Room at the Top (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers song)

"Room at the Top"
Single by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
from the album Echo
B-side	"Sweet William"
Released	1999
Genre	Rock[1]
Length	5:01
Songwriter(s)	Tom Petty
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers singles chronology
"Free Girl Now" (1999) "Room at the Top" (1999) "Swingin'" (1999)

"Room at the Top" is the first track on the album Echo by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and the second single from the album. It reached number 19 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart.^[2]

The song is about escapism and the end of Petty's first marriage. Petty described it as one of the most depressing songs in rock history,^[3] and so intensely personal for him that once the Echo tour was over, he refused to play it.^[4]

"Room at the Top" was nominated for Best Rock Song at the 42nd Annual Grammy Awards.

Eddie Vedder version

Eddie Vedder performed "Room at the Top" during the "In Memoriam" segment at the 90th Academy Awards that took place six months after Petty's death. He later recorded the studio version for the soundtrack to the TV show Bad Monkey.

Charts

Chart (1999)	Peak position
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[2]	19
US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard)[5]	1

References

1. "Echo Songs Ranked". 13 October 2021.
2. "Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard.
3. "Echo by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers". Classic Rock Review. 2019-05-12. Retrieved 2020-08-16.
4. Songfacts. "Room At The Top by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers". Songfacts. Retrieved 2020-08-16.
5. "Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Chart History (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard.