One song wrongly sparked a feud between Tom Petty and Eddie Murphy: “Really pissed off”
Tom Petty‘s career is littered with moments where he challenged himself to write a perfect song for a perfect moment, but the truth is, he got a lot of help.
Petty was never afraid to draw on the genius of others. He would routinely lean on his Heartbreakers bandmate Mike Campbell to help craft their magic in the studio. Sitting behind the mixing desk, there could be Jeff Lynne, or Petty could call on his Traveling Wilbury partners to help him finesse a track. The decision to do just that would go awry, however, when he landed himself in accidental hot water with a legendary comic.
Released ahead of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers’ 1987 studio album Let Me Up (I’ve Had Enough), ‘Jammin’ Me’ peaked at number one on the Billboard 100 rock charts and number 18 on the pop charts. Rather strangely, it wasn’t included on the Heartbreaker’s 1993 Greatest Hits compilation, perhaps because it had been written collaboratively, but also potentially because it had upset actor and comedian Eddie Murphy.
‘Jammin’ Me’ was written by Petty with help from Bob Dylan and Heartbreakers guitarist Campbell. It was Campbell who showed the track to Tom in the mid-80s. “I wrote the track and gave it to Tom,” Campbell told Songfacts, “And he held it for a while and didn’t do anything with it. Then I guess he was working with Bob [Dylan] one day, and they came up with some words – I guess they were picking words out of a newspaper or off the television, and Tom said, ‘Oh, I’ve got this track of Mike’s’, and they inserted those words over the track. I wasn’t there when Bob wrote the words to it, but I was pretty thrilled to hear that he had contributed to it.”
At the time the song was written, the media landscape was changing. The lyrics to ‘Jammin’ Me’ reflect a burgeoning anxiety about media overload and overstimulation, with Petty referencing many notable news events, including the Iranian hostage crisis and the rise of Apple computers. “Take back your Iranian torture / And the apple in young Steve’s eye,” Tom sings. “Yeah, take back your losing streak / Check your front wheel drive.”
The song also references several television and film personalities, including Venessa Redgrave and Saturday Night Live stars Eddie Murphy and Joe Piscopoe: “Take back Venessa Redgrave,” Petty sings, “Take back Joe Piscopoe/ Take back Eddie Murphy/ Give ’em all some place to go.” By the time the song came out in 1987, Murphy had revitalised SNL following its ’70s heyday and cemented himself as a revered Hollywood actor, having starred in 1982’s 48 Hrs. and 1987’s Beverly Hills Cop.
During an interview for the latter film, Murphy, who had by this time caught wind of the lyric, is reported to have said, “Fuck Tom Petty.” There is likely to have been more words than that connected to the lips of the legendary comedian when he first heard the track. Simply sitting in his luxury vehicle and the radio suddenly starts playing a diss track from a 1970s rocker, it’s hard to imagine the fury Murphy had to contain so as not to perhaps drive off the road. But the reality is, Murphy’s words were directed at the wrong person.
Of course, the lyrics had nothing to do with Petty. Reflecting on the controversy in his book Conversations with Tom Petty, the musician said, “That was all Bob, the verse about Eddie Murphy…I remember seeing Eddie Murphy on TV really pissed off about it. I had nothing against Eddie Murphy or Venessa Redgrave.” But it was already too late – Dylan’s words had made their mark.
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