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

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

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

Campbell & the Dirty Knobs recently completed a co-headlining tour with Lucinda Williams. Each concert featured an extended set in which Williams performed Petty classics (“You Wreck Me,” “Southern Accents”) and a handful of his own solo songs (“Metal Firecracker,” “Right In Time”) with Campbell and Dirty Knobs .

Campbell and the Heartbreakers keyboardist Benmont Tench is currently paying tribute to the band’s music on the Life Is a Carnival Last Waltz Tour alongside Jamey Johnson, Ryan Bingham and more. This is the first time the two Heartbreakers have toured together since Petty’s last tour in 2017.

But don’t expect the Heartbreakers to ever hit the road with a backup vocalist singing Petty’s parts. “We’re never going out with Paul Rodgers (who played with Queen for five years) or anyone else,” Campbell said Rolling Stone in 2018. “Nobody can fill those shoes. I can’t fill them and I don’t know anyone else that I would.”

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