All art really does is keep you focused on questions of humanity, and it really is about how do we get on with our maker.
David BowieRead
I'm well past the age where I'm acceptable. You get to a certain age and you are forbidden access. You're not going to get the kind of coverage that you would like in music magazines, you're not going to get played on radio and you're not going to get played on television. I have to survive on word of mouth.
Interpretation
As one ages, societal acceptance in certain industries can diminish, pushing individuals to find alternative paths to success.
David Bowie's quote reflects the harsh reality that as artists grow older, they often face exclusion from mainstream media and celebration in their fields, such as music. He emphasizes how this phase of life necessitates resilience and adaptation, relying on word-of-mouth rather than traditional channels for success and validation.
In practice
A speaker at a panel discussion on age and creativity can use this quote to illustrate challenges faced by aging artists.
All art really does is keep you focused on questions of humanity, and it really is about how do we get on with our maker.
I guess, taking away all the theatrics or the costuming and the outer layers of what I do, I'm a writer... I write.
I always had a repulsive need to be something more than human.
Nothing prepared me for your smile
But I've got to think of myself as the luckiest guy. Robert Johnson only had one album's worth of work as his legacy. That's all that life allowed him.
I'm an early riser. I get up between five and six, have coffee, and read for a couple of hours before everyone else gets up.
I wanted to play blues. But I wasn't blue enough. I wasn't like Muddy Waters, people who really had it hard. In our house, we had food on the table. We were doing well compared to many. So I concentrated on this fun and frolic, these novelties.
When it comes to grunge or even just Seattle, I think there was one band that made the definitive music of the time. It wasn't us or Nirvana, but Mudhoney. Nirvana delivered it to the world, but Mudhoney were the band of that time and sound.
My definition of Blues is that it's a musical form which is very disciplined and structured coupled with a state of mind, and you can have either of those things but it's the two together that make it what it is. And you need to be a student for one, and a human being for the other, but those things alone don't do it.
Reggae is my heart ♥ reggae is my soul
Nobody could have predicted the effect of John Bonham's drum introduction on 'Good Times, Bad Times,' because no matter what he'd played in before, he'd never had the chance to flex his muscles and play like John Bonham.
Will punk rock ever die? Pal, if you have to ask it's dead to you.
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