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TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS Announce Leg Three of Their 2006 U.S. Concert Trek

The Strokes, John Mayer and Frank Black Will Support on Selected Dates; Stevie Nicks Returns to the Tour as Special "Surprise" Guest

With sold-out concerts -- including New York's Madison Square Garden and the 80,000-strong Bonnaroo -- house records set, and accolades like the Boston Globe's "one of the finest, most enduring outfits in rock'n'roll," Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers announce dates and support acts for Leg Three of their 2006 U.S. Summer Tour. The third leg, which includes headlining this year's Austin City Limits Festival and a return to the band's Gainesville, FL hometown, kicks off in Chicago on September 14 and will feature The Strokes on their first of several dates as support act. John Mayer and Frank Black will support on other selected dates.

The 'Highway Companion Tour,' which celebrates the band's 30th anniversary, has already featured a star-studded list of special guests and opening acts.

Phish frontman Trey Anastasio opened the entire first leg and will be back on some Leg Two dates, and the Allman Brothers Band are also set to support on select second leg dates. In addition, Petty and the Heartbreakers have just completed an historic run of dates with Pearl Jam during which Eddie Vedder took the stage and sang lead with Tom and the Heartbreakers on "The Waiting" and "American Girl."

It is also announced that Stevie Nicks, who was a "surprise" guest on the first eight shows of the tour, will return in that capacity for Leg Two and Leg Three dates. Nicks will join Petty and the Heartbreakers during their set for a handful of songs, including the Petty/Nicks Number One hit, "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around."

Tickets for the Berkeley dates will go on sale July 16; all other shows go on sale July 22 except Raleigh, NC which will go on sale July 21. There will be presales for Highway Companion Club members.

Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers -- Petty/vocals, guitars, Mike Campbell/guitars, Benmont Tench/keyboards, Ron Blair/bass, Scott Thurston/guitars, harmonica, backing vocals, and Steve Ferrone/drums -- have just wrapped up Leg One of their summer sojourn that kicked off June 9; Leg Two is scheduled to run from July 30 to August 18. The complete itinerary is below.

On July 25, "Highway Companion," Petty's third solo and 18th overall career disc, will be released (American Recordings/Warner Bros. Records). The album was produced by Jeff Lynne with Petty and Mike Campbell, and features twelve new Petty compositions. Lynne also produced the multi-platinum, Grammy-nominated Petty albums "Full Moon Fever" (1989) and "Into the Great Wide Open" (1991) (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers). The first radio track from "Highway Companion" is "Saving Grace," which was world-premiered last month in front of 20-million people on ABC-TV's NBA Finals. A special video stream of "Saving Grace" is now available at tompetty.com.

This year, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the release of their self-titled debut album. For this 30th anniversary, Academy Award-winning director/screenwriter Peter Bogdanovich has signed on to direct a comprehensive feature/film documentary about Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers. Over the past 30 years, Petty & the Heartbreakers have sold more than 50-million records, been nominated for 16 Grammy Awards, and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002, the first year the band was eligible. Late last year, Billboard magazine presented Petty with its 2005 Century Award, the publication's highest honor for creative achievement. He recently kicked off his second season of his critically acclaimed XM Satellite Radio show, "Tom Petty's Buried Treasure."

With more dates to be announced for Leg Three, here is the confirmed itinerary for Legs Two and Three:

(LEG TWO)
JULY
29         Amphitheatre at Clark County, Portland, OR (w/ Trey Anastasio)
30         White River Amphitheatre, Seattle, WA  (w/ Trey Anastasio)

AUGUST
 1         Spokane Arena, Spokane, WA  (w/ Trey Anastasio)
 4         Smirnoff Music Center, Dallas, TX  (w/ Trey Anastasio)
 5         C.W. Mitchell Pavilion, Houston, TX  (w/ Trey Anastasio)
 8         DTE Music Center, Detroit, MI
 9         Rock'n The Rally, Sturgis, SD
12         New England Dodge Music Center, Hartford, CT
             *w/ Allman Bros. Band and Derek Trucks
13         Saratoga Performing Arts Center, Saratoga Springs, NY (w/ Allman
             Bros. Band and Derek Trucks)
15         Darien Lake Six Flags P.A.C., Buffalo, NY (w/ Allman Bros.
             Band)
16         Post-Gazette Pavilion @ Star Lake, Burgettstown, PA (w/ Allman
             Bros. Band)
18         Tweeter Center @ the Waterfront, Camden, NJ  (w/ Allman Bros.
             Band and Derek Trucks)

(LEG THREE)
SEPTEMBER
14, 15     Charter One Pavilion, Chicago, IL  (w/ The Strokes)
17         Austin City Limits Festival, Austin, TX
19         Alltel Pavilion @ Walnut Creek, Raleigh, NC  (w/ The Strokes)
21         Stephen C. O'Connell Center, Gainesville, FL  (w/ The Strokes)
22         Hi Fi Buys Amphitheatre, Atlanta, GA  (w/ The Strokes)
27         Coors Amphitheatre, San Diego, CA  (support TBA)
29-30      Greek Theatre, Berkeley, CA  (w/ Frank Black)

OCTOBER
 4         Glendale Arena, Phoenix, AZ  (w/ John Mayer)