--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If they played more blues, people would…" description: "\"If they played more blues, people would just get it - they try to hold it back but just about can't hold it back now because the blues is really going...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aba/john-lee-hooker-15412_blues_if-they-played-more-blues-people-would-j_721.jpg" --- # If they played more blues, people would just get it - they… ![“If they played more blues, people would just get it - they try to hold it back but just about can't hold it back now because the blues is really going.” quote by John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aba/john-lee-hooker-15412_blues_if-they-played-more-blues-people-would-j_721.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aba/john-lee-hooker-15412_blues_if-they-played-more-blues-people-would-j_721.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aba/john-lee-hooker-15412_blues_if-they-played-more-blues-people-would-j_721.jpg) > “If they played more blues, people would just get it - they try to hold it back but just about can't hold it back now because the blues is really going.” [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The blues' raw emotional power is unstoppable, compelling listeners to feel its intensity despite attempts to suppress it. **In simple terms:** Uncontainable emotional force Key Takeaway Emotions surge when authenticity is present Themes emotion music authenticity cultural expression inevitability Mood passionate urgent raw Type song lyric philosophical observation When to use this quote - live concerts - personal reflection - social gatherings - creative inspiration Key Concepts blues genre emotional release cultural resonance Practical Applications - musical composition - therapeutic listening Questions to Reflect On - How does authentic expression affect audience reception? - When does restraint become counterproductive? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Blues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blues/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [My dad was my first influence. He played classical guitar and my uncle Ron played the blues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-becker/my-dad-was-my-first-influence-he-played-classical-guitar-and-my-uncle/) [Jason Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-becker/) > [I was born in love with music. My mother is a singer. Many of my aunts and uncles on my mother's side are musical.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/india-arie/i-was-born-in-love-with-music-my-mother-is-a-singer-many-of-my-aunts/) [India Arie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/india-arie/) > [When I first started playing, I plunked away just like everyone else. During the Sixties I played in a blues band for a few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-holdsworth/when-i-first-started-playing-i-plunked-away-just-like-everyone-else/) [Allan Holdsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allan-holdsworth/) > [I'm John Lee Hooker in the sense that he was a blues man and he played blues his whole life. I'm a rock guy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sammy-hagar/i-m-john-lee-hooker-in-the-sense-that-he-was-a-blues-man-and-he/) [Sammy Hagar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sammy-hagar/) > [Blues purists never cared for me. I don't worry about it. I think if it this way: When I made 'Three O' Clock Blues,'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-b-king/blues-purists-never-cared-for-me-i-don-t-worry-about-it-i-think-if-it/) [B. B. King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-b-king/) > [We're blues people. And blues never lets tragedy have the last word.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wynton-marsalis/we-re-blues-people-and-blues-never-lets-tragedy-have-the-last-word/) [Wynton Marsalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wynton-marsalis/) > [Eric Clapton was such a great player. He sounds like he's Freddie King or someone like that. He plays the roots of blues and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orianthi/eric-clapton-was-such-a-great-player-he-sounds-like-he-s-freddie-king/) [Orianthi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orianthi/) > [“…Charles laughingly observed,'Gospel and the blues are really, if you break it down, almost the same thing. It's just a question of whether you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-werner/charles-laughingly-observed-gospel-and-the-blues-are-really-if-you/) Craig Werner > [I was a late bloomer, but I realised that people really liked it when I played blues scales and, with the piano, I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-minchin/i-was-a-late-bloomer-but-i-realised-that-people-really-liked-it-when/) [Tim Minchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-minchin/) > [I remember my brother came home with a bass and played a blues solo on it. I just went insane for days afterwards learning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/labrinth/i-remember-my-brother-came-home-with-a-bass-and-played-a-blues-solo/) [Labrinth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/labrinth/) > [I never liked blues and I really didn’t like jazz. I liked Chuck Berry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-ramone/i-never-liked-blues-and-i-really-didn-t-like-jazz-i-liked-chuck-berry/) [Johnny Ramone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-ramone/) > [Depending on what you allow, you can still get the blues, man. I'm still trying to figure out where the blues really lies, where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-scott/depending-on-what-you-allow-you-can-still-get-the-blues-man-i-m-still/) [Christian Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-scott/) > [I listen to top 40, old country, blues... I'm really into Roger Miller.