--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And as I started reaching deeper I…" description: "\"And as I started reaching deeper I realized that most of the blues of that day was done by men. Women just didn't have the nerve.\" — Etta James" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/691/etta-james-10990_deeper_and-as-i-started-reaching-deeper-i-reali_1202655.jpg" --- # And as I started reaching deeper I realized that most of… ![“And as I started reaching deeper I realized that most of the blues of that day was done by men. Women just didn't have the nerve.” quote by Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/691/etta-james-10990_deeper_and-as-i-started-reaching-deeper-i-reali_1202655.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/691/etta-james-10990_deeper_and-as-i-started-reaching-deeper-i-reali_1202655.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/691/etta-james-10990_deeper_and-as-i-started-reaching-deeper-i-reali_1202655.jpg) > “And as I started reaching deeper I realized that most of the blues of that day was done by men. Women just didn't have the nerve.” [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Gender norms historically limited women's participation in certain fields, leading to male‑dominated spaces. **In simple terms:** Women faced barriers in blues music. Key Takeaway Challenge gender stereotypes. Themes gender music history Mood determined hopeful Type social inspirational When to use this quote - music industry - education - workplace policy Key Concepts social barriers cultural norms Questions to Reflect On - What steps can increase female representation? - How do cultural narratives shape gender roles? A Different Perspective Progress requires systemic change, not just individual effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Blues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blues/) [Feminism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminism/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Men & women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-women-2/) [Nerves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nerves/) ## Related quotes > [Sometimes I feel like nothin,' somethin' throwed away, Somethin' throwed away. And then I get my guitar, play the blues all day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-christopher-handy/sometimes-i-feel-like-nothin-somethin-throwed-away-somethin-throwed/) [William Christopher Handy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-christopher-handy/) > [There are people starving in the siege, there are children traumatized and terrified. There are men women and children dying. This is a situation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hanan-ashrawi/there-are-people-starving-in-the-siege-there-are-children-traumatized/) [Hanan Ashrawi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hanan-ashrawi/) > [It can never be bad to have a foundation as a man - a black man - in a time when women are dying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/usher/it-can-never-be-bad-to-have-a-foundation-as-a-man-a-black-man-in-a/) [Usher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/usher/) > [There are three classes of human beings: men, women and women physicians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-osler/there-are-three-classes-of-human-beings-men-women-and-women-physicians/) [William Osler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-osler/) > [We can reorient science - for example, a kind of medicine much more directed toward the enormous number of women's health problems which are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/we-can-reorient-science-for-example-a-kind-of-medicine-much-more/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [Women are quite unlike men. Women have higher voices, longer hair, smaller waistlines, daintier feet and prettier hands. They also invariably have the upper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-potter/women-are-quite-unlike-men-women-have-higher-voices-longer-hair/) [Stephen Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-potter/) > [There is this giant void in the culture about women in that age group as heroines, as romantic beings, as sexual beings and as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/there-is-this-giant-void-in-the-culture-about-women-in-that-age-group/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [Everywhere there was somewhere and everywhere there they were men women children dogs cows wild pigs little rabbits cats lizards and animals. That is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-stein/everywhere-there-was-somewhere-and-everywhere-there-they-were-men/) [Gertrude Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-stein/) > [As it has turned out, the whole relationship between men, women and children has tilted, to the disadvantage of women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-weldon/as-it-has-turned-out-the-whole-relationship-between-men-women-and/) [Fay Weldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-weldon/) > [Men are thinking, writing, and creating, because women were pouring their energy into those men; women are not creating culture because they are occupied…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shulamith-firestone/men-are-thinking-writing-and-creating-because-women-were-pouring/) [Shulamith Firestone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shulamith-firestone/) > [A woman's work, from the time she gets up to the time she goes to bed, is as hard as a day at war,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marguerite-duras/a-woman-s-work-from-the-time-she-gets-up-to-the-time-she-goes-to-bed/) [Marguerite Duras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marguerite-duras/) > [The three chief causes of divorce are men, women, and marriage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-esar/the-three-chief-causes-of-divorce-are-men-women-and-marriage/) [Evan Esar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-esar/) > [A woman can make a man feel older or younger than his years if she so chooses. Being a woman is a terribly difficult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-rogers/a-woman-can-make-a-man-feel-older-or-younger-than-his-years-if-she-so/) [Will Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-rogers/) > [Abortion is a denial of one of those powers which make women women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-e-smith/abortion-is-a-denial-of-one-of-those-powers-which-make-women-women/) [Janet E. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-e-smith/) > [I feel what they feel: man-hating, that volatile admixture of pity, contempt, disgust, envy, alienation, fear, and rage at men. It is hatred not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-levine/i-feel-what-they-feel-man-hating-that-volatile-admixture-of-pity/) Judith Levine ## More by Etta James > [I want a Sunday kind of love A love to last past Saturday night And I’d like to know it’s more than love at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/i-want-a-sunday-kind-of-love-a-love-to-last-past-saturday-night-and-i/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) > [It feels so good to be happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/it-feels-so-good-to-be-happy/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) > [People that can't stand to listen to the blues, they've got to be phonies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/people-that-can-t-stand-to-listen-to-the-blues-they-ve-got-to-be/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) > [My mother always wanted me to be glamorous. When I thought about that, it really fired me up, and once I lost all those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/my-mother-always-wanted-me-to-be-glamorous-when-i-thought-about-that/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) > [I talked to the record company about what I had in mind. They said they wanted something lush. I figured the best thing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/i-talked-to-the-record-company-about-what-i-had-in-mind-they-said/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) > [Now I can stand up on the stage again like I used to after five years of sitting down while I sang.