Video hit Tom Petty

Tom Petty - Learning To Fly

Learning To Fly is a popular track by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

It was written in 1991 by Tom Petty and his writing partner Jeff Lynne for the album Into the Great Wide Open. Though the entire song is based on only four simple chords, (F, C, A minor, and G), it has a unique structure and sound, making it a top hit for Petty.

The music video for Learning to Fly switches back and forth between shots of the band playing in an aircraft boneyard and vignettes from the early life of a young boy. The vignettes capture seminal moments in his life, which evoke the post-World War II dawn of the nuclear era, the hippie era, and the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy.

Bonnie Tyler released Learning To Fly as a single from her 2003 album Heart Strings. The single gained no chart success. Lady Antebellum did a cover of this song in their 2010 digital EP "iTunes Session".

It was used on the Chicago Bulls' 1991 NBA championship video and featured on the soundtrack of the 2005 film Elizabethtown.

It is the official song of the United States Air Force Academy skydiving team, Wings of Blue.

The lyrics:

Well I started out down a dirty road

Started out all alone

And the sun went down as I crossed the hill

And the town lit up, the world got still

I'm learning to fly, but I ain't got wings

Coming down is the hardest thing

Well the good ol' days may not return

And the rocks might melt and the sea may burn

I'm learning to fly, but I ain't got wings

Coming down is the hardest thing

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

I'm learning to fly, around the clouds,

But what goes up must come down

I'm learning to fly, but I ain't got wings

Coming down is the hardest thing