After working with his early bands The Sundowners, The Epics, and Mudcrutch (which also included future Heartbreakers members Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench) he began his recording career with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers when the band broke onto the national music scene with their 1976 self-titled debut album. Still, it took America a full year to catch up to the album. "Breakdown" was re-released to radio and became a Top 40 hit in 1977 after word filtered back the band was creating a firestorm in England.
He was also a member of The Traveling Wilburys, along with George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan and Roy Orbison. Petty and the Heartbreakers also toured as a backing band for Bob Dylan.
Petty is a vocal critic of the modern recording industry, including the disintegration of independent radio stations.
Petty has been supported by his band, The Heartbreakers, for the majority of his career. He has occasionally released solo work, as is the case with his 2006 effort, Highway Companion, on which he performed most of the backing instrumentation himself. Examples of other solo albums include Full Moon Fever and Wildflowers
Petty died on 2 October 2017 following a cardiac episode earlier that day at his home in Malibu, California. Although some media outlets incorrectly reported his death following an erroneous police report, his death was confirmed later that day by his publicist and manager.
Turning Point
Tom Petty Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And walked from your door up to the county road
Oh yeah, what luck, the timing's been rough on us
Right then, oh boy, we hit the turning point
Three or four years or more my life was on the floor
Blind faith, hangin' in, hungry and tired of it
Oh yeah, better luck--it takin' over us
She's had to follow me up and down these empty streets
Whiskey on her breath tryin' to give the world a test
Oh yeah, better luck--it takin' over us
Right now, oh boy, we've hit the turning point
Yeah right now, oh boy, we've hit the turning point
Yeah right now, oh boy, we've hit the turning point
We've hit the turning point
The lyrics to Tom Petty's song "Turning Point" describe a moment of change in the singer's life. He's walking away from someone's doorstep, turning up his collar to a black cloud on the sun. There's a sense that things haven't been going well for him and whoever he's been involved with - the timing has been rough. But then, suddenly, something shifts, and he feels like they've hit a turning point. The past few years have been hard, with his life on the floor, trying to hold onto blind faith, feeling exhausted and hungry, but now things are looking up. The woman who's been with him has struggled too, following him on empty streets with whiskey on her breath, but they're both feeling like things are changing for the better.
The song has a sense of optimism to it, despite the rough road that's led up to this point. The turning point is a moment of hope, a chance to leave behind the struggles and move forward into something better. The lyrics don't specify what that something is, but there's a sense that they both know that things are going to be different from now on. Overall, the song is an ode to change, to the hope that a turning point can bring.
Line by Line Meaning
Black cloud on the sun, I turned my collar up
I felt gloomy and despondent, so I pulled my collar up to shield my emotions
And walked from your door up to the county road
I left your doorstep and headed towards the main road
Oh yeah, what luck, the timing's been rough on us
Unfortunately, our timing has not been in our favor
Right then, oh boy, we hit the turning point
At that precise moment, we had a decisive change of direction
Three or four years or more my life was on the floor
For a lengthy period of time, my life was in shambles
Blind faith, hangin' in, hungry and tired of it
I persisted with faith despite feeling exhausted and disillusioned
Oh yeah, better luck--it takin' over us
Things are starting to look up for us
But right now, oh boy, we've hit the turning point
We are presently experiencing a major shift in our circumstances
She's had to follow me up and down these empty streets
She's had to endure accompanying me on fruitless journeys
Whiskey on her breath tryin' to give the world a test
She's resorted to drinking whiskey to cope with life's trials and tribulations
Yeah right now, oh boy, we've hit the turning point
We are currently in the midst of an important transformation
We've hit the turning point
We have arrived at the point of no return
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: TOM PETTY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@lisafer13
Black cloud on the sun, I turned my collar up
And walked from your door up to the county road
Oh yeah, what luck, the timing's been rough on us
Right then, oh boy, we hit the turning point
Three or four years or more my life was on the floor
Blind faith, hangin' in, hungry and tired of it
Oh yeah, better luck--it takin' over us
But right now, oh boy, we've hit the turning point
She's had to follow me up and down these empty streets
Whiskey on her breath tryin' to give the world a test
Oh yeah, better luck--it takin' over us
Right now, oh boy, we've hit the turning point
Yeah right now, oh boy, we've hit the turning point
Yeah right now, oh boy, we've hit the turning point
We've hit the turning point
Songwriters: Tom Petty
Turning Point lyrics © Davlo Music, Buddy Love Music, Matanzas Music, Pants Party Publishing, Micheluce Music, Mantanzas
@saspinks3001
So awesome that he had "let that sucker blast!" put on the side of their plane!!!!! Coolest band ever and I doubt that we'll ever see the likes of it again.
@jeffdoggett3135
Best Petty song no one ever heard of
@kw3900
Iovine was wrong, Turning Point and Keepin' Me Alive are great songs. I love Long After Dark, but these are fabulous. God love Tom Petty.
@evelynbaron2004
Jimmy Iovine said it himself: after your 3rd album, shoot your producer. I also think that Long After Dark was a comparatively neglected album; I see it as pivotal and reflecting a huge shift in self awareness -- great great stuff. His ambivalence regarding his home life is reflected there. He had supremely what Keats called negative capability, the mark of every great artist; the ability to hold competing or contradictory ideas or emotions in a kind of non-judgemental suspension and bring them to life through art. Think of Straight Into Darkness and the 2 songs you mentioned and you find one hell of a complex person, and real life. And yes, God love Tom Petty. Tx for your post!
@hollispencheff4073
LOVINE DIDN'T LIKE THIS????? HOW FOOLISH! no offense,
@80spenn37
evelyn baron Insightful and so true. Every point you make. Have you read Zanes book on Tom?
@steelyman08
@80s Penn I actually preferred the "Runnin' Down A Dream" movie/documentary to the book. I was really looking forward to Zane's book, but it was too dry and technical for my taste. I can see why a certain kind of fan would love that though.
@steelyman08
@evelyn baron That was a comment well worth reading. Thank you. "Negative capability" sent me a-Googling. And how right you are!
@patcunningham9268
I'm addicted to this song. Wish it were available on a CD that is more accessible than exclusively on an enormous boxed set.
@Rockwurst77
Amazing guitar sounds on this one... i love how the acoustics blend with the organs and the rickenbackers