Fun Facts
- With jangly guitars and a driving rock beat, the song American Girl by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers is a bonafide classic. It was released as a single off of the self-titled 1976 album Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers. The single didn’t make the charts initially, but it eventually became one of the bands’ biggest hits and is often considered the best song Tom Petty wrote. It also ranks high as one of the best American singles of all time. The song was actually recorded on July 4th, 1976, the bicentennial of the United States.
- There have been long-standing rumors about the lyrics in the song. When Tom sings about a girl on a balcony facing a “great big world,” the rumors began to float that the song was written about a college student who committed suicide. Tom Petty later disputed this theory when he said the inspiration came from the place he was living at the time. He said he thought the cars going by on the freeway sounded like the ocean, inspiring the lyrics.
- The classic rock staple has also been used to soundtrack many movies and TV shows, including The Silence of the Lambs, Fast Times at Ridgemont High and The Sopranos.
- Today, the song “American Girl” is classic rock canon, and it is often hailed as one of the 100 greatest guitar songs ever.
- It may have been released quietly but slowly grew into a universally loved rock anthem that is sure to perk up any dive bar in America.
Lyrics
Well she was an American girl
Raised on promises
She couldn’t help thinkin’ that there
Was a little more to life
Somewhere else
After all it was a great big world
With lots of places to run to
Yeah, and if she had to die tryin’
She had one little promise
She was gonna keep
Oh yeah, alright
Take it easy baby
Make it last all night
She was an American girl
Well, it was kind of cold that night
She stood alone on her balcony
Yeah, she could hear the cars roll by
Out on 441
Like waves crashin’ on the beach
And for one desperate moment there
He crept back in her memory
God it’s so painful
Something that’s so close
And still so far out of reach
Oh yeah, alright
Take it easy baby
Make it last all night
She was an American girl
Ooh
Ooh
Ooh
Oh yeah