"Walls (Circus)" is a song written by American singer-songwriter

Tom Petty Thomas Earl Petty (October 20, 1950October 2, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. He was the leader and frontman of the Rock music, rock bands Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and Mudcrutch and a member of the late 1980s sup ...

and recorded by

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers were an American rock band formed in Gainesville, Florida, in 1976. The band originally comprised lead singer and rhythm guitarist Tom Petty, lead guitarist Mike Campbell, keyboardist Benmont Tench, drummer ...

. It was released in July 1996 as the first single from their soundtrack album ''

Songs and Music from "She's the One" ''Songs and Music from the Motion Picture "She's the One"'' is the ninth studio album by American rock band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, first released in August 1996. The album served as the soundtrack for the 1996 film '' She's the One'', w ...

''. The song features

Lindsey Buckingham Lindsey Adams Buckingham (born October 3, 1949) is an American musician, record producer, and the lead guitarist and co-lead vocalist of the Rock music, rock band Fleetwood Mac from 1975 to 1987 and 1997 to 2018. In addition to his tenure with ...

on background vocals and was recorded at

Sound City Studios Sound City Studios is a recording studio in Los Angeles, California, United States, known as one of the most successful in popular music. The complex opened in 1969 in the Van Nuys neighborhood of Los Angeles. The facility had previously been a p ...

by engineer

Sylvia Massy Sylvia Lenore Massy is an American record producer, mixer, and engineer. Her first major breakthrough occurred with 1993's ''Undertow (Tool album), Undertow'', the full-length triple platinum-selling debut for Los Angeles alternative metal band ...

. The song peaked at number 69 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. An alternate arrangement of the song, played at a faster tempo, was included on the soundtrack under the title "Walls (No. 3)". The song was later covered by

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American country musician and actor. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour'' on CBS television from ...

on his 2008 album '' Meet Glen Campbell'' and by

the Lumineers The Lumineers are an American alternative folk band based in Denver, Colorado. The founding members are Wesley Schultz (lead vocals, guitar) and Jeremiah Fraites (drums, percussion, piano). Schultz and Fraites began writing and performing to ...

on the first anniversary of Petty's death.

Music video

Maxine Bahns, Edward Burns and

Jennifer Aniston Jennifer Joanna Aniston (born February 11, 1969) is an American actress. She rose to international fame for her role as Rachel Green on the television sitcom ''Friends'' from 1994 to 2004, which earned her Primetime Emmy, Golden Globe, and Scr ...

appeared in the video. The music video was directed by

Phil Joanou Phil Joanou (born November 20, 1961) is an American director of film, music videos, and television programs. He is known for his collaborations with the rock band U2, for whom he directed music videos and their 1988 documentary film ''Rattle a ...

and was premiered in July 1996.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

"Walls (No. 3)"

Track 12 on the album is a faster, more mellow version titled "Walls (No. 3)". It has the same lyrics and melody, but the intro is different and the song in general has less emphasis on the instruments.

References

1996 singles 1996 songs Song recordings produced by Rick Rubin Songs written by Tom Petty Tom Petty songs Warner Records singles {{1990s-rock-single-stub