Tom Petty: Thing

“Most things I worry about never happen anyway.”

Tom Petty

“How about a cheer
For all those bad girls
And all the boys
That play that rock and roll?
They love it
Like you love Jesus.
It does the same thing
To their souls.”

Tom Petty

Have Love Will Travel
Lyrics, The Last DJ (2002)

Love , Soul , Girl , Boy

“And no I can't find no reason to explain the way that I feel.
I remember things being more clearer, at one time things were more real.”

Tom Petty

All Mixed Up
Lyrics, Let Me Up (I've Had Enough) (1987)

Way , Feeling , Time

“But not me, baby,
I've got you to save me.
Aw, yer so bad.
Best thing I've ever had.
In a world gone mad,
Yer so bad.”

Tom Petty

Yer So Bad, written with Jeff Lynne
Lyrics, Full Moon Fever (1989)

World , Baby , Madness

“I just catch myself wonderin', waitin', worryin' bout some silly little things that don't add up to nothin.”

Tom Petty

Here Comes My Girl
Lyrics, Damn The Torpedoes (1979)

“Artists aren't necessarily business people. And they aren't necessarily aware of all the things that go on in their names. Some just want to make some music, but there is a lot of greed among artists as well. Whether or not we know it, we are all to blame. I think it's time — starting with the artist — to try to be a little more responsible and aware of what goes on in our name.”

Tom Petty

Rolling Stone interview (2002)

People , Music , Business , Thinking

“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. It's damn dangerous. TV does not care about you or what happens to you. It's downright bad for your health now, and that's not a far-out concept. I think watching the TV news is bad for you. It is bad for your physical health and your mental health. The music business looks like, you know, innocent schoolboys compared to the TV business. They care about nothing but profit.”

Tom Petty

Rolling Stone interview (2002)

Money , Health , Music , Business

“I'm so tired of being tired.
Sure as night will follow day,
Most things I worry about
Never happen anyway.”

Tom Petty

Crawling Back To You
Lyrics, Wildflowers (1994)

Night

“Honey don't walk out, I'm too drunk to follow.
You know you won't feel this way tomorrow.
Well, maybe I'm a little rough around the edges,
Inside a little hollow.
I get faced with some things sometimes
That are so hard to swallow.”

Tom Petty

Rebels
Lyrics, Southern Accents (1985)

Way , Feeling

“I don't think it's a good attitude in your life to feel that you have to be rich to have self-esteem. You know, I saw a billboard in New York I wish I had photographed. It was for the TNN network. It said three words against a patriotic background of red, white and blue — BIGGER, YOUNGER, RICHER. Now, I find that fascinating: 'Bigger, younger, richer.' This whole idea of being wealthy has gone too far. I never ride in a limousine, you know. I feel gross if I get in a limousine. One good thing about the sixties was it sort of was the opposite back then. You looked silly trying to appear rich.”

Tom Petty

Rolling Stone interview (2002)

Life , Feeling , Idea , Thinking

“I'm learning to fly,
But I ain't got wings.
Coming down
Is the hardest thing.”

Tom Petty

Learning to Fly, written with Jeff Lynne
Lyrics, Into The Great Wide Open (1991)

Learning , Flying

“It's funny how the music industry is enraged about the Internet and the way things are copied without being paid for. But you know why people steal the music? Because they can't afford the music. I'm not condoning downloading music for free. I don't think that's really fair, but I understand it. If you brought CD prices back down to $8.98, you would solve a lot of the industry's problems.”

Tom Petty

Rolling Stone interview (2002)

People , Music , Way , Understanding

“You don't hear any more of, 'Hey, we did something creative and we turned a profit, how about that?' Everywhere we look, we want to make the most money possible. This is a dangerous, corrupt notion. That's where you see the advent of programming on the radio, and radio research, all these silly things. That has made pop music what it is today. Everything — morals, truth — is all going out the window in favor of profit.”

Tom Petty

Rolling Stone interview (2002)

Money , Truth , Music

“Little miss queen of hearts you're a strange thing.
Why you wanna stay so vague?
I'm wandering through this mess you've made
To see what I can save.”

Tom Petty

Too Much Ain't Enough
Lyrics, You're Gonna Get It! (1978)

Heart