--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I hate categories. Hank Williams is a…" description: "\"I hate categories. Hank Williams is a great artist, period. Bob Dylan is a great artist, so is Marty Robbins. They just classify these people and put t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/15b/george-thorogood-10443_art_i-hate-categories-hank-williams-is-a-gre_474606.jpg" --- # I hate categories. Hank Williams is a great artist… ![“I hate categories. Hank Williams is a great artist, period. Bob Dylan is a great artist, so is Marty Robbins. They just classify these people and put them in categories so they can sell the thing easier.” quote by George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/15b/george-thorogood-10443_art_i-hate-categories-hank-williams-is-a-gre_474606.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/15b/george-thorogood-10443_art_i-hate-categories-hank-williams-is-a-gre_474606.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/15b/george-thorogood-10443_art_i-hate-categories-hank-williams-is-a-gre_474606.jpg) > “I hate categories. Hank Williams is a great artist, period. Bob Dylan is a great artist, so is Marty Robbins. They just classify these people and put them in categories so they can sell the thing easier.” [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) ## 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 labeling artists, arguing that categorization simplifies marketing but overlooks individual merit. **In simple terms:** Don't box artists; appreciate each on its own. Key Takeaway Value artists beyond categories. Themes art music individuality marketing creativity Mood critical thoughtful Type analytical commentary When to use this quote - music criticism - playlist creation - teaching music appreciation - marketing strategy Key Concepts categorization commercialism artist identity Questions to Reflect On - Do you ever rely on categories to discover art? - How might categories limit our appreciation? A Different Perspective Categories can help listeners discover new music. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Great art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-art/) [Great artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-artist/) [Hate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hate/) [Marty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marty/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [“Kings,” continued Calanthe, “divide people into two categories—those they order around, and those they buy—because they adhere to the old and banal truth that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/kings-continued-calanthe-divide-people-into-two-categories-those-they/) [Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/) > [I'm a big Marty Robbins fan. I love Marty Robbins. Of course, everybody does. That's not such a big shock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/i-m-a-big-marty-robbins-fan-i-love-marty-robbins-of-course-everybody/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [My Mother set me on the right track, Marty Robbins made me want to write songs, and Jesus Christ did the rest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-taupin/my-mother-set-me-on-the-right-track-marty-robbins-made-me-want-to/) [Bernie Taupin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-taupin/) > [“There now,” she said with some satisfaction and, taking careful aim, she shut her eyes and chopped hard. It worked—but Marty was totally unprepared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janette-oke/there-now-she-said-with-some-satisfaction-and-taking-careful-aim-she/) [Janette Oke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janette-oke/) > [Marty Schottenheimer knows how to win, and that's what Redskins fans demand in a coach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-snyder/marty-schottenheimer-knows-how-to-win-and-that-s-what-redskins-fans/) [Daniel Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-snyder/) > [The single most exciting thing that happened for me was getting to spend some time in the studio with both Marty Stuart and Vince…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-worsham/the-single-most-exciting-thing-that-happened-for-me-was-getting-to/) [Charlie Worsham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-worsham/) > [I love watching Marty Scorsese's films, but they always make me feel terrible about being a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-donovan/i-love-watching-marty-scorsese-s-films-but-they-always-make-me-feel/) [Martin Donovan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-donovan/) > [I was kind of a little disappointed when they started building a competition between Marty (Martin Scorsese) and me. I have the greatest respect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clint-eastwood/i-was-kind-of-a-little-disappointed-when-they-started-building-a/) [Clint Eastwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clint-eastwood/) > [Marty Richards is an angel on Earth. A producer that does what he says he'll do. He helped me greatly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rip-taylor/marty-richards-is-an-angel-on-earth-a-producer-that-does-what-he-says/) [Rip Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rip-taylor/) > [Marty Robbins once sang you give me a mountain, I've been given a few mountains in my life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-allan-coe/marty-robbins-once-sang-you-give-me-a-mountain-i-ve-been-given-a-few/) [David Allan Coe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-allan-coe/) > [Cinema is a visual language, and you're always looking for visual metaphors for things. You know, if I was writing a play about