Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Guitarist Mike Campbell Pens Memoir

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell has teamed up with novelist Ari Surdoval to write a memoir, Heartbreaker, which will be released on March 18, 2025.

The book will trace the story of Campbell’s life from his days on the Sixties Florida rock scene through his years in Mudcrutch and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, the sudden death of Petty in 2017, his brief stint in Fleetwood Mac that followed, and his ongoing solo work in Mike Campbell & the Dirty Knobs.

“This is my book,” Campbell says in a statement. “It’s the story of a poor kid from Jacksonville, Florida who realized a dream through music. It’s a long journey through hard work, dedication and luck. Playing guitar and writing songs has been my inspiration and purpose. It’s a story of hope, redemption and gratitude, a testimonial that dreams can come true if you believe in yourself and follow your truth. It took two years to write and it’s a labor of love. I hope you enjoy the ride!”

Campbell & the Dirty Knobs recently finished up a co-headlining tour with Lucinda Williams. Every gig featured an extended set where Williams sang Petty classics (“You Wreck Me,” “Southern Accents”) and a smattering of her own solo songs (“Metal Firecracker,” “Right In Time”) with Campbell and the Dirty Knobs.

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At the moment, Campbell and Heartbreakers keyboardist Benmont Tench are paying tribute to the music of the Band on the Life Is a Carnival Last Waltz tour along with Jamey Johnson, Ryan Bingham and others. It’s the first time the two Heartbreakers have toured together since the final Petty tour in 2017.

But don’t expect the Heartbreakers to ever hit the road with a replacement vocalist singing Petty’s parts. “We’ll never go out with Paul Rodgers [who performed with Queen for five years] or someone else,” Campbell told Rolling Stone in 2018. “Nobody can fill those shoes. I can’t fill them and I don’t know anybody else that I would want to fill them.”