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/now-i-can-stand-up-on-the-stage-again-like-i-used-to-after-five-years/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) > [What happens is, when I perform, I'm somewhere else. I go back in time and get in touch with who I really am. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/what-happens-is-when-i-perform-i-m-somewhere-else-i-go-back-in-time/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) > [The music was thunder and joy. Lightning bolts of happiness and praise, foot-stomping, dance-shouting, good-feeling singing from the soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/the-music-was-thunder-and-joy-lightning-bolts-of-happiness-and-praise/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) > [See, I don't like places where people can't dance - don't like clubs or theatres where a bunch of bourgeois people sit around tip,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/see-i-don-t-like-places-where-people-can-t-dance-don-t-like-clubs-or/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) > [That's where it begins and ends for me and these songs were the ones that touched me the deepest. It was like I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/that-s-where-it-begins-and-ends-for-me-and-these-songs-were-the-ones/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) > [You know the one with the big ears? Wait a minute, he ain't my president, he might be yours, he ain't my president. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/you-know-the-one-with-the-big-ears-wait-a-minute-he-ain-t-my/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) > [Bobby Womack is always very real, both with his music and as a person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/bobby-womack-is-always-very-real-both-with-his-music-and-as-a-person/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) > [I'm not starry eyed, and I'm not money crazy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/i-m-not-starry-eyed-and-i-m-not-money-crazy/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) > [My mother was a jazz fanatic and she wanted me to play the piano so I could play jazz tunes. I wish I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/my-mother-was-a-jazz-fanatic-and-she-wanted-me-to-play-the-piano-so-i/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) > [They said that Etta James is still vulgar. I said, Oh, how dare them say I'm still vulgar. I'm vulgar because I dance in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etta-james/they-said-that-etta-james-is-still-vulgar-i-said-oh-how-dare-them-say/) [Etta James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) [Explore all 62 Etta James quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etta-james/) ## More Blues quotes > [If they played more blues, people would just get it - they try to hold it back but just about can't hold it back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/if-they-played-more-blues-people-would-just-get-it-they-try-to-hold/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [I love Las Vegas, but I never get a chance to play a club like the House of Blues. I guess we've graduated to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-walsh/i-love-las-vegas-but-i-never-get-a-chance-to-play-a-club-like-the/) [Joe Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-walsh/) > [That's the thing about the blues: It's one thing to hit a note on a guitar. To make it matter is something else altogether.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-bonamassa/that-s-the-thing-about-the-blues-it-s-one-thing-to-hit-a-note-on-a/) [Joe Bonamassa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-bonamassa/) > [“Grits Glossary blues \\’blüz\\ n: nothing but a good man singing about hardship, sorrow, and the things he’s done wrong--but sake’s alive, they make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-ford/grits-glossary-blues-bl-z-n-nothing-but-a-good-man-singing-about/) [Deborah Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-ford/) > [I guess what I like is mostly country & western or else stuff that has a real blues feel to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/i-guess-what-i-like-is-mostly-country-western-or-else-stuff-that-has/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [I'm a rock/blues guitar player. I'm not wanting to be a pop star or anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orianthi/i-m-a-rock-blues-guitar-player-i-m-not-wanting-to-be-a-pop-star-or/) [Orianthi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orianthi/) > [An element I love about the blues is jamming with other musicians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-hoey/an-element-i-love-about-the-blues-is-jamming-with-other-musicians/) [Gary Hoey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-hoey/) > [Well, I don't know how they define that. But they have this Texas blues thing blown kinda out of proportion. I am a Long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hunter/well-i-don-t-know-how-they-define-that-but-they-have-this-texas-blues/) [John Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hunter/) > [Since I was a kid, I've had an absolute obsession with particular kinds of American music. Mississippi Delta blues of the Thirties, Chicago blues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-plant/since-i-was-a-kid-i-ve-had-an-absolute-obsession-with-particular/) [Robert Plant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-plant/) > [James Cotton is a real blues guy, and he played with Muddy Waters, and it surprised me that they would want me to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-haden/james-cotton-is-a-real-blues-guy-and-he-played-with-muddy-waters-and/) [Charlie Haden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-haden/) > [When I discovered blues - I was 12-years-old - I didn't discover it in America where it was from; I discovered it from Fleetwood…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-weller/when-i-discovered-blues-i-was-12-years-old-i-didn-t-discover-it-in/) [Paul Weller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-weller/) > [Elvis deserves a lot of credit for bringing the blues to middle America, not the Vegas stuff. The early stuff, The Sun records, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-tork/elvis-deserves-a-lot-of-credit-for-bringing-the-blues-to-middle/) [Peter Tork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-tork/) > [Old-school rock bands, and blues bands, too, are kind of a dying breed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-rossington/old-school-rock-bands-and-blues-bands-too-are-kind-of-a-dying-breed/) [Gary Rossington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-rossington/) > [My favorite moment of the whole thing was when John Belushi suggested that I get a hold of all the blues records I could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-cropper/my-favorite-moment-of-the-whole-thing-was-when-john-belushi-suggested/) [Steve Cropper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-cropper/) > [I listened to King Oliver and I listened to Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton, Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus, John Coltrane, Archie Shepp... I listened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-clapton/i-listened-to-king-oliver-and-i-listened-to-louis-armstrong-jelly/) [Eric Clapton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-clapton/) [Browse all 1,026 Blues quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blues/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "And as I started reaching deeper I realized that most of the blues of that day was done by men. 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