RockLists.com

Song · Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

“Refugee” by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

“Refugee” by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers appears on 102 radio countdowns from 36 stations between 1980 and 2026. Its best result is #3 on the KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1980. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #3 alternative song of 1980 and #455 of the '80s.

102countdowns
36stations
#3best position
0#1 finishes
1top 10 finishes
1980–2026years charted

Watch

Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers - Refugee

Video from YouTube (TomPettyVEVO). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers followed "Don't Do Me Like That" with "Refugee" in January 1980, the second single pulled from Damn the Torpedoes, their 1979 album with producer Jimmy Iovine on Backstreet Records. It started as a Mike Campbell demo, one of the first pieces of music he ever wrote, knocked out on a 4-track at his house. Petty wrote his words over it exactly as it stood, not a chord altered, and still gave the chorus its lift.

Getting it on tape was another story. By Campbell's account the band struggled for ages to find the right feel, cutting it something like 100 times, and at one point he got so fed up he walked out and left town for two days. The grind paid off: it climbed to number 15 on the Hot 100.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

RockLists rankings

Alternative & Modern Rock

Indie & Adult Alternative

Classic Rock

Hard Rock & Metal

All Rock Formats

Year-end countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1980 3 KROQ Los Angeles, CA KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1980 106

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
1982 131 95.5 KLOS KLOS Memorial Day 500 (1982) 499
1991 144 WNEW-FM WNEW Firecracker 500 (1991) 500
1994 180 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1994) 1000
1995 128 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1995) 1000
1996 136 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1996) 1000
1997 94 100.7 WZLX WZLX Memorial 500 (1997) 499
1997 702 102.3 WBAB WBAB Top 1,023 Rock and Roll Songs of All Time (1997) 1023
1997 63 104.5 KZEP KZEP Memorial Weekend Top 500 (1997) 500
1998 220 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1998) 1000
1999 232 KISW KISW Top 1000 of All Time (1999) 998
2002 25 100.7 WZLX WZLX Memorial 500 (2002) 500
2002 105 92.3 KGON KGON Top 923 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2002) 923
2004 104 92.3 KGON KGON Top 923 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2004) 923
2004 744 WXPN WXPN 885 All-Time Greatest Songs (2004) 885
2007 391 WTMD WTMD Top 897 Songs of All Time 897
2009 882 WXPN WXPN 885 Desert Island Songs (2009) 885
2010 539 WXPN WXPN 885 Ultimate Road Trip Songs (2010) 885
2011 49 97.9 The Loop The Loop Rock N Roll 500 (2011) 500
2011 41 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1100 Countdown (2011) 1100
2012 41 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1200 Countdown (2012) 1200
2012 43 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2012) 500
2012 188 WXPN WXPN 885 Greatest Rock Songs (2012) 885
2013 36 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Grand Jam 1000 (2013) 1000
2013 110 Big 100 BIG 500 Labor Day Countdown (2013) 500
2013 130 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2013) 500
2013 60 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Firecracker 500 (2013) 500
2013 373 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR CT 500 (2013) 500
2014 761 WXPN WXPN 885 All-Time Greatest Songs (2014) 885
2014 216 Big 100 BIG 1000 New Year's Countdown (2014) 1000
2014 34 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX 1K Countdown (2014) 1000
2014 86 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Firecracker 400 (2014) 400
2015 24 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Firecracker 500 (2015) 499
2015 318 102.9 The Whale 102.9 The Whale Hartford 500 (2015) 500
2015 101 I-95 I-95 Memorial Day Weekend Top 500 (2015) 500
2015 36 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1007 Classic Rock Countdown (2015) 1007
2016 128 102.9 The Whale 102.9 The Whale Hartford 500 (2016) 500
2016 23 100.7 WZLX 100.7 WZLX Top 1007 Countdown for 2016 1007
2016 136 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2016) 500
