Mudcrutch is a Southern rock

Southern rock

Southern rock is a subgenre of rock music, and genre of Americana. It developed in the Southern United States from rock and roll, country music, and blues, and is focused generally on electric guitar and vocals...

 band from Gainesville, Florida

Gainesville, Florida

Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth...

 best known for being the forerunner of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers are an American rock band from Gainesville, Florida. They were formed in 1976 by Tom Petty , Mike Campbell , Benmont Tench , , Ron Blair and Stan Lynch...

.

Early Years

Mudcrutch was formed in 1970 by Tom Petty

Tom Petty

Thomas Earl "Tom" Petty is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He is the frontman of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and was a founding member of the late 1980s supergroup Traveling Wilburys and Mudcrutch. He has also performed under the pseudonyms of Charlie T...

 and Tom Leadon

Tom Leadon

Tom Leadon is an American musician. He was an original member of Tom Petty's former band, Mudcrutch. He is the brother of Bernie Leadon, formerly of the Eagles....

, who had been playing together in a band called the Epics. Mudcrutch's lineup consisted of Tom Petty (bass and vocals), Tom Leadon (guitar and vocals), Randall Marsh (drums) and Mike Campbell (guitar). Leadon left the band in 1972 and was replaced by bassist/guitarist/vocalist Danny Roberts. Keyboardist Benmont Tench

Benmont Tench

Benjamin Montmorency Tench, III is an American keyboardist best known as a founding member of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.-Early years:...

 also joined the band.Ricky Rucker was a part of the band for a short time. Mudcrutch served as the house band at Dub's Lounge in its hometown of Gainesville, Florida

Gainesville, Florida

Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth...

.

In 1974, Mudcrutch signed with Shelter Records

Shelter Records

Shelter Records was a U.S. record label started by Leon Russell and Denny Cordell that operated from 1969 to 1981. The company established offices in both Los Angeles and Tulsa, Russell's home town, where the label sought to promote a "workshop atmosphere" with a recording studio in a converted...

 and re-located to Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

. The band released one single, "Depot Street," in 1975, which failed to chart. After Danny Roberts left the group, Tom invited Charlie Souza to take over on bass guitar and the band continued recording in Leon Russell's Tulsa Studio, and later at Leon's Encino California home. The band's record company broke them up in late 1975. Petty, Campbell and Tench went on to form The Heartbreakers

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers are an American rock band from Gainesville, Florida. They were formed in 1976 by Tom Petty , Mike Campbell , Benmont Tench , , Ron Blair and Stan Lynch...

 in 1976 with fellow Gainesville natives Stan Lynch

Stan Lynch

Stanley Joseph "Stan" Lynch is an American songwriter and record producer. He was the original drummer for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers for 18 years until his departure in 1994.- Early years :...

 and Ron Blair

Ron Blair

Ron Blair is the original bassist for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. He was the band's bassist from 1976 to 1981. In 2002, he returned to the group after a 21-year hiatus, replacing his own replacement, the late Howie Epstein.His father was a Navy man, so the family relocated every few years...

.

2008 return

In August 2007, Tom Petty invited Randall Marsh and Tom Leadon, original members of Mudcrutch, to reunite with Heartbreakers Benmont Tench and Mike Campbell to reform Mudcrutch. They recorded an album, Mudcrutch

Mudcrutch (album)

Mudcrutch is the first studio album by American rock band Mudcrutch, released on April 29, 2008. The album was recorded during a two-week period in August 2007. Mudcrutch was originally formed in 1967. The band recorded several demos and singles but never released an album...

, which was released on April 29, 2008, by Reprise Records

Reprise Records

Reprise Records is an American record label, founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operated through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:...

, and contains 14 old and new tracks. "We would play and then we would just talk about the old days," said Tom Leadon

Tom Leadon

Tom Leadon is an American musician. He was an original member of Tom Petty's former band, Mudcrutch. He is the brother of Bernie Leadon, formerly of the Eagles....

. The band toured briefly in California to promote the album throughout April and the beginning of May 2008.

Fans who bought tickets to the tour through Ticketmaster

Ticketmaster

Ticketmaster Entertainment, Inc. is an independent American ticket sales and distribution company based in West Hollywood, California, USA, with operations in many countries around the world. In 2010 it merged with Live Nation to become Live Nation Entertainment...

 were given six free downloads from their debut album.

On November 11, 2008 a live EP titled Extended Play Live

Extended Play Live

Extended Play Live is a live EP released by Mudcrutch in November 2008 on Reprise Records. It was recorded during the band's 2008 tour to promote their first album Mudcrutch...

was released. All the tracks were recorded live in April 2008. On the same day American music channel VH1 Classic

VH1 Classic

VH1 Classic is a television network, launched on May 8, 2000. It is operated as part of MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom and primarily features music videos and concert footage from the 1970s through the mid-1990s, though it formerly included a wider range of genres and time periods...

  broadcast a documentary about the band.

Personnel

1971–1972	Jim Lenahan - lead vocals Singing Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... Tom Petty Tom Petty Thomas Earl "Tom" Petty is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He is the frontman of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and was a founding member of the late 1980s supergroup Traveling Wilburys and Mudcrutch. He has also performed under the pseudonyms of Charlie T...  - backing vocals Backing vocalist A backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists... , bass guitar Bass guitar The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... Mike Campbell - lead guitar Lead guitar Lead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure... Tom Leadon Tom Leadon Tom Leadon is an American musician. He was an original member of Tom Petty's former band, Mudcrutch. He is the brother of Bernie Leadon, formerly of the Eagles....  - rhythm guitar Rhythm guitar Rhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together... , backing vocals Benmont Tench Benmont Tench Benjamin Montmorency Tench, III is an American keyboardist best known as a founding member of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.-Early years:...  - keyboards Keyboard instrument A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments... , vocals Randall Marsh - drums Drum kit A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
1973–1975	Tom Petty - lead vocals, rhythm guitar, harmonica Harmonica The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes... , bass guitar Mike Campbell - lead guitar Danny Roberts - rhythm guitar, bass guitar, backing vocals Benmont Tench - keyboards, vocals Randall Marsh - drums Charlie Souza - bass guitar
2008	Tom Petty - lead vocals, bass guitar Mike Campbell - lead guitar Tom Leadon - rhythm guitar, backing vocals Benmont Tench - keyboards, vocals Randall Marsh - drums

Singles

• 1971: "Up in Mississippi Tonight" b/w "Cause Is Understood" (Pepper 9449)
• 1975: "Depot Street" b/w "Wild Eyes" (Shelter SR-40357)
• 2008: "Scare Easy
  Scare Easy
  "Scare Easy" is a song written and sung by Tom Petty. It featured on the debut album by rock band Mudcrutch featuring Petty and Mike Campbell...
  
  " (March 25, 2008)

Also appears on

• 1995: Playback
  Playback (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers box set)
  Playback is a box set compilation by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, released in 1995. It contains popular album tracks, B-sides, previously unreleased outtakes, and early songs by Petty's previous band Mudcrutch....
  
  (box set compilation
  Compilation album
  A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
  
  by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers)

External links

• Mudcrutch | Home - official website
• Mudcrutch in 2008 - Coverage and photos of Mudcrutch's return.
• official youtube channel