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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

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
And just the problem of young women not getting an education, not being able to have an equal position in the cultures all around the world.
BONNIE RAITT

Education Position Women World
My career is based on the slow build of an audience based on putting on a good show live and putting out a record every couple of years.
BONNIE RAITT

Careers Couple Years
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
In blues, classical and jazz, you get more revered with age.
BONNIE RAITT

Age Classical Jazz More
There’s a balance between ballads and kick-ass songs.
BONNIE RAITT

Ass Ballads Between Difference Kick Songs
We did a two month tour with Taj Mahal that was really healing and cathartic and a good distraction after my brother passed away. Then I knew I wanted to take a year off, and it was really nice to have that chance to fall apart.
BONNIE RAITT

Brother Fall Knew Nice Off Year
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
Life gets mighty precious when there’s less of it to waste.
BONNIE RAITT

Less Life Mighty Waste
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
There were so many great music and political scenes going on in the late ’60s in Cambridge. The ratio of guys to girls at Harvard was four to one, so all of those things were playing in my mind.
BONNIE RAITT

Girl Great Guy Music Political Scene
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
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
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
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
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
It can unite kids and musicians, everybody, whether they’re leftist or rightist, or radical, or Republican, because energy is energy. But in fact, it is a real political struggle – it shows people that it’s big business against the people.
BONNIE RAITT

Energy Radical Real Republican Struggle
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 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
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
I was already doing really well in terms of my goals, to keep my fans coming back.
BONNIE RAITT

Back Coming Goal Really
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
The women’s movement resurgence of standing up for so many things that were kind of sleepy there for a decade or so, there’s been a reawakening and I think the consciousness movement in general is dovetailing with a lot of recovery and self-empowerment.
BONNIE RAITT

Consciousness Recovery Resurgence Self Thinking
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
You don’t have to look a certain way to have a hit record.
BONNIE RAITT

Looks Records Way
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
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

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.

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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.

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Popular Authors

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