Mayor presents his 'Gainesville Music History Mixtape.' Yes, Tom Petty made the cut.

From Tom Petty to Against Me!, Gainesville is known for its rich music history. With Tom Petty Weekend in full swing and Fest just days away, Mayor Harvey Ward took to Facebook to promote “Mayor Ward’s Gainesville Music History Mixtape” he made filled with some of Gainesville’s very best.

“Gainesville folks know we have a rich music history in our community, but we can’t always articulate the details,” he wrote. “For some of our neighbors, it begins and ends with Tom Petty, for some it’s the Eagles connection, for others it’s all about the late 90s punk scene. And it’s hard to come downtown without seeing images of Bo Diddley and smiling back at them.”

The playlist starts with a song by one of the most prolific musicians to come out of Gainesville, Bo Diddley’s “Who Do You Love.”

“Yes, I know Bo wasn’t born here, but The Originator chose our community intentionally, and he rests near here. As far as I’m concerned, Bo Diddley connects all the songs that follow,” Ward wrote. “What’s more punk-rock than walking forty-seven miles of barbed wire and using a cobra snake for a necktie?”

Diddley’s song is followed up by “For What It’s Worth” by Buffalo Springfield, a band whose guitarist spent time in the city. Then comes “Lyin’ Eyes” and later “Hotel California” by Eagles. Don Felder, who was the band’s lead guitarist until 2001, was born in Gainesville and played in a band called Maundy Quintet at Gainesville High School.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a proper Gainesville music playlist without a couple of songs by the legend himself, Tom Petty. On this playlist, Ward chooses “Down South,” and “A One Story Town” by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

More: Laura Jane Grace of Against Me! set to be honored with Key to the City of Gainesville

“Local legend tells us that the Maundy Quintet played at least one gig with a band called The Epics, which was led by another GHS kid from East Gainesville named Tommy Petty, who used to hang around Lipham’s Music,” Ward wrote. “Everybody who plays on this record is either from Gainesville or spent a bunch of time here. Even though the urban legend connection between this song and Beatty Towers is not true, I think most Gainesvillagers get a lump in the throat when Tom sings about the cars rolling by on 441 like waves crashing on the beach.”

Tom Petty Weekend takes place at Heartwood Soundstage from Oct. 20 to 22 and features music and storytelling honoring the Gainesville musician.

Ward also gives a shout-out to the late Jimmy Buffett’s “Southern Cross.” According to the mayor, Buffett once said one of his top-10 favorite cheeseburgers in the world comes from the Steak and Shake at Southwest 13th Street.

Rock City

Moving into some punk acts, of which Gainesville has produced many, Ward includes a song by Less Than Jake, “Gainesville Rock City.”

“The punk era is where we devolve a bit from Alachua General Hospital babies to folks who, like Bo Diddley, chose to be a part of Gainesville (in Less Than Jake’s case, specifically to attend UF) intentionally,” he wrote about the band that has proudly flown a GNV logo for decades.

The playlist also features “Sink, Florida, Sink” by Against Me!, and closes out with “The Swimming Pool Song” by Laura Jane Grace.

For the first time in nearly two decades, since Petty, the city will present a key to the city to a rockstar, honoring Grace for her impact on Gainesville.

The presentation will occur during Fest 21 weekend, which runs from Oct. 27-29 throughout downtown, where she will play a solo set at Vivid Music Hall.

“Closing out our list with this 2020 song by the lead singer of Against Me!, the person we’re honoring during Fest with a key to the city, and one of the bravest folks in rock and roll,” Ward wrote. “Being different is common. Being willing to live it out loud and talk about it is hard. The world needs more people willing to be who they are without apology. Also, this is a really good song by someone who loves our town quite a lot.”

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Mayor crafts 'Mayor Ward's Gainesville Music History Mixtape'