Limited 180gm vinyl LP pressing. Into the Great Wide Open is the eighth studio album by American rock band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, first released in 1991. The album was the band s last with MCA Records. The album was the second Petty produced with Jeff Lynne after the success of Full Moon Fever. The first single, Learning to Fly , became his joint longest-running number one single (along with The Waiting from 1981 s Hard Promises) on Billboard s Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, spending six weeks at the top spot. Tom Petty is best known as the lead singer of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, but is also known as a member and co-founder of the late 1980s supergroup the Traveling Wilburys (under the pseudonyms of Charlie T. Wilbury, Jr. And Muddy Wilbury), and his early band Mudcrutch. Petty has recorded a number of hit singles with the Heartbreakers and as a solo artist, many of which are mainstays on adult contemporary and classic rock radio. His music has been classified as rock and roll, heartland rock, and even stoner rock. His music has become popular among younger generations. In his career, Petty has sold more than 80 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. In 2002, Petty was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.