Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers' 40th anniversary tour to play Atlanta

Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers are celebrating 40 years in rock. Photo: Joel Bernstein

Credit: Melissa Ruggieri

Credit: Melissa Ruggieri

Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers are celebrating 40 years in rock. Photo: Joel Bernstein

BY MELISSA RUGGIERI/AJC Music Scene

Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers are commemorating their 40 years in the music business by going on tour.

The band, with special opening guest Joe Walsh, will play Philips Arena at 7:30 p.m. April 27. A fan club pre-sale will begin at 10 a.m. Dec. 14 and tickets will go on sale for the general public at 10 a.m. Dec. 16 through www.ticketmaster.com, the venue box office and by calling 1-800-745-3000. Tickets are $49.50-$149.50.

The tour will launch April 20 in Oklahoma and wrap (for now) in July in New York.

While Petty performed at the Tabernacle with his original band, Mudcrutch , in June, he and the Heartbreakers haven't played here since an April 2012 show at Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre in Alpharetta.

To further celebrate the 40th anniversary of their self-titled debut, Petty and The Heartbreakers will release two companion vinyl box sets featuring their entire studio album collection. All of the LPs in the limited-edition sets have been pressed on 180-gram vinyl with replica artwork. Many have been out of print for years and most have been remastered for this re-release. The box sets are available now via www.tompetty.com.

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Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers 40th Anniversary Tour

April 20 – Oklahoma City, OK @ Chesapeake Energy Center*

April 22 – Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Arena*

April 23 – Little Rock, AR @ Verizon Wireless Arena*

April 25 – Nashville, TN @ Bridgesone Arena*

April 27 – Atlanta, GA @ Philips Arena*

April 29 – Houston, TX @ Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion*

May 2 – Austin, TX @ Frank Erwin Center*

May 5 – West Palm Beach, FL @ Perfect Vodka Amphitheatre*

May 6 – Tampa, FL @ Amalie Arena*

May 12 – St. Louis, MO @ Scottrade Center*

May 13 – Indianapolis, IN @ Klipsch Music Center*

May 29 – Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre

May 30 – Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre

June 2 – Kansas City, MO @ Sprint Center*

June 3 – St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center*

June 5 – Des Moines, IA @ Wells Fargo Arena*

June 7 – Columbus, OH @ Schottenstein Center*

June 9 – Pittsburgh, PA @ PPG Paints Arena*

June 10 – Cleveland, OH @ Quicken Loans Arena

June 12 – Cincinnati, OH @ US Bank Arena*

June 14 – Hartford, CT @ XFINITY Theatre*

June 16 – Newark, NJ @ Prudential Center*

June 17 – Hunter, NY @ Mountain Jam Festival

June 29 – Chicago, IL @ Wrigley Field**

July 1 – Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Arena

July 2 – Canandaigua, NY @ CMAC Performing Arts Center

July 5 – Milwaukee, WI @ Marcus Marcus Amphitheater, Summerfest**

July 6 – Milwaukee, WI @ Marcus Marcus Amphitheater- Summerfest**

July 18 – Clarkson, MI @ DTE Energy Music Theatre

July 20 – Boston, MA @ TD Garden

July 23 – Washington, D.C. @ Verizon Center

July 26 – Queens, NY @ Forest Hills Stadium

July 27 – Queens, NY @ Forest Hills Stadium

* With Joe Walsh

** With Chris Stapleton