Heartbreakers members remember the late Tom Petty

Thursday marked the eighth anniversary of Tom Petty’s death, and his Heartbreakers bandmates Mike Campbell, Benmont Tench and Stan Lynch paid tribute to him with posts on Instagram.

Campbell posted a video that he captioned, “My thoughts on October 2, 2025.” In it, he strums his guitar as he shares his feelings about missing his friend.

“It’s been eight years, and these are my thoughts today. Time passes, things change, memories always remain. Dreams go on forever, from dawn to dawn,” he says. “The music we made together goes on and on and on. I miss you, brother. There is no other like you.”

He thanks Petty for being his friend and believing in him, noting he “will always be grateful for the friendship you gave to me.”

Campbell ends the video by saying, “So wherever you are, near or far. Your vibration lives in my guitar. The music never dies.”

Tench shared a black-and-white photo of Petty in his post, writing that it was taken at Big Daddy’s Cin City Lounge in Gainesville, Florida, with Tench guessing it was in 1973. 

“even eight years later, i still can’t find the words to express how i feel,” he writes. “i owe you, miss you, and love you more than i could ever say. i hope you’re traveling to wonderful places.”

Lynch also shared a photo, one of him and Petty together, writing, “We were kids in 1976. First tour of England. No clue what was in store. Locked together. Bonded by the music. Tommy was my dear friend and I’ll miss him until we meet again.”

Petty died Oct. 2, 2017, at the age of 66.

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.