My rock n roll cup overfloweth…  First I got to see the Stones last Thursday, and last night I got to see former Heartbreaker lead guitarist extraordinaire Mike Campbell & the Dirty Knobs. It was my best bud Doug’s idea to go see the Dirty Knobs and man, I’m glad I did. It was an extraordinary performance.

They played the Kauffman Center For The Performing Arts, which usually hosts upscale cultural performances. I’m guessing they’ll need to hose the place down before the next ballet/opera after letting the unwashed rock n roll fans like me and Doug into the place. Not only is it a beautiful theater – Campbell remarked that he was having a “Liza Minelli at the Oscars moment” up on the stage with all the silvery, glittering balconies winking back at him, the sound in this room was also amazing. When the crowd behind me – I had superb 5th row seats (again, thank you Doug for grabbing those) – it sounded like they were standing at my shoulder whispering in my ear. Campbell even said, “This room sounds nice…” I had never been in that acoustically perfect place before but I’ll certainly go back. I imagine it was a lot like seeing Stevie Ray Vaughan at Carnegie Hall… for one night a classy joint turns into a roadhouse.

Campbell and the Dirty Knobs are out on the road in support of their fabulous new album, Vagabonds, Virgins & Misfits and like an old school rock band the setlist featured heavily from that album. I love when bands play the new stuff…I may be in the minority on that. The Dirty Knobs also played a number of tracks from their first LP, 2020’s Wreckless Abandon. Surprisingly, they didn’t play a single song from the second album, 2022’s External Combustion. They made up for that by dipping deeply into the Tom Petty catalog. I knew they’d touch on Petty’s music, it was Campbell’s life work too, but I didn’t expect that many Petty songs. It was a treat to hear the Dirty Knobs keep Petty’s musical legacy alive and breathing with spirited performances. I loved that they stuck to mostly deep tracks from the Petty catalog.

The Dirty Knobs are, of course, Mike Campbell on lead vocals and guitar. The man played a host of beautiful guitars including a wonderful 12-string Rickenbacker and a Gretsch Gold Falcon. The solo’ing last night was simply spectacular. Campbell put on a clinic. On second guitar and keyboards – and also playing a number of startling solo’s – was Chris Holt whom Campbell introduced as “Sidewinder.” He and Campbell would occasionally lock into a guitar duel that almost had me swooning. On bass is Lance Morrison (aka “Crawdaddy”) and he did wonderful job of holding down the bottom. On drums, replacing original drummer Matt Laug whose currently on tour with AC/DC, was the Heartbreakers’ drummer Steve Ferrone. His drumming was propulsive. I will say during band introductions, after Campbell intro’d the other guys, Ferrone came out and introduced Campbell and that speech was waaaay too long like several wedding toasts I’ve given. But if I’m complaining about that, I’m just looking for something to bitch about because otherwise it was a stellar performance.

The night began with Campbell strolling out in a groovy orange jacket and cowboy hat (pictured above). I wish I could pull off that wardrobe. The band kicked into a rollicking version of “Don’t Wait Up” from the new album and it was a perfect start. Next up was the wonderful latest single “Dare To Dream” and it sounded perfect, even though Graham Nash wasn’t there to sing the harmony vocal. I love that they played “Fuck That Guy” from the debut album early in the set. The song turned into a singalong. We all know that one guy… For “Hell Or High Water,” Campbell brought out opener Shannon McNally to sing the Lucinda Williams part. Shannon did a great acoustic set (just her voice and acoustic guitar) to open the evening.

There were so many great moments. “Angel of Mercy” was sublime. The band followed that one up with one of my all time Petty favorites, “Listen To Her Heart.” Campbell was playing the Rickenbacker on “Angel” and said after “Listen To Her Heart,” “I have to play that song when I play the Rickenbacker.” “Shake These Blues” was an epic blues stomper. “Sugar” from the first album came complete with “more cowbell.” The main set-ender was a great train song, “Southern Boy.”

As I said, I was impressed with the deep Petty tracks they played. We were treated to a rocking “Let Me Up (I’ve Had Enough)” which totally surprised me. Campbell also played “Don’t Fade On Me” from Wildflowers to beautiful acoustic guitar. Campbell at one point, to highlight the new covers album Petty Country, had a red headed woman whose name I didn’t catch (a member of the touring crew?) come up and she sang a lusty version of “Ways To Be Wicked” that brought the house down. The Knobs completely reworked “Refugee” and it was a highlight of the night. It started slow with a spooky guitar figure played by Holt. Then it rocked into the original arrangement only to then turn into another singalong. The crowd and band seemed to have a great chemistry… despite most folks sitting all night. After the band played the Petty penned “A Face In The Crowd” Campbell was visibly shaken. He said, “That one hits me in the heart every time.” I’m with you Mike.

The encore included a raucous version of “You Wreck Me” complete with Shannon McNally rejoining the band to sing along. The last song they played was a cover song that Petty used to do towards the end of the night, featured on the live album Pack Up The Plantation, “Stories We Could Tell.” It featured Campbell and Holt singing along with Ferrone playing a shaker. I’ve always loved the lyric, “I can still see us sittin’ on the bed in some motel, Listenin’ to the stories we could tell…” Man, I’ve lived that lyric.

While it’d be easy to say this was a great way to get as close as you can to seeing Petty without him being here, the Dirty Knobs are so much more. They’re building an impressive catalog of music three albums in and Campbell is getting even better as a band leader and songwriter. If you’re anywhere near a hall where these guys are playing – even if it is an upscale classy joint – do yourself a favor and buy the ticket, see the show. Doug and I left the Kauffman with beaming smiles too tired to even consider a nightcap. The Knobs got the crowd into it for a spectacular evening of down home rock n roll. And what’s better than that on a Monday night?

Cheers!