1. Home
  2. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
  3. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Songs
  4. Insider

InsiderTom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Released: May 5, 1981

Songwriter: Tom Petty

Producer: Jimmy Iovine Tom Petty

[Verse 1]
You've got a dangerous background
And everything you've dreamed of
Yeah, you're the dark angel
It don't show when you break up

[Pre-Chorus 1]
And I'm the one who oughta know
I'm the one left in the dust
Yeah, I'm the broken-hearted fool
Who was never quite enough

[Chorus]
I'm an insider, I've been burned by the fire
And I've had to live with some hard promises
I've crawled through the briars
I'm an insider

[Verse 2]
It's a circle of deception
It's a hall of strangers
It's a cage without a key
You can feel the danger

[Pre-Chorus 2]
And I'm the one who oughta know
I'm the one you couldn't trust
I'm the lonely, silent one
I'm the one left in the dust

[Chorus]
I'm an insider, I've been burned by the fire
And I've had to live with some hard promises
I've crawled through the briars
I'm an insider

[Verse 3]
I'll bet you're his masterpiece
I'll bet you're his self-control
Yeah you'll become his legacy
His quiet world of white and gold

[Pre-Chorus 3]
And I'm the one who oughta know
I'm the one you left to rust
Not one of your twisted friends
I'm the one you couldn't love

[Chorus]
I'm an insider, I've been burned by the fire
And I've had to live with some hard promises
I've crawled through the briars
I'm an insider

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers – an L.A.-based gang of sharp-dressed garage-rock refugees from Gainsville, Florida – released their debut LP in November 1976, featuring two tracks which are now part of their long list of hits, “Breakdown” and “American Girl.”

Since that first LP in ‘76, the band’s style has epitomized and largely defined the American “heartland rock” movement – a vintage-guitar twang, hard lyric truth, and searing vocal attitude.

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers have been nominated for 17 Grammy awards and sold more than 80 million records worldwide, making them one of the world’s best-selling bands of all-time.

more tracks from the album

Hard Promises

From the albums
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers popular songs

2021 © gotlyric.com