When you're writing, you're conjuring. It's a ritual, and you need to be brave and respectful and sometimes get out of the way of whatever it is that you're inviting into the room.
Tom WaitsRead
Sometimes the magnetism of a song is impossible to ignore, and it demands that it be sung in a certain way.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote suggests that certain songs have a powerful influence that dictates how they should be expressed musically.
Tom Waits highlights the compelling nature of certain songs, indicating that their emotional and musical qualities create an irresistible urge to perform them in a specific manner. This speaks to the idea that music has its own essence and voice, which both inspires and guides the artist in their interpretation.
Themes
MusicSongExpressionPerformanceArt
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be shared during a music appreciation class to highlight the importance of interpretation.
More from Tom Waits
All quotes →If you're in the middle of the ocean with no flippers and no life preserver and you hear a helicopter, this is music. You have to adjust to your needs at the moment.
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I knelt at the altar of Ray Charles for years. I worked at a restaurant, and that's all there was on the jukebox.
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Don't plant your bad days. They grow into weeks. The weeks grow into months. Before you know it, you got yourself a bad year. Take it from me - choke those little bad days. Choke 'em down to nothing.
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My reality needs imagination like a bulb needs a socket. My imagination needs reality like a blind man needs a cane.
Tom WaitsRead
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Tom WaitsRead
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