"It’s a thin line between child and genius." Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell reveals how a drum machine confused the hell out of Bob Dylan when he tried to write a hit single in the mid '80s

Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Mike Campbell.

In 1984, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell sketched out a new song using a drum machine and synth: as Petty didn't feel the song suited the feel of the album he and the group were working on, (which became 1985's Southern Accents) producer Jimmy Iovine suggested that Campbell should consider showing it to Eagles drummer Don Henley, who, at the time, was working on his second solo record. The result? The Boys Of Summer, a top 5 Billboard chart hit, and Henley's definitive solo single.

The song not only introduced Henley to a whole new audience, but caught the attention of one of his peers, Bob Dylan, who Mike Campbell also played with on occasion.