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/king-tuff/i-listen-to-top-40-old-country-blues-i-m-really-into-roger-miller/) [King Tuff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/king-tuff/) > [When you look at so much of what we all love, there's either soul-based to it, or it's the blues. It's really the beginnings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-weller/when-you-look-at-so-much-of-what-we-all-love-there-s-either-soul/) [Paul Weller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-weller/) > [Rap to me is a modern blues. But until we really confront the truth, we are going to have a Tupac or Eminem or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-wonder/rap-to-me-is-a-modern-blues-but-until-we-really-confront-the-truth-we/) [Stevie Wonder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-wonder/) ## More by John Lee Hooker > [I do benefits. I do them all the time. There's so many people out there that needs help that I can't say I won't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/i-do-benefits-i-do-them-all-the-time-there-s-so-many-people-out-there/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [Like you and your woman ain't gettin' along and you're in love. You can't sleep at nights. Your mind is on her - on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/like-you-and-your-woman-ain-t-gettin-along-and-you-re-in-love-you-can/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [I don't do nothing I don't want to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/i-don-t-do-nothing-i-don-t-want-to-do/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [I am a happy man. I've had a good life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/i-am-a-happy-man-i-ve-had-a-good-life/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [I have heartaches, I have blues. No matter what you got, the blues is there. 'Cause that's all I know - the blues. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/i-have-heartaches-i-have-blues-no-matter-what-you-got-the-blues-is/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [Poor people have the blues because they're poor and hungry. Rich people can't sleep at night because they're trying to hold on to their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/poor-people-have-the-blues-because-they-re-poor-and-hungry-rich/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [All my life I been doin' what people tell me to do. Now, I'm telling them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/all-my-life-i-been-doin-what-people-tell-me-to-do-now-i-m-telling-them/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [I been doing the same things as in my younger days, when I was coming up, and now here I am, an old man,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/i-been-doing-the-same-things-as-in-my-younger-days-when-i-was-coming/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [No matter what you got, the blues is there](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/no-matter-what-you-got-the-blues-is-there/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [The way Will Moore taught me, and the way I play it, the blues is just something different.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/the-way-will-moore-taught-me-and-the-way-i-play-it-the-blues-is-just/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [I'm even afraid to lay down with you at night, because when you go to bed at night, mean woman, you got an ice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/i-m-even-afraid-to-lay-down-with-you-at-night-because-when-you-go-to/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [Ron Thompson, he's my main man!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/ron-thompson-he-s-my-main-man/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [They wasn't gonna give you nothin'. I didn't care as long as they let me play my music. Cash on the spot... You cheat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/they-wasn-t-gonna-give-you-nothin-i-didn-t-care-as-long-as-they-let/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [“One night I was layin' down, I heard Papa talkin' to Mama, I heard Papa say to let that boy boogie-woogie. 'Cause it's in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/one-night-i-was-layin-down-i-heard-papa-talkin-to-mama-i-heard-papa/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) > [Since you knew they was goin' to cheat you anyway, I recorded under any name with all of 'em.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/since-you-knew-they-was-goin-to-cheat-you-anyway-i-recorded-under-any/) [John Lee Hooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) [Explore all 43 John Lee Hooker quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/) ## More Blues quotes > [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/) > [I want to go back to the format that radio started with rock n' roll, with country artists and rhythm and blues with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfman-jack/i-want-to-go-back-to-the-format-that-radio-started-with-rock-n-roll/) [Wolfman Jack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfman-jack/) [Browse all 1,026 Blues quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blues/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If they played more blues, people would just get it - they try to hold it back but just about can't hold it back now because the blues is really going.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Lee Hooker" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/if-they-played-more-blues-people-would-just-get-it-they-try-to-hold/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Blues" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/if-they-played-more-blues-people-would-just-get-it-they-try-to-hold/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aba/john-lee-hooker-15412_blues_if-they-played-more-blues-people-would-j_721.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aba/john-lee-hooker-15412_blues_if-they-played-more-blues-people-would-j_721.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aba/john-lee-hooker-15412_blues_if-they-played-more-blues-people-would-j_721.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If they played more blues, people would just get it - they try to hold it back but just about can't hold it…” — John Lee Hooker", "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": "John Lee Hooker", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lee-hooker/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If they played more blues, people...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/if-they-played-more-blues-people-would-just-get-it-they-try-to-hold/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lee-hooker/if-they-played-more-blues-people-would-just-get-it-they-try-to-hold/#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 } } ] } ```