Tom Petty Quotes

Rock n’ roll was one thing, and then they chopped off the ‘roll’ and called it ‘rock,’ which became a sort of umbrella term for anything with a guitar in it. Like hair bands. How could we possibly believe that? It’s just gotten downright silly, to the point where now it’s sort of become like professional wrestling.

When I was 15 or 16 playing in groups, we used to sit in the car and try to write the lyrics down as a song was playing, and we’d assign each person a verse, you know: ‘I’m going to do the first one. You go for the second one.’ And then sometimes you’d wait an hour for it to come on again so you could finish it up.

Sometimes life, will get you down, break your heart, steal your crown.

Do something you really like, and hopefully it pays the rent. As far as I’m concerned, that’s success.

I would never put my songs in a commercial.

Time to move on, time to get going. What lies ahead I have no way of knowing. But under my feet, baby, grass is growing.

You belong among the wildflowers You belong in a boat out at sea You belong with your love on your arm You belong somewhere you feel free

Any time you’re making a living at what you love to do, you’re blessed.

I tend to write on an acoustic guitar or the piano. I have kind of a rule: if I can’t sit down and play this and get the song over, I don’t take it to the band, because most any good song, you can sit down and deliver it with a piano or a guitar.

I think television’s become a downright dangerous thing. It has no moral barometer whatsoever. If you want to talk about something that is all about money, just watch the television.

The energy of the crowd is insane. Twenty thousand people. It’s the biggest jolt of adrenaline. It’s very hard to explain. You know the old story about the woman lifting the car off her kid? It’s in that realm. You can actually hurt yourself and not know it.

Sometimes, giving up your privacy is a little like going to the dentist and we have let him have access that no one’s ever had.

Redemption comes to those who wait, forgiveness is the key.

I don’t know, my music has always just come from where the wind blew me. Like where I’m at during a particular moment in time.

Rock isn’t a young music anymore. I don’t think it’s necessarily even a youth-oriented music.

Most things I worry about never happen anyway.

If you don’t run, you rust.