--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I said to myself a long time ago that I…" description: "\"I said to myself a long time ago that I didn't want to be that hanging-on-for-too-long, aging-rock-musician guy, and that's why I sort of got away from..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/eric-avery-38553_aging_i-said-to-myself-a-long-time-ago-that-i_2624113.png" --- # I said to myself a long time ago that I didn't want to be… ![“I said to myself a long time ago that I didn't want to be that hanging-on-for-too-long, aging-rock-musician guy, and that's why I sort of got away from music.” quote by Eric Avery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/eric-avery-38553_aging_i-said-to-myself-a-long-time-ago-that-i_2624113.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/eric-avery-38553_aging_i-said-to-myself-a-long-time-ago-that-i_2624113.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/eric-avery-38553_aging_i-said-to-myself-a-long-time-ago-that-i_2624113.png) > “I said to myself a long time ago that I didn't want to be that hanging-on-for-too-long, aging-rock-musician guy, and that's why I sort of got away from music.” [Eric Avery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-avery/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker rejects a prolonged, stagnant artistic identity and distances himself from music to avoid becoming a tired, aging performer. **In simple terms:** He leaves music to avoid becoming an old, stagnant artist. Key Takeaway Choose growth over stagnation. Themes identity aging music industry Mood reflective determined Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - artist burnout - creative renewal - life transition Key Concepts self‑redefinition career change Questions to Reflect On - What new path will you pursue? - How can you stay creative without music? A Different Perspective Leaving music may close doors to future opportunities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aging](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aging/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Musician](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/musician/) [Rocks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rocks/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Pop stars are capable of growing old. 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I went to see the girl who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/it-s-not-always-a-good-idea-digging-around-in-the-past-he-said-i-done/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [I should've never let her go, I should've begged her to stay, she was the one that got away...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-owen/i-should-ve-never-let-her-go-i-should-ve-begged-her-to-stay-she-was/) [Jake Owen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-owen/) > [My parents were so relaxed by the time I was growing up that I got away with a lot more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-byrne/my-parents-were-so-relaxed-by-the-time-i-was-growing-up-that-i-got/) [Rose Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-byrne/) > [Summer after high school when we first met We make-out in your Mustang to Radiohead And on my 18th Birthday We got matching tattoos…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katy-perry/summer-after-high-school-when-we-first-met-we-make-out-in-your/) [Katy Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katy-perry/) > [Of all the butterflies that chose to stay, I’m in love with the one that got away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-miller/of-all-the-butterflies-that-chose-to-stay-i-m-in-love-with-the-one/) [Laura Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-miller/) > [I got everything; I got nothing. If they take you away from me. I'm your medicine. Make you better when all your hopes start…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-fresh/i-got-everything-i-got-nothing-if-they-take-you-away-from-me-i-m-your/) [Aaron Fresh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-fresh/) > [“Though I never really had you…. … to me you will always be the one that got away.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ranata-suzuki/though-i-never-really-had-you-to-me-you-will-always-be-the-one-that/) [Ranata Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ranata-suzuki/) > [I know you want me back. It's time to face the facts. That I'm the one that's got away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beyonce/i-know-you-want-me-back-it-s-time-to-face-the-facts-that-i-m-the-one/) [Beyonce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beyonce/) > [I was an opportunist and got away with things because I was very young, but I went to prison and came out and remade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-abagnale/i-was-an-opportunist-and-got-away-with-things-because-i-was-very/) [Frank Abagnale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-abagnale/) > [For one moment I thought you were the you, but then I saw how big of a jerk you really were , but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelsey-dumont/for-one-moment-i-thought-you-were-the-you-but-then-i-saw-how-big-of-a/) Kelsey Dumont > [I had such a crazy life. How I got away with it, I don't know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-lamotta/i-had-such-a-crazy-life-how-i-got-away-with-it-i-don-t-know/) [Jake LaMotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-lamotta/) ## More by Eric Avery > [I started getting into Internet technologies and computers. I wasn't especially interested in being a musician, but I wound up finding my way back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-avery/i-started-getting-into-internet-technologies-and-computers-i-wasn-t/) [Eric Avery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-avery/) > [I just didn't like the idea of doing reunions, period. I could only see it as I'd just be going over the same old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-avery/i-just-didn-t-like-the-idea-of-doing-reunions-period-i-could-only-see/) [Eric Avery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-avery/) > [I had been thinking about how greatness always has a hand from luck or fate. That no one ever achieves anything with their will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-avery/i-had-been-thinking-about-how-greatness-always-has-a-hand-from-luck/) [Eric Avery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-avery/) > [I've sort of had an investigatory relationship with being a musician. I really wasn't sure what I wanted to do. I felt I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-avery/i-ve-sort-of-had-an-investigatory-relationship-with-being-a-musician/) [Eric Avery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-avery/) > [I have always considered reunions to be a way to make a quick buck, and it sells short my own experience of it the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-avery/i-have-always-considered-reunions-to-be-a-way-to-make-a-quick-buck/) [Eric Avery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-avery/) > [But the great thing, and the horrible thing about the web is you can just throw stuff up there and it doesn't cost anybody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-avery/but-the-great-thing-and-the-horrible-thing-about-the-web-is-you-can/) [Eric Avery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-avery/) > [I know in my soul when something feels like a sell out and I think for me, I knew that if I did the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-avery/i-know-in-my-soul-when-something-feels-like-a-sell-out-and-i-think/) [Eric Avery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-avery/) > [That's it. With equal parts regret and relief, the Jane's Addiction experiment is at an end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-avery/that-s-it-with-equal-parts-regret-and-relief-the-jane-s-addiction/) [Eric Avery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-avery/) > [Art stands in opposition to all the bad things that happen in life, which is where physicians stand. That's what doctors do-affirm life. