Tom Petty tribute shows? Mike Campbell has 'mixed feelings'

Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers will celebrate their 50th anniversary in 2026 and there is already talk of a tribute to mark the occasion. But Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell isn't sure he wants to.

“Management said if we did it, we'd get the original band back together, have some guest singers and maybe just play a few gigs,” says Campbell. Rolling rock. “But then I always throw my hands up and say, 'I can't think about that. I'm not ready to go back and do that.' And I don't want to do anything to dishonor the legacy. I'm not sure how that would feel, having a bunch of people singing Tom's parts. I'm open, but I'm not overly excited about the idea.”

Various permutations of the Heartbreakers have come together since Petty died in 2017, such as at Stephen Stills' Light Up the Blues charity event, but never more than three of the five members at once. And they never billed themselves as 'The Heartbreakers'. “There's something good about leaving the way it was,” says Campbell. “We left to loud music and I don't know. I have mixed feelings about it.”

Campbell has spent the last few years touring and recording with his band Dirty Knobs. Their live show is heavy on their original tunes, though they always sprinkle in a handful of classics like “You Wreck Me” and “Runnin' Down a Dream.” They broke out even more on October 20, 2023, when they played a concert at the Bellwether in Los Angeles. It happened to be Petty's birthday and they celebrated him with a 10 song encore of his music. “We wanted to honor Tom and my old band,” says Campbell. “And it was emotional, it was beautiful. It was like a real highlight of my life, one of my favorite concerts.”

Just don't expect him to do it again anytime soon. “I'll do a few songs here and there, but I don't want to lean too much on my past,” says Campbell. “And I don't want to disrespect Tom, so I'm just doing a few that I think we could do really well and honor him. But it's not a Heartbreakers clone band.”

Another flashback to his past came on 23 September 2023, when Campbell supported Bob Dylan at Farm Aid alongside Dirty Knobs and Benmont Tench. They took the stage near the end of the night and tore through “Maggie's Farm,” “Positively 4th Street” and “Ballad of a Thin Man” without a word of introduction. (Petty and the Heartbreakers played behind Dylan on a tour in the mid-'80s.)

“That was pure Bob,” says Campbell. “They called me, 'Bob wants you to put together a little band to do Farm Aid,'” Campbell says. “So I used my band and Benmont came and played with us. And it was a flashback because we went around the world with Bob [in 1986 and 1987], and we were back on stage. In fact, the first gig we played was the first Farm Aid ever, with Bob. And then we were at Farm Aid again. It was spontaneous, exciting and a joy. He's just always fun to be around.”

The three-song set marked the first time Dylan played guitar (not to mention “Maggie's Farm” and “Positively 4th Street”) in quite some time. Can something like this happen again? “It's up to Bob,” says Campbell. “I mean, he's pretty busy. If he calls me, I would definitely take it. But there are no concrete plans now.”

There are also no plans for additional dates with Fleetwood Mac, although Campbell toured with them in 2018 and 2019, effectively filling in for Lindsey Buckingham alongside Crowded House's Neil Finn. “I don't see how they can go on without Christine [McVie] or Lindsay [Buckingham]. Stevie [Nicks] she's really busy doing her thing, she seems to be blazing a trail. I talked to Mick [Fleetwood] not too long ago, and it's kind of up to Stevie if she wants to go in that direction.”

“There are some things with Stevie and Lindsey that they should work out,” he continues. “I'm sure the audience would love to see them together again. But as far as I know, I doubt it will happen.”

Whatever happens in the future, Campbell's focus remains Dirty Knobs, who will release the new album Hobos, Virgins & Misfits on June 14. “There's so much processed music now,” he says. “But we're old school. I love hearing guys breathe together when they play live. That's what Dirty Knobs is all about.”

They've had the opportunity to open for the Who and Chris Stapleton in giant arena and stadium gigs over the past few years. “These things come out of the blue,” says Campbell. “That's my life, things fall into my lap. Bob Dylan, Fleetwood Mac, The Who… They call me and I'm like, “Hey, this came up, what do you think?” I'm not looking for something like that, but it seems to find me.”