2016 18 Qfm96 Qfm96 Memorial Day 500 (2016) 500
2017 147 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2017) 500
2017 32 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2017) 500
2017 87 97.9 The Loop 97.9 The Loop Top 540 Countdown (2017) 540
2018 148 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2018) 500
2018 34 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2018) 500
2019 293 102.5 KZOK KZOK Top 1025 of 2019 1025
2019 61 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2019) 500
2019 47 Big 100 BIG 500 Memorial Day Countdown (2019) 500
2019 195 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR Big 500 (2019) 499
2019 226 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2019) 500
2019 126 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ 500 (2019) 500
2020 71 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2020) 500
2020 62 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ 500 (2020) 500
2020 30 Q105.7 Q105.7 Memorial Day 500 (2020) 499
2020 210 102.5 KZOK KZOK Classic Rock Top 1025 (2020) 1025
2020 51 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2020) 500
2020 878 WXPN WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time 2020
2021 62 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2021) 500
2021 149 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ 500 (2021) 500
2021 165 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2021) 500
2021 76 100.7 KSLX KSLX Arizona 500 (2021) 499
2021 103 WCSX WCSX Rock & Roll 500 (2021) 499
2021 337 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR Big 500 (2021) 500
2021 715 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2021) 1043
2022 302 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '70s 908
2022 467 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2022) 1043
2022 55 102.5 KZOK KZOK Classic Rock Top 1025 (2022) 1025
2022 112 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2022) 500
2022 265 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ Rock N Roll 500 (2022) 500
2022 323 97.1 The River River 500 (2022) 500
2022 109 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2022) 500
2022 110 100.7 KSLX KSLX Arizona 500 (2022) 500
2022 249 WMGK WMGK Philly 500 (2022) 500
2022 61 99.1 PLR 99.1 PLR Big 500 (2022) 500
2022 73 94.1 KRNA KRNA Memorial Day 500 (2022) 500
2023 707 The Colorado Sound The Colorado Sound Top 850 Songs of the 1980s 850
2023 66 Qfm96 Qfm96 Memorial Day 500 (2023) 500
2023 88 KSHE 95 KSHE 95 Rock N' Roll 500 (2023) 500
2023 212 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2023) 1043
2023 47 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2023) 500
2023 498 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ Rock N Roll 500 (2023) 500
2023 73 101.5 WPDH WPDH Top 1015 (2023) 1015
2023 103 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2023) 500
2023 231 97.1 The Drive 97.1 The Drive Memorial Day Weekend Rock N Roll 500 (2023) 500
2023 338 WMGK WMGK Philly 500 (2023) 500
2024 70 Qfm96 Qfm96 Memorial Day 500 (2024) 498
2024 42 KSHE 95 KSHE 95 Rock N' Roll 500 (2024) 500
2024 234 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2024) 1043
2024 127 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2024) 500
2024 304 106.7 WLLZ WLLZ Rock N Roll 500 (2024) 500
2024 773 WYEP WYEP Best Songs of the Past 50 Years 1049
2024 116 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2024) 499
2024 317 KQRS KQRS KQ 500 (2024) 499
2024 160 KEXP The Best Opening Tracks of All Time 738
2025 72 Qfm96 Qfm96 Memorial Day 500 (2025) 498
2025 616 Q104.3 Q104.3 Top 1,043 Classic Rock Songs of All Time (2025) 1043
2025 280 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2025) 500
2025 160 97 Rock 97 Rock N Roll 500 (2025) 500
2026 343 WFPK WFPK Top 500 Songs of the '80s 498
2026 145 102.5 WDVE DVE Memorial Day 500 (2026) 500
2026 288 100.7 KSLX KSLX Arizona 500 (2026) 500
2026 427 WMGK WMGK Philly 500 (2026) 500

Charting alongside it in 1980

Best songs of 1980 →
  1. 1And the Cradle Will RockVan Halen
  2. 2Another One Bites the DustQueen
  3. 3Whip ItDevo
  4. 4Don't Stand So Close to MeThe Police
  5. 5Once in a LifetimeTalking Heads
  6. 6You Shook Me All Night LongAC/DC

Comments

Log in or create a free account to join the conversation about "Refugee" by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers.

Be kind and stay on topic. Guidelines

No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.