--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our radio plays rhythm and blues as we…" description: "\"Our radio plays rhythm and blues as we pass the joint back and forth in jutjawed silence both looking ahead with big private thoughts now so vast we ca..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca8/jack-kerouac-182_back-and-forth_our-radio-plays-rhythm-and-blues-as-we-p_2743909.jpg" --- # Our radio plays rhythm and blues as we pass the joint back… ![“Our radio plays rhythm and blues as we pass the joint back and forth in jutjawed silence both looking ahead with big private thoughts now so vast we can't communicate them anymore and if we tried it would take a million years and a billion books - Too late, too late, the history of everything…” quote by Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca8/jack-kerouac-182_back-and-forth_our-radio-plays-rhythm-and-blues-as-we-p_2743909.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca8/jack-kerouac-182_back-and-forth_our-radio-plays-rhythm-and-blues-as-we-p_2743909.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca8/jack-kerouac-182_back-and-forth_our-radio-plays-rhythm-and-blues-as-we-p_2743909.jpg) > “Our radio plays rhythm and blues as we pass the joint back and forth in jutjawed silence both looking ahead with big private thoughts now so vast we can't communicate them anymore and if we tried it would take a million years and a billion books - Too late, too late, the history of everything we've seen together and separately has become a library in itself - The shelves pile higher - They're full of misty documents or documents of the Mist - ...” [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The shared history of two people becomes a vast, uncommunicable library of private thoughts. **In simple terms:** Shared memories become an unwieldy library. Key Takeaway Cherish but simplify shared narratives. Themes memory communication history intimacy Mood melancholic poetic Type literary reflective When to use this quote - relationships - writing - therapy - archiving Key Concepts narrative theory psychology of silence Questions to Reflect On - What stories remain unsaid? - How can you bridge the communication gap? A Different Perspective Too much introspection can isolate. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Back and forth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/back-and-forth/) [Bigs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigs/) [Billions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/billions/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Books Late](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books-late-1693597/) [Communicate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communicate/) [Documents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/documents/) [Higher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/higher/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Joints](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joints/) [Jutjawed Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jutjawed-silence-3047955/) [Late](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/late/) [Late History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/late-history-3047956/) [Library](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library/) [Looking ahead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looking-ahead/) [Millions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/millions/) [Mist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mist/) [Misty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misty/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Private Thoughts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/private-thoughts-290314/) [Radio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/radio/) [Radio plays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/radio-plays/) [Rhythm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rhythm/) [Rhythm and blues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rhythm-and-blues/) [Shelves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shelves/) [Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence/) [Thoughts Vast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thoughts-vast-3047957/) [Together](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/together/) [Too late](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/too-late/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [“Our radio plays rhythm and blues as we pass the joint back and forth in jutjawed silence both looking ahead with big private thoughts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/our-radio-plays-rhythm-and-blues-as-we-pass-the-joint-back-and-forth/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [I started writing serious books so late because I knew Id be accused of riding on my fathers coattails.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-steinbeck/i-started-writing-serious-books-so-late-because-i-knew-id-be-accused/) [Thomas Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-steinbeck/) > [I started writing serious books so late because I knew I'd be accused of riding on my father's coattails.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-steinbeck/i-started-writing-serious-books-so-late-because-i-knew-i-d-be-accused/) [Thomas Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-steinbeck/) > [“In fact, your thoughts have far less impact on this world than you would like to think. If you’re willing to be objective and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-a-singer/in-fact-your-thoughts-have-far-less-impact-on-this-world-than-you/) [Michael A. Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-a-singer/) > [Possible ideas and thoughts are vast in number. A distinct word for every distinct idea and thought would require a vast vocabulary. The problem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wesley-powell/possible-ideas-and-thoughts-are-vast-in-number-a-distinct-word-for/) [John Wesley Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wesley-powell/) > [“I love what Sarah Young wrote in her book, Jesus Calling. She wrote it as if God were speaking: Make Me the focal point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-samples/i-love-what-sarah-young-wrote-in-her-book-jesus-calling-she-wrote-it/) [Tina Samples](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tina-samples/) > [Any human being has private thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-dershowitz/any-human-being-has-private-thoughts/) [Alan Dershowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-dershowitz/) > [“And he had no qualms whatsoever about prying into someone’s private thoughts and experiences. And no guilt about hoarding his own.