--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And for so long, I had thought if I was…" description: "\"And for so long, I had thought if I was going to write a song, or get \"into\" something, I had to at least smoke a joint or something. And that didn't w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c35/iggy-pop-3990_bits_and-for-so-long-i-had-thought-if-i-was-g_587008.png" --- # And for so long, I had thought if I was going to write a… ![“And for so long, I had thought if I was going to write a song, or get "into" something, I had to at least smoke a joint or something. And that didn't work anymore. Once I was fairly well cleaned out, even a little bit of a drug getting into my work threw me off kilter.” quote by Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c35/iggy-pop-3990_bits_and-for-so-long-i-had-thought-if-i-was-g_587008.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c35/iggy-pop-3990_bits_and-for-so-long-i-had-thought-if-i-was-g_587008.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c35/iggy-pop-3990_bits_and-for-so-long-i-had-thought-if-i-was-g_587008.png) > “And for so long, I had thought if I was going to write a song, or get "into" something, I had to at least smoke a joint or something. And that didn't work anymore. Once I was fairly well cleaned out, even a little bit of a drug getting into my work threw me off kilter.” [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He realized that relying on substances to spark creativity was ineffective and disruptive to his work. **In simple terms:** Drugs hindered his creative process. Key Takeaway Avoid using substances to force inspiration. Themes creativity addiction work discipline Mood reflective determined Type advice personal narrative When to use this quote - songwriting - studio sessions - performance preparation - habit formation Key Concepts substance dependence creative block Questions to Reflect On - How can you cultivate inspiration without chemicals? - What alternative rituals support your creativity? A Different Perspective Substance use may temporarily alter perception but often reduces consistent output. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Drug](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drug/) [Smoke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smoke/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I had a joint once and I didn't feel right for a whole year](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/i-had-a-joint-once-and-i-didn-t-feel-right-for-a-whole-year/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [Adults in a free country should be able to smoke a joint if they want to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roseanne-barr/adults-in-a-free-country-should-be-able-to-smoke-a-joint-if-they-want/) [Roseanne Barr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roseanne-barr/) > [I was a stonehead for 30 years. I'd wake up in the morning and if I couldn't decide whether I wanted a joint or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/i-was-a-stonehead-for-30-years-i-d-wake-up-in-the-morning-and-if-i/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [I did smoke a joint and I did inhale. The bottom line is that's what it was in the '70s, that's what I did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-schwarzenegger/i-did-smoke-a-joint-and-i-did-inhale-the-bottom-line-is-that-s-what/) [Arnold Schwarzenegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-schwarzenegger/) > [It's in my interest, in ours perhaps, or maybe the interests of the greater good, for me to smoke a joint, and calm down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/it-s-in-my-interest-in-ours-perhaps-or-maybe-the-interests-of-the/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [Whatever I'm already doing becomes enhanced when I smoke pot. It can also be demotivating, because if I'm not doing anything and I smoke…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chrissie-hynde/whatever-i-m-already-doing-becomes-enhanced-when-i-smoke-pot-it-can/) [Chrissie Hynde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chrissie-hynde/) > [I did smoke a joint once but I did not enjoy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cilla-black/i-did-smoke-a-joint-once-but-i-did-not-enjoy-it/) [Cilla Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cilla-black/) > [If somebody's gonna smoke a joint in their house and not do anybody else any harm, then perhaps there are other things that our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-palin/if-somebody-s-gonna-smoke-a-joint-in-their-house-and-not-do-anybody/) [Sarah Palin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-palin/) > [Di snake ah tek di carrier from mi have some new song. My smoke dem fi scent and dem si man like dem a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/serani/di-snake-ah-tek-di-carrier-from-mi-have-some-new-song-my-smoke-dem-fi/) [Serani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/serani/) > [I think the song itself, 'Smoke and Fire,' is just a metaphor for the feelings that you feel in a relationship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina-carpenter/i-think-the-song-itself-smoke-and-fire-is-just-a-metaphor-for-the/) [Sabrina Carpenter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina-carpenter/) > [Set your guitars and banjos on fire and before you write a song