Top 187 Quotes & Sayings by Tom Petty - Page 3

At the end of the day, you're just phonograph records.

But not me, baby, I've got you to save me.

Yeah, the world would swing if I were king. Can I help it if I still dream time to time?

I'm not interested in the TV much. I quit watching the news a couple years ago and my outlook on life has gotten a whole lot better.

I had the radio on, I was driving. Trees flew by, me and Del were singing, Little Runaway, I was flying.

Gonna wind it up on my guitar. Gonna make that silver sing.

Every verse a diamond, every chorus gold, the sound was my salvation. It was only everything, before money became king.

I don't believe in censorship, but I do believe that an artist has to take some moral responsibility for what he or she is putting out there.

The poison came in liquid, she was naked all the time.

I don't believe in censorship, but I do believe that an artist has to take some moral responsibility for what he or she is putting out there. And I think a lot of these young kids are going to have to learn the hard way before they realize that you can actually do some damage if you're being careless or frivolous in what you're saying.

She grew up hard and she grew up fast, in the age of television.

Whatever you're looking for, don't come around here no more.

I remember things being more clearer, at one time things were more real.

That's stupid. You couldn't pay me to go. I'm not oversimplifying it. That's what's going on. I don't think it would be any fun without the drugs. It's a drug party.

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

The music has to be affordable. It's the common man that keeps it going, and if you price it out of his realm, it becomes a thing of the elite.

We haven't always been boy scouts, but we never lost sight of the music, Let me remind you that this ain't the end.

I have never been comfortable being the front man.

At twilight time the smog makes a rainbow.

He [George Harrison] told me he really, really admired John [Lennon]. He probably wanted John's acceptance pretty bad, you know?

The truth is that if you play on TV there is always a sponsor. There is no way around it. I've already passed on so much money I don't worry about it anymore.

You're dealing in magic-it's this intangible thing that has to happen. And to seek it out too much might not be a good idea. Because, you know, it's very shy, too. But once you've got the essence of them, you can work songs and improve them. You see if there's a better word, or a better change.

When you kill somebody's little sister with a missile, he's going to hate you forever. And the next generation will hate you even more.

I'm certainly not a Robin Hood, I'm not that way. I don't want to come through, burn everybody for $200 a ticket and then they can't afford to come see me again. Plus, I just don't think it's right. I don't think we need that much money. I just do what seems like the logical thing to do.

Oh yeah, alright, take it easy baby, make it last all night. She was an American Girl.

Lord, please watch over all these lost children born to chase the hurricane.

There's a freeway running through the yard.

I'll stand my ground and I won't back down.

Honey, don't walk out, I'm too drunk to follow.

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

I think sometimes maybe you're going to connect with the audience more than others, but the journey is about getting all there is to get out of this group of people.

You spend your life dreaming, running 'round in a trance, You hang out forever and still miss the dance, And if you get lucky, you might find someone, To help you get over the pain that will come.

The waiting is the hardest part.

I think to be successful you have to work really hard but you also have to have a little bit of luck.

Even the losers get lucky sometimes. Even the losers keep a little bit of pride. They get lucky sometimes.

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

My mama was a rocker way back in fifty-three, buys them old records that they sell on TV.

I'm actually better on the guitar than when I started, I think, because I've had so much time with it and I still practice and I love to do it and I love to sing.

I'm not trying to be cool. I have a problem with lights. I have one eye that's become super-sensitive to lighting, so I do wear sunglasses quite a bit.

There was rock and roll across the dial, when I think of her it makes me smile.

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

Most magic is a trick, an illusion. But [when The Beatles played the Ed Sullivan Show], this was real. Man oh man, was it real.

I can't crawl any further. You never crawled for me.

I ain't really sure, but it seems I remember the good times

Last dance with Mary Jane One more time to kill the pain I feel summer creepin' in and I'm Tired of this town again

If you listen long enough you can hear my skin grow tough love is painful to the touch must be made of stronger stuff.

Somewhere, somehow, somebody must have kicked you around some. Tell me, why you want to lay there, revel in your abandon?

If you look around at America, that's one of its biggest problems is you have corporations that can never be pleased at a profit.

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.

I love the music. I'm never, ever tired of playing it.

It's always been great to be onstage. It's really effortless up there. It's not a lot of work.

I wouldn't want to get stuck being an oldie-goldie group, but I don't mind. I think all the trouble you go through these days to go to one of these concerts, I think I owe them a bit of what they came to hear.

We could move catalog, if he'd only die quicker.

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.

If 20,000 people start to sing, you tend to go along with it.

I should have known right then it was too good to last, God, it's such a drag when you're livin' in the past

You get in there, you get the job done and you get the hell out.

Eddie waited 'til he finished high school, he went to Hollywood, got a tattoo.

I'm tired of screwing up. I'm tired of being down. I'm tired of myself. I'm tired of bein' down.

It just seems to useless to have to work so hard, and nothing ever really seem to come from it.