Tom Petty’s 1964 Gibson Dove was one of his earliest and most important guitars. He bought it before Mudcrutch and the Heartbreakers were formed, at a time when he was still mainly playing bass in Mudcrutch. For a while, it was the only guitar he had, before Mike Campbell later gave him the Stratocaster he used with the Heartbreakers.
Petty wrote many of his early songs on the Dove, including “American Girl” and “Breakdown.” The guitar also survived the 1987 arson fire that destroyed much of his Encino home, and it can be seen in the “Free Fallin’” music video.
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