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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

I don’t want to sound like a self-help book, but it really has been transformative for me to take a look at my relationships in a new way and see my part in them. Everybody’s going through that.
BONNIE RAITT

Book Everyone Relationship Self Sound
It is still a surprise when people tell me that I’ve had an influence on them, particularly when it’s someone I really respect.
BONNIE RAITT

Influence People Surprise
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
I didn’t have to be a pop singer with a certain look. When I started, there was really a revolution in natural artists with blues and folk artists crossing over; otherwise, I wouldn’t have been able to get started.
BONNIE RAITT

Artist Looks Revolution Singers
We can choose, you know, we ain’t no amoeba.
BONNIE RAITT

Adages Amoeba Knows
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’m sure I would have been considered a more significant artist if I was a singer-songwriter. It’s just not the way I roll. I love being a curator and a musicologist.
BONNIE RAITT

Artist Jobs Musicologist Writing
I don’t know that I’m unique in that people relate to my music, but I would hope people would say that I’m honest and that I do the best work I can possibly do instead of coasting.
BONNIE RAITT

Honest People Unique
There are a lot of people that never get their stories told.
BONNIE RAITT

People Stories Told
In 1967 I entered Harvard as a freshman, confident – in the way that only 17-year-olds are – that I could change the world.
BONNIE RAITT

Creating Government Years
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
When they were putting oil rigs up and down the California coast, the whole issue of safe energy and the addiction to fossil fuels really came into focus.
BONNIE RAITT

Coast Country Focus Issues Oil
The great thing about the arts, and especially popular music, is that it really does cut across genres and races and classes.
BONNIE RAITT

Art Class Cutting
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
My love was Bob Dylan, but as I got older I realized a good ballad was a good ballad.
BONNIE RAITT

Ballads Bob Dylan
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
The generation I grew up in was the beginning of “stand up for yourself,” whether being a singer-songwriter or a feminist. In my college years, the feminist movement was really coming to fore, so we wouldn’t have put up with guys treating us less than equal.
BONNIE RAITT

College Equal Feminist Years
Even if the writers don’t get paid enough most of the time, unfortunately – but there’s never been a more amazing flow of information on all of the issues. I would love to see a revival of what we had against the war in the ’60s – we could do thes
BONNIE RAITT

Against Information Love Unfortunately
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
There would be no rock and roll or rhythm and blues without Leo Fenders’ contribution … the tone is everything
BONNIE RAITT

Everything Music Rocks Roll
I’m happy to have been a positive influence.
BONNIE RAITT

Influence Positive Influence
If we are truly each other’s keepers, let’s support school lunches, food stamps, neighborhood garden projects, and so many other wonderful programs working to put an end to this cruel and needless blight once and for all.
BONNIE RAITT

End Food Garden Needless Project Stamp
I don’t want to discredit people’s opinions of me, but you talk about the violin or the cello or lead guitar where you have to learn tons of chords, that’s much more difficult.
BONNIE RAITT

Guitar People Want
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
With the new ways of getting music out, you don’t need a label if you’re a legacy artist.
BONNIE RAITT

Artist Legacy Needs
Pat Benatar might need a rock band, but I can just sit with a blues guitar for an hour and a half and do folk songs and great contemporary ballads, and not many people can pull that off.
BONNIE RAITT

Contemporary Guitar Need Rocks Song
You know, a lot of people feel that sobriety is about just stopping using whatever it was that you appeared to be addicted to, but it really has to do with a way of looking at your life and taking accountability.
BONNIE RAITT

Accountability People Sobriety

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

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

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Popular Authors

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