smoke a pack of whiskey and it'll all take care of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/set-your-guitars-and-banjos-on-fire-and-before-you-write-a-song-smoke/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If somebody's gonna smoke a joint in their house and not do anybody else any harm, then perhaps there are other things that our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-palin/if-somebody-s-gonna-smoke-a-joint-in-their-house-and-not-do-anybody-2/) [Sarah Palin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-palin/) > [Ima smoke this joint then ima break you off, I be lying if I said you ain't the one. All these tattoos in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wiz-khalifa/ima-smoke-this-joint-then-ima-break-you-off-i-be-lying-if-i-said-you/) [Wiz Khalifa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wiz-khalifa/) > [TV showing the anti drug commercials, cause you know I smoke a joint I'll be forced to dance with strings attached to me or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/massmurder/tv-showing-the-anti-drug-commercials-cause-you-know-i-smoke-a-joint-i/) Massmurder > [You smoke a joint and you're likely to kill your brother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-j-anslinger/you-smoke-a-joint-and-you-re-likely-to-kill-your-brother/) [Harry J. Anslinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-j-anslinger/) ## More by Iggy Pop > [I think that prosecuting some college kid because she shared a file is a lot like sending somebody to Australia 200 years ago for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/i-think-that-prosecuting-some-college-kid-because-she-shared-a-file/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [Something I like to do a lot is just sit by water when there’s a current and just stare into the water. I don’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/something-i-like-to-do-a-lot-is-just-sit-by-water-when-there-s-a/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [I stayed in L.A. long enough to get on my feet, and then I moved back to New York. The reason I moved here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/i-stayed-in-l-a-long-enough-to-get-on-my-feet-and-then-i-moved-back/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [I'm not a singer, a walking instrument like Aretha Franklin. When you get an Iggy Pop record, you don't get "Iggy Sings." I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/i-m-not-a-singer-a-walking-instrument-like-aretha-franklin-when-you/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [Well, I don't use the toilet much to pee in. I almost always pee in the yard or the garden, because I like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/well-i-don-t-use-the-toilet-much-to-pee-in-i-almost-always-pee-in-the/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [What did Christ really do? He hung out with hard-drinking fishermen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/what-did-christ-really-do-he-hung-out-with-hard-drinking-fishermen/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [There was a time when I wanted to get out of the Western world. I went down to Grenada and looked at a place,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/there-was-a-time-when-i-wanted-to-get-out-of-the-western-world-i-went/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > ['Punk rock' is a word used by dilettantes and heartless manipulators about music that takes up the energies, the bodies, the hearts, the souls,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/punk-rock-is-a-word-used-by-dilettantes-and-heartless-manipulators/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [I'm not the kind of person that likes to be dependent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/i-m-not-the-kind-of-person-that-likes-to-be-dependent/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [What do you do with a lifetime of work? Face it in the morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/what-do-you-do-with-a-lifetime-of-work-face-it-in-the-morning/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [In 1965, when great young white artists in the English-speaking world were successfully re-channeling hillbilly and black music - you know Bob Dylan, Ray…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/in-1965-when-great-young-white-artists-in-the-english-speaking-world/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [When I get up in the morning, I stay nude for three or four hours. If I really feel like getting formal, I'll put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/when-i-get-up-in-the-morning-i-stay-nude-for-three-or-four-hours-if-i/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [I smoked this joint and then it hit me. I thought, what you gotta do is play your own simply blues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/i-smoked-this-joint-and-then-it-hit-me-i-thought-what-you-gotta-do-is/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [Well, after Zombie Birdhouse came out, I toured behind it in the fall of 1982, into the spring, and in the summer in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/well-after-zombie-birdhouse-came-out-i-toured-behind-it-in-the-fall/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) > [I wasn't so stupid that I didn't realize the implications of what they were saying. In