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-avery/art-stands-in-opposition-to-all-the-bad-things-that-happen-in-life/) [Eric Avery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-avery/) > [I feel that Jane's is really a vibe and a time. It wasn't like we were the Beatles. We didn't have crafty pop songs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-avery/i-feel-that-jane-s-is-really-a-vibe-and-a-time-it-wasn-t-like-we-were/) [Eric Avery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-avery/) [Explore all 11 Eric Avery quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-avery/) ## More Aging quotes > [While we've youth in our hearts, we can never grow old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/while-we-ve-youth-in-our-hearts-we-can-never-grow-old/) [Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/) > [In the past 40 years, the United States lost more than a million farmers and ranchers. Many of our farmers are aging. Today, only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-vilsack/in-the-past-40-years-the-united-states-lost-more-than-a-million/) [Tom Vilsack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-vilsack/) > [We'll never be as young as we are tonight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/we-ll-never-be-as-young-as-we-are-tonight/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“Prayer of an Anonymous Abbess: Lord, thou knowest better than myself that I am growing older and will soon be old. Keep me from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/prayer-of-an-anonymous-abbess-lord-thou-knowest-better-than-myself/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The more I produce, the less I am certain. On the road along which the artist walks, night falls ever more densely. Finally, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-more-i-produce-the-less-i-am-certain-on-the-road-along-which-the/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [So often do you see collegians enter life with high resolve and lofty purpose and then watch them shrink and shrink to sordid, selfish,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/so-often-do-you-see-collegians-enter-life-with-high-resolve-and-lofty/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [Aging is like enlightenment at gunpoint. Before I had cancer, I lived my life for my art. After I had cancer, I lived my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-halprin/aging-is-like-enlightenment-at-gunpoint-before-i-had-cancer-i-lived/) [Anna Halprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-halprin/) > [All the dangers in our world are like a blessed wake up call. They tell us to live life NOW... not tomorrow, not when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jeffers/all-the-dangers-in-our-world-are-like-a-blessed-wake-up-call-they/) [Susan Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jeffers/) > [“You could see the signs of female aging as diseased, especially if you had a vested interest in making women too see them your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/you-could-see-the-signs-of-female-aging-as-diseased-especially-if-you/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“It takes maturity to be able to laugh like a child again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moffat-machingura/it-takes-maturity-to-be-able-to-laugh-like-a-child-again/) [Moffat Machingura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moffat-machingura/) > [Seek ye counsel of the aged for their eyes have looked on the faces of the years and their ears have hardened to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/seek-ye-counsel-of-the-aged-for-their-eyes-have-looked-on-the-faces/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [Growing old-it's not nice, but it's interesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-strindberg/growing-old-it-s-not-nice-but-it-s-interesting/) [August Strindberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-strindberg/) > [Anything is possible in the life of a man if he lives long enough. Even maturity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howell-raines/anything-is-possible-in-the-life-of-a-man-if-he-lives-long-enough/) [Howell Raines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howell-raines/) > [I just want to be Patty McCormack. I want to spend every year aging the way she has.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-varney/i-just-want-to-be-patty-mccormack-i-want-to-spend-every-year-aging/) [Janet Varney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-varney/) > [Maturity is reached the day we don't need to be lied to about anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-yerby/maturity-is-reached-the-day-we-don-t-need-to-be-lied-to-about-anything/) [Frank Yerby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-yerby/) [Browse all 2,792 Aging quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aging/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I said to myself a long time ago that I didn't want to be that hanging-on-for-too-long, aging-rock-musician guy, and that's why I sort of got away from music.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Eric Avery" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-avery/i-said-to-myself-a-long-time-ago-that-i-didn-t-want-to-be-that/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Aging" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-avery/i-said-to-myself-a-long-time-ago-that-i-didn-t-want-to-be-that/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/eric-avery-38553_aging_i-said-to-myself-a-long-time-ago-that-i_2624113.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/eric-avery-38553_aging_i-said-to-myself-a-long-time-ago-that-i_2624113.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d52/eric-avery-38553_aging_i-said-to-myself-a-long-time-ago-that-i_2624113.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I said to myself a long time ago that I didn't want to be that hanging-on-for-too-long, aging-rock-musician…” — Eric Avery", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Eric Avery", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-avery/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I said to myself a long...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-avery/i-said-to-myself-a-long-time-ago-that-i-didn-t-want-to-be-that/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-avery/i-said-to-myself-a-long-time-ago-that-i-didn-t-want-to-be-that/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```