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/and-he-had-no-qualms-whatsoever-about-prying-into-someone-s-private/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“We seldom realize, for example, that our most private thoughts and emotions are not actually our own. For we think in terms of languages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-wilson-watts/we-seldom-realize-for-example-that-our-most-private-thoughts-and/) [Alan Wilson Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-wilson-watts/) > [We rode along in silence, thinking our private thoughts. Charlie and I had an unspoken agreement not to throw ourselves into speedy travel just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-dewitt/we-rode-along-in-silence-thinking-our-private-thoughts-charlie-and-i/) [Patrick deWitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-dewitt/) > [Evil…doesn’t mean doing things that have bad consequences for people. It means private thoughts and actions that are not to “the Christian majority’s” private…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/evil-doesn-t-mean-doing-things-that-have-bad-consequences-for-people/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“After years of watching adversaries comb through her public records for any hint of a scandal, and after accessing her own aides’ e-mails, Hillary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-allen/after-years-of-watching-adversaries-comb-through-her-public-records/) [Jonathan Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-allen/) > [I remain convinced that obstinate addiction to ordinary language in our private thoughts is one of the main obstacles to progress in philosophy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/i-remain-convinced-that-obstinate-addiction-to-ordinary-language-in/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [“Should we go into people’s inner and private thoughts and motivations, we would see that their wishes and hopes are almost invariably at someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/should-we-go-into-people-s-inner-and-private-thoughts-and-motivations/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [It's odd how different a house feels when one is alone in it. It makes it easier to think rather private thoughts...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dodie-smith/it-s-odd-how-different-a-house-feels-when-one-is-alone-in-it-it-makes/) [Dodie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dodie-smith/) ## More by Jack Kerouac > [Bein Crazy is the least of my worries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/bein-crazy-is-the-least-of-my-worries/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [I'm Catholic and I can't commit suicide, but I plan to drink myself to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-m-catholic-and-i-can-t-commit-suicide-but-i-plan-to-drink-myself-to/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [The Beat Generation, that was a vision that we had, John Clellon Holmes and I, and Allen Ginsberg in an even wilder way, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/the-beat-generation-that-was-a-vision-that-we-had-john-clellon-holmes/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [But, outside of being a sweet little girl, she was awfully dumb and capable of doing horrible things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/but-outside-of-being-a-sweet-little-girl-she-was-awfully-dumb-and/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“For when you realized that God is Everything you know that you've got to love everything no matter how bad it is, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/for-when-you-realized-that-god-is-everything-you-know-that-you-ve-got/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“I'm an idealist who has outgrown my idealism I have nothing to do the rest of my life but do it and the rest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-m-an-idealist-who-has-outgrown-my-idealism-i-have-nothing-to-do-the/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“Most of them were running away from something―usually the law.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/most-of-them-were-running-away-from-something-usually-the-law/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“Non lo so, non importa e non fa nessuna differenza.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/non-lo-so-non-importa-e-non-fa-nessuna-differenza/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“And in the flush of the first few days of joy I confidently tell myself (not expecting what I'll do in three weeks only)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/and-in-the-flush-of-the-first-few-days-of-joy-i-confidently-tell/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [I want a blaze of light to flame in me forever in a timeless, dear love of everything. And why should I pretend to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-want-a-blaze-of-light-to-flame-in-me-forever-in-a-timeless-dear/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“For the next week that was all I heard - manana, a lovely word and one that probably means heaven.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/for-the-next-week-that-was-all-i-heard-manana-a-lovely-word-and-one/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“O how wonderful life is, how miraculous, God made this and God made that", "how do you know he doesn't hate what He did:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/o-how-wonderful-life-is-how-miraculous-god-made-this-and-god-made/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [Notoriety and public confession in the literary form is a frazzler of the heart you were born with, believe me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/notoriety-and-public-confession-in-the-literary-form-is-a-frazzler-of/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [I promise I shall never give up, and that I'll die yelling & laughing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-promise-i-shall-never-give-up-and-that-i-ll-die-yelling-laughing/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“The hot water pools are steaming, Fagan and Monsanto and the others are all sitting peacefully up to their necks, they're all naked, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/the-hot-water-pools-are-steaming-fagan-and-monsanto-and-the-others/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) [Explore all 936 Jack Kerouac quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) ## More Back and forth quotes > [He should release the tax returns tomorrow. It's crazy. You've got to release six, eight, ten years back tax returns. Take the hit