50+ Rocking Tom Petty Quotes For Budding Young Songwriters

Tom Petty is a highly respected Rock 'n Roll artist from Gainesville, Florida.

World renowned for his superhit track 'Free Fallin'', Petty had a magical voice and was an articulate guitarist. He was the frontman of the band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, which was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002.

Tom Petty sang Rock 'n Roll and was one of few artists who didn't have a taste for fame. He much preferred to focus his efforts on making Rock 'n Roll and Southern Rock hits, both solo and with the Heartbreakers, that topped the charts one after the other. With runaway hits like 'The Waiting' (1981), 'Don't Come Around Here No More' (1985), 'Running Down A Dream' (1989), 'Learning To Fly' (1991), 'Wildflowers' (1994), and the likes, his spotless reputation in the industry was that of a great man, songwriter and performing artist.

After all, it is said that his interest in Rock 'n Roll began when he, at the age of 10, met the King Elvis Presley himself, and his interest also took root when he watched the Beatles perform on the 'Ed Sullivan Show'. Petty was absolutely inspired and it gave him hope to dream to become the musician he one day would be.

We all know how much music quotes rock, so we have put together a list of the best Tom Petty quotes for you. As you enjoy these Tom Petty quotes, do also have a look at our Bob Dylan quotes and Johnny Cash quotes.

These Tom Petty quotes will go a long way in inspiring you. How many of these Tom Petty quotes have you heard before?

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

-Tom Petty.

2. "You belong somewhere you feel free."

-Tom Petty.

3. "I don't see myself as the savior of anything. On one hand, I'm flattered; that's why it's so hard to complain. What we're really striving for is to inspire someone."

-Tom Petty.

4. "When I decided to be a musician I reckoned that that was going to be the way of less profit, less money."

-Tom Petty.

5. "You believe what you want to believe."

-Tom Petty.

6. "Back then it was almost like admitting that you were never going to make any money and realizing you probably were not going to have a professional life but saying, 'this is what I love, so I'll do this.'"

-Tom Petty.

7. "I want to be successful. Not just money. Just making a successful record and a successful show. I could feel successful without selling a million records."

-Tom Petty.

8. "Songwriting ability is a gift. After a while, you come to realize, 'I've really been blessed. I can write these things and it makes me happy, and it makes millions of people happy.'"

-Tom Petty.

9. "Go after what you really love and find a way to make that work for you, and then you'll be a happy person."

-Tom Petty.

10. "I'm really maniacally interested in music. That's only what I'm into now. I can't get enough of that."

-Tom Petty.

11. "It's the only true magic I know. It's not pulling a rabbit out of a hat; it's real. It's your soul floating out to theirs."

-Tom Petty.

12. "I'm certainly not a Robin Hood, I'm not that way. I don't want to come through, burn everybody for 200 dollars a ticket and then they can't afford to come see me again. Plus, I just don't think it's right."

-Tom Petty.

13. "I'm just trying to make good quality music, 'cause I do realize this music is going to be around much longer than me. I do know that now. If I'm gonna get it together to go make a record, I want it to be something that does feel timeless and honest."

-Tom Petty.

14. "Where the sky begins, the horizon ends, despite the best intentions."

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'All The Wrong Reasons'.

15. "It's sort of hope amongst the ruins, I think. To me we're all in the great wide open. I think life is pretty wild; I really want to like the world, but at the same time I have to write about what I see."

-Tom Petty.

16. "Music really isn’t supposed to be perfect. It’s all about people relating to each other and doing something that’s really from the soul. It must come from the soul."

-Tom Petty.

17. "Even the losers get lucky sometimes."

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'Even The Losers'.

18. I developed a problem with authority. Any time that authority was what I interpreted as being unjust, I stood up to it, and that became my personality."

-Tom Petty.

19. "You've gotta work it a little harder and you have to be mindful of what you're doing all the time."

-Tom Petty.

20. "I'm not any happier anywhere than when I'm in the studio. I'm over the moon about it. It keeps me young, it keeps me feeling like I have some purpose."

-Tom Petty.

These Tom Petty song quotes and Tom Petty best lyrics quotes include some of the best Tom Petty lyrics, Heartbreakers quotes, and Rock and Roll quotes from songs. Enjoy these Tom Petty quotes that will really get you thinking.