my live work I was going for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-pop/i-wasn-t-so-stupid-that-i-didn-t-realize-the-implications-of-what/) [Iggy Pop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) [Explore all 117 Iggy Pop quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-pop/) ## More Bits quotes > [ Brad \[Dourif\] would tell himself that he was not intentionally trying to mimic Jack Nicholson in any way. I think that actually bothers him… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kirschner/brad-dourif-would-tell-himself-that-he-was-not-intentionally-trying/) [David Kirschner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kirschner/) > [There is only one party in the United States, the Property Party...and it has two right wings: Republican and Democrat. Republicans are a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/there-is-only-one-party-in-the-united-states-the-property-party-and/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [I became a bit of a teacher's pet, and it became known in the school by both faculty and students that I really excelled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/i-became-a-bit-of-a-teacher-s-pet-and-it-became-known-in-the-school/) [Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/) > [The happy medium is television. And if you find a good suitor, you can do it for years. With movies, you roll the dice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-campbell/the-happy-medium-is-television-and-if-you-find-a-good-suitor-you-can/) [Bruce Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-campbell/) > [If I had my brothers I think with just a little bit of the correct marketing, I'd like to be almost exclusively in small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-bozzio/if-i-had-my-brothers-i-think-with-just-a-little-bit-of-the-correct/) [Terry Bozzio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-bozzio/) > [Talented people can predict with great accuracy what's about to happen just a tiny bit ahead of their competitors. It might be two seconds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-maney/talented-people-can-predict-with-great-accuracy-what-s-about-to/) [Kevin Maney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-maney/) > [He referred to me as an 'insufferable puffed-up prat'. This is a bit rich coming from a man who actually married his own mother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-morrissey/he-referred-to-me-as-an-insufferable-puffed-up-prat-this-is-a-bit/) [Steven Morrissey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-morrissey/) > [It won't do you a bit of good to know everything if you don't do anything with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-fitzhugh/it-won-t-do-you-a-bit-of-good-to-know-everything-if-you-don-t-do/) [Louise Fitzhugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-fitzhugh/) > [I was told I had brain damage. I always knew it was an unfair label. Now I have a clearer understanding of what's wrong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-boyle/i-was-told-i-had-brain-damage-i-always-knew-it-was-an-unfair-label/) [Susan Boyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-boyle/) > [I think that's the beauty of the current setup, is that Legends is meant to be a bit of a revolving door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wentworth-miller/i-think-that-s-the-beauty-of-the-current-setup-is-that-legends-is/) [Wentworth Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wentworth-miller/) > [We, as pop stars, are people not androids. We’ve got views. I’ve got opinions and I don’t see why I shouldn’t use a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-meddows-taylor/we-as-pop-stars-are-people-not-androids-we-ve-got-views-i-ve-got/) [Roger Meddows Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-meddows-taylor/) > [In terms of style, too, I think I've been working with a somewhat limited -- although intentionally limited -- set of tools. So I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/in-terms-of-style-too-i-think-i-ve-been-working-with-a-somewhat/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [ Donald Trump has opened \[ politically correct enforcement\] up wide. He's made a very bold statement and he's backed it back just a little… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-cruz/donald-trump-has-opened-politically-correct-enforcement-up-wide-he-s/) [Ted Cruz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-cruz/) > [When my name started popping up I was quite irritated and a little bit in shock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-snow/when-my-name-started-popping-up-i-was-quite-irritated-and-a-little/) [Michael Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-snow/) > [Don't get divorced after your first argument! I have a lot of friends that have one fight and that's it, they get divorced. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-ripa/don-t-get-divorced-after-your-first-argument-i-have-a-lot-of-friends/) [Kelly Ripa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-ripa/) Browse all 5,709 Bits quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "And for so long, I had thought if I was going to write a song, or get \"into\" something, I had to at least smoke a joint or something. And that didn't work anymore. 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