for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kristol/he-should-release-the-tax-returns-tomorrow-it-s-crazy-you-ve-got-to/) [William Kristol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kristol/) > [I think my work comes out of both an intense desire for connection and what it means to feel isolated. There's always going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/i-think-my-work-comes-out-of-both-an-intense-desire-for-connection/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [It is an intimately communicative affair between the painter and his painting, a conversation back and forth, the painting telling the painter even as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shahn/it-is-an-intimately-communicative-affair-between-the-painter-and-his/) [Ben Shahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shahn/) > [Belief in oneself is a crucial quality of leadership, because 'a house divided against itself cannot stand.' A leader who fluctuates back and forth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-beth-jones/belief-in-oneself-is-a-crucial-quality-of-leadership-because-a-house/) [Laurie Beth Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-beth-jones/) > [CS: I always say there's a tribal element in a rock concert. There's a real back-and-forth thing that goes on between the audience and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-stein/cs-i-always-say-there-s-a-tribal-element-in-a-rock-concert-there-s-a/) [Chris Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-stein/) > [I'm a southern girl, and I grew up with this slightly schizophrenic upbringing where I bounced back and forth between Atlanta, Georgia, and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-myracle/i-m-a-southern-girl-and-i-grew-up-with-this-slightly-schizophrenic/) [Lauren Myracle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-myracle/) > [Originally, one of the reasons I was drawn to photography, as opposed to painting or sculpture or installation, is that of all the arts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-crewdson/originally-one-of-the-reasons-i-was-drawn-to-photography-as-opposed/) [Gregory Crewdson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-crewdson/) > [Until presence becomes your predominant state, you may find yourself moving back and forth for a while between the old consciousness and the new,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/until-presence-becomes-your-predominant-state-you-may-find-yourself/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Real communication is an attitude, an environment. It is the most interactive of all processes. It requires countless hours of eyeball to eyeball, back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-welch/real-communication-is-an-attitude-an-environment-it-is-the-most/) [Jack Welch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-welch/) > [People jump back and forth in pursuit of pleasures only because they see the emptiness of their lives more clearly than they do the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/people-jump-back-and-forth-in-pursuit-of-pleasures-only-because-they/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [How long were the stretches of toilsome tacking back and forth, of being blocked, of being thrown back again and again. But all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathe-kollwitz/how-long-were-the-stretches-of-toilsome-tacking-back-and-forth-of/) [Kathe Kollwitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathe-kollwitz/) > [The relationship with the words someone uses is more intimate and integrated than just a quick read and a blurb can ever be. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/the-relationship-with-the-words-someone-uses-is-more-intimate-and/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [ One day he \[Wagner\] was batting against a young pitcher who had just come into the league. The catcher was a kid, too .… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/burleigh-grimes/one-day-he-wagner-was-batting-against-a-young-pitcher-who-had-just/) [Burleigh Grimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/burleigh-grimes/) > [If I were just to read briefing books or I were just to engage in the political back and forth, would I have heard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/if-i-were-just-to-read-briefing-books-or-i-were-just-to-engage-in-the/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [ Writing two stories \[in the Thorn and the Blossom\] about the same set of events that were complete stories in themselves, but also added… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodora-goss/writing-two-stories-in-the-thorn-and-the-blossom-about-the-same-set/) [Theodora Goss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodora-goss/) [Browse all 224 Back and forth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/back-and-forth/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Our radio plays rhythm and blues as we pass the joint back and forth in jutjawed silence both looking ahead with big private thoughts now so vast we can't communicate them anymore and if we tried it would take a million years and a billion books - Too late, too late, the history of everything we've seen together and separately has become a library in itself - The shelves pile higher - They're full of misty documents or documents of the Mist - ...", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jack Kerouac" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/our-radio-plays-rhythm-and-blues-as-we-pass-the-joint-back-and-forth-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Back and forth" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/our-radio-plays-rhythm-and-blues-as-we-pass-the-joint-back-and-forth-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca8/jack-kerouac-182_back-and-forth_our-radio-plays-rhythm-and-blues-as-we-p_2743909.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca8/jack-kerouac-182_back-and-forth_our-radio-plays-rhythm-and-blues-as-we-p_2743909.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ca8/jack-kerouac-182_back-and-forth_our-radio-plays-rhythm-and-blues-as-we-p_2743909.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Our radio plays rhythm and blues as we pass the joint back and forth in jutjawed silence both looking ahead…” — Jack Kerouac", "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": "Jack Kerouac", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Our radio plays rhythm and blues...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/our-radio-plays-rhythm-and-blues-as-we-pass-the-joint-back-and-forth-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/our-radio-plays-rhythm-and-blues-as-we-pass-the-joint-back-and-forth-2/#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 } } ] } ```