10 Most Underrated Band Members
2. Mike Campbell - Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers
When people think of the greatest guitar players of all time, many would tend to focus on the supershredders who play upwards of a thousand notes per second. Though playing of that caliber takes immeasurable talent, there's something to be said with the more lyrical guitar players who make every single note count.
Mike Campbell fits that bill in spades, as he has given Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers some of the most famous guitar breaks in rock history. Sure, a lot of the guitar work in the band's early years cannot be described as flashy, but try to listen to the song "Breakdown" without singing along to the guitar riff. Once you hear Campbell's guitar roaring into any song, you'll recognize the tone instantaneously. Campbell also came up with some of the backing tracks for the band's most famous songs like "Refugee" and "Here Comes My Girl."
Along with being the right hand man for Petty, Campbell has also worked with other rock luminaries from Stevie Nicks to Don Henley to Johnny Cash to Carl Perkins. Over the band's storied career, Mike Campbell has gone from being just one of the Heartbreakers to the co-captain of the ship along with Tom Petty.