Howard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-logan/cinema-is-a-visual-language-and-you-re-always-looking-for-visual/) [John Logan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-logan/) > [Marty and I are playing with the same intensity. That's the beautiful thing, man, we're actually better now than ever, probably more intense now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-vega/marty-and-i-are-playing-with-the-same-intensity-that-s-the-beautiful/) [Alan Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-vega/) > [Remember, this is back in the '40s, and the idea of a museum being a place where interested people could come in direct contact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-mackenzie/remember-this-is-back-in-the-40s-and-the-idea-of-a-museum-being-a/) [Warren MacKenzie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-mackenzie/) > [You get kicked around long enough, you become a professor of pain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-borgnine/you-get-kicked-around-long-enough-you-become-a-professor-of-pain/) [Ernest Borgnine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-borgnine/) > [Nothing will ever replace the feeling I got when Jesse Orosco struck out Marty Barrett to end the game (Game 7 of the 1986…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-carter/nothing-will-ever-replace-the-feeling-i-got-when-jesse-orosco-struck/) [Gary Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-carter/) ## More by George Thorogood > [I wanted to write songs that were as good as the covers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/i-wanted-to-write-songs-that-were-as-good-as-the-covers/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [ The \[2012 covers album\] 2120 \[South Michigan Ave.\] was different. We covered a lot of classics there. But most of the time when we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/the-2012-covers-album-2120-south-michigan-ave-was-different-we/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [I knew I had the right material and I knew what I was going after.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/i-knew-i-had-the-right-material-and-i-knew-what-i-was-going-after/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [Whatever title you want to lay on me is fine. I am still working; you know what I'm saying?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/whatever-title-you-want-to-lay-on-me-is-fine-i-am-still-working-you/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [You can't rely on luck. I've had some stages in my career where I've said we're going to wing it, and we've always ended…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/you-can-t-rely-on-luck-i-ve-had-some-stages-in-my-career-where-i-ve/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [Radio is paid by advertising. They decide what songs to play that'll keep people listening. And that's what promoters and the Classic Rock people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/radio-is-paid-by-advertising-they-decide-what-songs-to-play-that-ll/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [Classic Rock radio gave us our longevity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/classic-rock-radio-gave-us-our-longevity/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [I saw the movie Sid & Nancy. It was a pretty good movie. It didn't really make me a punk rock fan. But anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/i-saw-the-movie-sid-nancy-it-was-a-pretty-good-movie-it-didn-t-really/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [Rock and roll never sleeps. It just passes out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/rock-and-roll-never-sleeps-it-just-passes-out/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [Did I think it would last 30 years? No, I didn't think it would have those kind of legs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/did-i-think-it-would-last-30-years-no-i-didn-t-think-it-would-have/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [Not to this extent but from day one I had an awful lot of confidence when I got started.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/not-to-this-extent-but-from-day-one-i-had-an-awful-lot-of-confidence/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [The other day I got invited to a party, but I stayed home instead. Just me and my pal Johnny Walker and his brothers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/the-other-day-i-got-invited-to-a-party-but-i-stayed-home-instead-just/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [I'm talking like 10, 12 years old. Either junior brings Mom and Pop or Mom and Pop bring the kids. I'm talking young here,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/i-m-talking-like-10-12-years-old-either-junior-brings-mom-and-pop-or/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [ After the Ed Sullivan Show, Feb. 9, 1964, at approx. 8:04pm \[laughs\], after that moment every album, every guitar, evey set of drums that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/after-the-ed-sullivan-show-feb-9-1964-at-approx-8-04pm-laughs-after/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) > [I mean, you could have said Elvis Presley was new wave when it happened. I heard Willy DeVille and Tom Petty and to me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-thorogood/i-mean-you-could-have-said-elvis-presley-was-new-wave-when-it/) [George Thorogood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) [Explore all 65 George Thorogood quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-thorogood/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) Taf Teh > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I hate categories. 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