Tom Petty regarded his 2008 solo album *Highway Companion* as one of his stronger records, placing it among his best work despite it receiving less attention than some of his releases with the Heartbreakers. The album mattered as a late-career statement that reaffirmed Petty’s songwriting quality and ability to work successfully outside the band format.

Released in 2006 rather than 2008, *Highway Companion* was Petty’s third solo album and was produced with Jeff Lynne and Mike Campbell. It included songs such as ‘Saving Grace’, ‘Square One’ and ‘Flirtin’ with Time’, and Petty later described it as “one of the better albums” he had made.