stones on their 1965 "Out Of Our Heads" LP. This version is better! Ironic fact: it completely nukes everything else that's on the 1979 "No Nukes" concert collection. End of story.

Happy Birthday and Rest In Peace, Thomas Earl. We miss you.