You Got Lucky
| "You Got Lucky" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers | ||||
| from the album Long After Dark | ||||
| B-side | "Between Two Worlds" | |||
| Released | October 22, 1982 | |||
| Recorded | 1982 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:38 | |||
| Label | Backstreet | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) |
| |||
| Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"You Got Lucky" is the first single from
Composition
In a November 2003 interview with Songfacts, guitarist Mike Campbell explained the song's origins:
"You Got Lucky" was written to a drum loop. I had made a drum loop in my studio and put the music together. We went into the studio and actually recreated another drum loop. The drummer would actually go out and play, then we'd cut the tape and tape the loop together. We ran it around the room over some mic stands and through the tape heads, and then printed that for three or four minutes and then recorded the song over that drum loop. The guitar solo was Tom's idea, he suggested we do an Ennio Morricone guitar sound, kind of a vibrato arm strat kind of solo. Sort of a surf guitar with a tremolo arm, like a Clint Eastwood movie, a Good, The Bad And The Ugly kind of thing. It was Tom's idea to put that approach on there.[3]
Despite the song's popularity, it was initially rarely played live by the band, since it was not one of Petty's personal favorites; it became more of a staple since 2014.[4]
Reception
Music video
Petty felt the video was "a real groundbreaker," and stated that he and the band wrote the treatment themselves, borrowing heavily from the post-apocalyptic look of Mad Max 2, released in 1981.[7]
Directed by Jim Lenahan, the video begins with
Entering the tent, they turn on a bank of
Personnel
- Tom Petty – lead vocals
- Mike Campbell – rhythm and lead guitars
- Benmont Tench – acoustic piano, synthesizers/Oberheim OB-Xa patch "Synth Brass/Jump Synth Brass" with the vibrato effect/Roland Juno-60 patch “Vibrabell”
- Stan Lynch – drums/LinnDrum
- Howie Epstein – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Phil Jones – percussion
Chart performance
| Chart (1982-1983) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100[9] | 20 |
| U.S. Billboard Top Tracks | 1 |
| Canadian RPM Top Singles | 30 |
| Year-end chart (1983) | Rank |
|---|---|
| US Top Pop Singles (Billboard)[10] | 97 |
References
- ^ Molanphy, Chris (October 30, 2017). "Le Petty Prince Edition". Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia (Podcast). Slate. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
- ^ https://www.udiscovermusic.com/stories/best-tom-petty-songs/
- ^ "Mike Campbell". Songfacts. Archived from the original on January 9, 2018. Retrieved January 22, 2018.
- ^ Newton, Steve (August 14, 2014). "Meet Mike Campbell, the Underrated Guitar Genius Behind All Those Tom Petty Hits". The Georgia Straight. Archived from the original on May 12, 2018. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
- ^ "Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. November 6, 1982. p. 8. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
- ^ "Top Single Picks". Billboard. November 6, 1982. p. 62. Retrieved February 8, 2023.
- ISBN 9781101526415. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
- ^ "Mike Campbell: Guitar Hero | Innocent Words". Archived from the original on October 24, 2018. Retrieved October 27, 2018.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2013). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 14th Edition: 1955-2012. Record Research. p. 656.
- ^ "Talent Almanac 1984: Top Pop Singles". Billboard. Vol. 95, no. 52. December 24, 1983. p. TA-18.