21. "Workin' on a mystery, goin' wherever it leads, I'm runnin' down a dream."

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'Runnin' Down A Dream'.

22. "Buy me a drink, sing me a song, take me as I come, cause I can't stay long."

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'Mary Jane's Last Dance'.

23. "Well, some say life will beat you down, break your heart, steal your crown; So I've started out for God-knows-where, I guess I'll know when I get there."

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'Learning To Fly'.

24. "Well I know what's right, I got just one life, in a world that keeps on pushin' me around, but I'll stand my ground."

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'I Won't Back Down'.

25. "The waiting is the hardest part, every day you get one more yard. You take it on faith, you take it to the heart, the waiting is the hardest part."

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'The Waiting'.

26. "I felt so good like anything was possible."

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'Runnin' Down A Dream'.

27."You never slow down, you never grow old."

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'Mary Jane's Last Dance'.

28. "After all it was a great big world with lots of places to run to."

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'American Girl'.

29. "I'm learning to fly, but I ain't got wings. Coming down is the hardest thing."

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'Learning To Fly'.

30. "No I'll stand my ground, won't be turned around, and I'll keep this world from draggin' me down."

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'I Won't Back Down'.

These Tom Petty sayings include quotes from Tom Petty lyrics about love and living, famous music is magic quotes and even a Tom Petty quote about college. These Tom Petty quotes are truly inspirational.

31. "Music is probably the one real magic I have encountered in my life. There's not some trick involved with it... It moves, it heals, it communicates and does all these incredible things."

-Tom Petty.

32. "Love is painful to the touch, must be made of stronger stuff."

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'Rhino Skin'.

33. "Most things I worry about never happen anyway."

-Tom Petty, 'Crawling Back To You'.

34. "You'll never remember class time, but you'll remember the time you wasted hanging out with your friends. So stay out late. Go out with your friends on a Tuesday when you have a paper due on Wednesday... The work never ends, but college does."

-Tom Petty.

35. "Excuse me if I have someplace in my mind, where I go time to time."

-Tom Petty, 'It's Good To Be King'.

36.  "What I really tried to keep in front of my mind is these have to be really good songs, 'cause you don't want to start thinking that lyrics alone will carry you. No one's gonna listen to the lyrics if the songs aren't good. So I worked really hard to make them good songs."

-Tom Petty.

37. "I've learned one thing, and that's to quit worrying about stupid things. You have four years to be irresponsible here, relax. Work is for people with jobs."

-Tom Petty.

38. "It's really a beautiful thing for someone like me. I dedicated my entire life to this music."

-Tom Petty.

39. "I've always had a great love for the blues."

-Tom Petty.

40. "Some days are diamonds, some days are rocks."

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'Walls'.

The Hollywood Walk of Famer has quite a few insightful and hilarious quotes to his credit. Which of these Tom Petty quotes is your favorite?

41. "I'm barely prolific and incredibly lazy."

-Tom Petty.

42. "I had to learn a new way of playing. I had to practice a lot, and just find ways around the limitations. So it was a bad idea to break my hand."

-Tom Petty.

43. "I think it's important to always offer something new."

-Tom Petty.

44. "The only good thing about getting older is you get smart enough to avoid unnecessary problems. You know what's worth spending time on and what's not."

-Tom Petty.

45. "I think, for it to be unhip to be idealistic is weird, you know?"

-Tom Petty.

46. "As we celebrate mediocrity, all the boys upstairs want to see, how much you'll pay for what you used to get for free."

Tom Petty, 'The Last DJ'.

47. "It's funny how the music industry is enraged about the internet and the way things are copied without being paid for."

-Tom Petty.

48. "The music business looks like, you know, innocent schoolboys compared to the TV business. They care about nothing but profit."

-Tom Petty.

49. "I like to be an optimist, but I like to be a realist, too."

-Tom Petty.

50. "If I'd had to work at Taco Bell, I'd have still been out at night trying to play music."

-Tom Petty.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly quotes for everyone to enjoy! If you like our suggestions for 50+ rocking Tom Petty quotes, then why not take a look at these guitar quotes, or [quotes about singing]?