{"id":794226,"date":"2026-10-06T23:34:12","date_gmt":"2026-10-06T23:34:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/794226\/"},"modified":"2026-10-06T23:34:12","modified_gmt":"2026-10-06T23:34:12","slug":"mike-campbells-favourite-tom-petty-and-the-heartbreakers-song","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/794226\/","title":{"rendered":"Mike Campbell’s favourite Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers song"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Tom<\/p>\n

Credit: Far Out \/ Tom Petty \/ Mike Campbell<\/p>\n

Tue 6 October 2026 19:00, UK <\/p>\n

Seeing The Heartbreakers<\/a> return in 2026 was not on anybody\u2019s list of musical predictions, but even without their bandleader, Tom Petty, they are still an electric live band that no group would want to follow.<\/p>\n

Although their performance<\/a> at the Americana Music Awards, with Chris Stapleton on vocals, was strictly a one-off, there was a special energy that radiated from Mike Campbell sharing a stage with Benmont Tench, Stan Lynch, and Ron Blair once again.<\/p>\n

As much as they were billed as Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers, they were never a one-person band. Mike Campbell was a member since day one and played a crucial role in their growth, from starting on the club scene to conquering global arenas. He wasn\u2019t some anonymous session musician that was picked by the label; Campbell was crucial to their sound and identity. Without his presence, they would never have hit such heights.<\/p>\n

Although Petty was The Heartbreakers\u2019 chief lyricist, he needed the rest of the band to bring his vision to life and turn them into full-blooded songs. It\u2019s all good and well to be a talented songwriter, but without the help of accomplices, the songs are of little use. Even the great Petty would have been the first to admit that his right-hand man was responsible for much of their shared success<\/a>.<\/p>\n

However, the same can be said for Campbell\u2019s career. Following Petty\u2019s death, it didn\u2019t take long for Fleetwood Mac to recruit his services, which he balanced alongside The Dirty Knobs and session work for some of the most prestigious acts on the planet. Yet, he also needed Petty for the world to take notice of his divine talent, too.<\/p>\n

\"Tom<\/a>Credit: Far Out \/ Album Covers \/ BMG<\/p>\n

Their third album together, 1979\u2019s Damn The Torpedoes<\/a>, changed the course of their lives and finally made the mainstream wake up to their brilliance. It\u2019s a true classic, which gave music lovers a number of iconic hits, including \u2018Don\u2019t Do Me Like That\u2019 and \u2018Here Comes My Girl\u2019.<\/p>\n

But for Campbell, it doesn\u2019t get better than the opening track \u2018Refugee\u2019, which he believes to be the best song ever released by The Heartbreakers and Petty.<\/p>\n

During a discussion with Vulture<\/a>, Campbell explained how it was made and why it\u2019s the pinnacle of the band\u2019s career, noting, \u201cIt\u2019s so universal and it\u2019s one of the first big hits we wrote together. I had a four-track reel-to-reel tape recorder and a record that had some drum beats on it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Further elaborating on how the sausage was made, Campbell added, \u201cI played that on the machine and I made up some chords because I wanted to practice lead guitar, and those chords became \u2018Refugee\u2019 as we know it. I gave the music to Tom and he wrote the words. It was a lucky moment for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Petty had a particular soft spot for \u2018Refugee\u2019, too, which was his attempt to hit back at the music industry. The Heartbreakers frontman shared, \u201cThis was a reaction to the pressures of the music business. I wound up in a huge row with the record company when ABC Records tried to sell our contract to MCA Records without us knowing about it, despite a clause in our contract that said they didn\u2019t have the right to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI was so angry with the whole system that I think that had a lot to do with the tone of the Damn the Torpedoes album,\u201d Petty added. \u201cI was in this defiant mood. I wasn\u2019t so conscious of it then, but I can look back and see what was happening.\u201d<\/p>\n

After trying to keep their label happy by chasing trends, \u2018Refugee<\/a>\u2018 was the sound of Petty and The Heartbreakers making it abundantly clear they were done playing the game on anything but their own terms. Within one song, it embodied everything that would make them a peerless act and signified that they had found their voice.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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