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I learned by experience that you can change your circumstance. It’s as simple as the serenity prayer; it’s a very, very real thing.

Bonnie Raitt

I’m honored when young people say they’ve gone to school on slide guitar with my records. But people get their influence from my live shows and records and YouTube, not me personally.
BONNIE RAITT

Guitar People Personally School
I finally learned to accept that I can’t make radio play blues any more than I could get Reagan out of the White House.
BONNIE RAITT

House Play White
I think that we have a unique opportunity as performers and artists to be kind of the town criers and also to get more people to listen, so that’s a blessing and a responsibility that I take very seriously.
BONNIE RAITT

Artist Blessing Responsibility
One of the biggest obstacles I’ve overcome in my life was thinking I didn’t deserve to be successful.
BONNIE RAITT

Successful Thinking Years
With slide guitar, you’re just hanging this piece of glass on your hand. It’s a really beautiful instrument in that it’s so responsive, you’re just slipping your hand back and forth.
BONNIE RAITT

Beautiful Glasses Guitar Instruments
Nobody went out to pasture, and a lot of people are doing their best work. Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, and Sting are at the top of their game.
BONNIE RAITT

Games Ghetto Mean
It’s incredible to see labor unions and environmentalists getting together to stop the corporate mentality that destroys both jobs and the environment.
BONNIE RAITT

Corporate Environment Jobs Together Work
Religion is for people who are scared to go to hell. Spirituality is for people who have already been there.
BONNIE RAITT

Faith God Spiritual
Those of us who grew up in the ’50s and ’60s, we had the dream that this could be turned around, and the earth could be back in balance, and that we could level the playing field with men and women and pay, and you know, minority groups having equal opportunity.
BONNIE RAITT

Back Balance Dream Men Opportunity
You create the happiness and the balance that you have, and your own power. This is one thing that I know to be true.
BONNIE RAITT

Balance Being True Knows
I’m happy to have been a positive influence.
BONNIE RAITT

Influence Positive Influence
I’m in a relationship, and I’ve been in one in a while, but all the people I’ve been with at various points – and I’ve had sequentially monogamous relationships my whole life – were all the right people at the right time.
BONNIE RAITT

Life Momogamous People Right Time Whole
Whatever role we were in our family of birth, we take on this persona and in your 20s and 30s in particular, you end up thinking that’s you and that isn’t necessarily you.
BONNIE RAITT

Birth Roles Thinking
I grew up in Los Angeles in a Quaker family, and for me being Quaker was a political calling rather than a religious one.
BONNIE RAITT

Calling Political Religious
How I measure success is getting to make another record and being able to the come back to the same town and play again cause you sold out the last time.
BONNIE RAITT

Able Getting Play Records Time
My love was Bob Dylan, but as I got older I realized a good ballad was a good ballad.
BONNIE RAITT

Ballads Bob Dylan
I’ve been lucky enough that I can gather all sorts of experiences and find inspiration by traveling around and by spending time with people I admire.
BONNIE RAITT

Admire Inspiration Lucky People
I think my fans would be upset if I confined my shows to one city for a long period of time.
BONNIE RAITT

City Confined One Period Think Time
I think my fans will follow me into our combined old age. Real musicians and real fans stay together for a long, long time.
BONNIE RAITT

Music Real Thinking
The fact is that this conversation is going on at every level at every age, we’re all going, “God, what a jerk I’ve been,” “How could I have married that guy?” or “How could I have done this or that?” With time, this is the gift of being older, that you get to look back and say, “It wasn’t all about them.”
BONNIE RAITT

Age Best Guy Look Looks Married
I learned by experience that you can change your circumstance. It’s as simple as the serenity prayer; it’s a very, very real thing.
BONNIE RAITT

Circumstances Prayer Real Simple
Ugly ducklings don’t turn into swans and glide off down the lake. Whether your sunglasses are on or off, you only see the world you make.
BONNIE RAITT

Duckling Lakes Swans Ugly
I can’t make you love me if you don’t, You can’t make your heart feel something it won’t.
BONNIE RAITT

Feels Heart Love Something
I made my first album, and I guess it wasn’t a fluke, because now I’m on my 16th.
BONNIE RAITT

Albums Firsts Flukes
Distribution has really changed. You can make a record with a laptop in the morning and have it up on YouTube in the afternoon and be a star overnight.
BONNIE RAITT

Afternoon Generations Morning Record Stars
Jazz and blues fests are everywhere now, and Americana is going strong on college radio. What I’m hearing is an appreciation of real music.
BONNIE RAITT

Appreciation Real Strong
We can choose, you know, we ain’t no amoeba.
BONNIE RAITT

Adages Amoeba Knows

I learned by experience that you can change your circumstance. It’s as simple as the serenity prayer; it’s a very, very real thing.

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I learned by experience that you can change your circumstance. It’s as simple as the serenity prayer; it’s a very, very real thing.

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Popular Authors

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