Here Comes My Girl

"Here Comes My Girl" is a song by American heartland rock band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. A ballad, it was released on April 7, 1980 as the third single from their third studio album, Damn the Torpedoes (1979). It was written by frontman Tom Petty and lead guitarist Mike Campbell. The song stalled at number 59 on the US Billboard Hot 100.^[4]

Lead guitarist Mike Campbell explained the story behind "Here Comes My Girl". This was in a November 2003 interview with Songfacts:

It's very similar to "Refugee" - those two were written the same week. I made some demos and Tom liked those two. "Here Comes My Girl" was interesting because we had the chorus and Tom wasn't sure how to do the verse, he kept trying to sing it different ways and he finally came across sort of half-talking it, and that's when the song seemed to come to life.^[5]

Petty remembers Campbell's chords and tune on a cassette tape. He struggled with the lyrics. Bassist Ron Blair told Petty that what he had was a "really good piece of music." Petty learned to use narration in the verses. This is similar to Blondie or The Shangri-Las. Petty said the chorus was inspired by The Byrds.

Cash Box called it a "truly excellent single." They praised its "convincingly honest narrative intro" and a "Byrds-like hook."^[6] Record World said it was a "raging ballad." They added that Petty's "tough talk/sing vocal swells into a pretty hook."^[7]

The music video was directed by John Goodhue. It was released in April 1980.

• Tom Petty – lead vocals, rhythm guitar
• Mike Campbell – lead guitar
• Ron Blair – bass guitar
• Stan Lynch – drums, backing vocals
• Benmont Tench – piano, organ