Mike Campbell thinks he is calling from New York. The leader of his own band, the Dirty Knobs, had to think about it for a moment.
It’s understandable that the confusion is brief. The second banana in rock has been out on the road most of the year, reinventing himself as a front man and lead singer.
Campbell is ranked #79 on Rolling Stone’s list of 100 greatest guitarists. I had to get used to being in front of people but I think I have found my own voice. I tried to sound like a different person. Maybe I sounded like him in the beginning, but I have taken time to remove that from my mind.
He says that the Dirty Knobs is a different kind of band than the Heartbreakers.
Campbell was obsessed with playing the guitar before he was able to afford it. He dropped out of school and joined Mudcrutch after meeting a blonde kid who convinced him to. He says that once he met Tom their paths were intertwined. The same dream was run down by us.
“I heard this dude play Chuck Berry’s ‘Johnny B.
They were writing a song with Tom.
Campbell says the young Petty was similar to him but more confident. He had a southern charm. He had the same obsession with music as I did. We played guitars, wrote songs and listened to records. From the beginning, the two clicked as co-writers and settled into a routine that served them well for decades on notable co-writers such as “Refugee,” “Here Comes My Girl,” “You Got Lucky” and “Runnin’ Down a Dream” Campbell wrote or co- wrote 36 songs in the catalog.
I would play some music for him. He would add words and melody to it if he liked it. We didn’t pull one out of the air like Lennon and McCartney. It wasn’t our rhythm. He would sing over my demo. It worked for us.
Campbell collaborated with Don Henley on “The Boys of Summer” in the ’80s.
I showed the song to Tom and Jimmy Iovine and they liked it. We were working on a new album at the time. Jimmy called me a few days later and told me that Don was looking for music. I asked if he wanted a song with a lot of lyrics. He said that he didn’t want an image maker.
Campbell remembers that “Boys of Summer” was just another song. This is not going to be an icon of the ’80s. You can’t know that. There are hit songs that are not clear. It’s all about when the audience wants to hear that kind of song and how it sounds. If other people like your song, it’s a bonus.
Campbell was surprised that Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ debut album was not a hit. It was full of great songs that were the result of years of struggle. We paid our dues and played topless bars wherever we could. We had no idea what we were doing. It was a U.K. tour at the height of punk that made the difference in the band’s career.
The English press loved us when we opened for Lofgren. There were similarities in terms of energy but musically, we were more developed. We had more things than they did. The cool thing about the punk bands was that they couldn’t really play.
The Heartbreakers got a lot of attention from that tour. By the time of their third album, Damn the Torpedoes, they had a sound that was mainstream. Things opened up.
The Heartbreakers were one of the top rock bands of the era, serving up top-selling albums such as Hard Promises and Long After Dark. Campbell was a co-producer of the Heartbreakers’ records, as well as co- producing and co-writing songs for the singer’s three solo albums.
Along the way, the man in the trademark bowler hat has collaborated with many of his musical heroes, including Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash. I think I’m the luckiest guy in the world to have worked with so many people and never met a bad person.
Campbell worked with many other artists during his time with the Heartbreakers. One notable collaboration was with Stevie Nicks. He co- wrote many songs for the singer’s solo albums, including a hit duet with Tom Petty.
He remembers that she wanted to join the band. Tom told her there weren’t any girls in the group. She wouldn’t care. I would like to be in the Heartbreakers.
There was a time with the band.
Campbell was surprised when Mick Fleetwood called and asked him to join the band on their tour as a replacement for Lindsey Buckingham. It was difficult.
He says learning Lindsey’s parts was a challenge. TheLindsey parts have to be a certain way for the songs to work. I tried to bring a bit of myself to it, but those songs have to be the way they are on the record, that’s what people want to hear.
Campbell says that he enjoyed his time with the band. They did a good job of treating me. Crowds were great when we went all over the world. They allowed me to sing and do “Oh Well”, which gave me confidence that I could do it again. We did a song called “Free Falling” to honor Tom. It was a good show with a lot of variety.
Campbell, who has played on albums by artists from Jackson Browne to the Dandy Warhols, doesn’t do a lot of session work these days, but he is working with Ian Hunter on a solo album. The front man is on a tour of the Knob Dirtys. It’s ironic since it’s the last place I played with Tom that we’re opening for the Who.
Campbell says that he still grieves even though his thoughts are not far away.
A lot of the songs I wrote for the Dirty Knobs would have been presented to Tom to see what he would write. Since he’s gone, it’s up to me to realize the songs on my own.
Mike Campbell and the Dirty Knobs will perform at the National on September 21. All age groups. There is a 7:30 p.m. event.