--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I used to imagine that making it in music…" description: "\"I used to imagine that making it in music - really making it in music - is if you're an old man going by a schoolyard and you hear children singing you..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d70/tom-waits-916_children_i-used-to-imagine-that-making-it-in-musi_911194.jpg" --- # I used to imagine that making it in music - really making… ![“I used to imagine that making it in music - really making it in music - is if you're an old man going by a schoolyard and you hear children singing your songs, playing jump-rope, or on the swings. That's the ultimate. You're in the culture.” quote by Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d70/tom-waits-916_children_i-used-to-imagine-that-making-it-in-musi_911194.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d70/tom-waits-916_children_i-used-to-imagine-that-making-it-in-musi_911194.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d70/tom-waits-916_children_i-used-to-imagine-that-making-it-in-musi_911194.jpg) > “I used to imagine that making it in music - really making it in music - is if you're an old man going by a schoolyard and you hear children singing your songs, playing jump-rope, or on the swings. That's the ultimate. You're in the culture.” [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Achieving lasting cultural impact means being remembered by future generations in everyday moments. **In simple terms:** Being remembered when kids sing your songs. Key Takeaway Create work that resonates across ages. Themes legacy culture timelessness Mood reflective nostalgic Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - songwriting - public performances - teaching music - community events Key Concepts artistic influence intergenerational connection Questions to Reflect On - How will your work be experienced by future children? - What makes a song timeless? A Different Perspective Popularity can be fleeting; cultural relevance requires continual relevance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Jump rope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jump-rope/) [Making Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making-music/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Old man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-man/) [Singing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/singing/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) ## Related quotes > [Most songs that aren't jump-rope songs, or lullabies, are cautionary tales or goodbye songs and road songs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/most-songs-that-aren-t-jump-rope-songs-or-lullabies-are-cautionary/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I try and run for at least 15 minutes daily or jump rope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neha-sharma/i-try-and-run-for-at-least-15-minutes-daily-or-jump-rope/) [Neha Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neha-sharma/) > [We knew the pain of winter rushing up your skirt, and the ache of keeping your knees together in class, and how drab and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/we-knew-the-pain-of-winter-rushing-up-your-skirt-and-the-ache-of/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [The longer you wait, the more the jump rope becomes a big steel cable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-messing/the-longer-you-wait-the-more-the-jump-rope-becomes-a-big-steel-cable/) [Susan Messing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-messing/) > [Circuit training consists of doing resistant movements combined with an aerobic activity (jogging in place, jump rope, jumping jacks, etc.).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-haney/circuit-training-consists-of-doing-resistant-movements-combined-with/) [Lee Haney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-haney/) > [I like doing weights and cardio and some jump rope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stella-maxwell/i-like-doing-weights-and-cardio-and-some-jump-rope/) [Stella Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stella-maxwell/) > [For a good workout, I go to At One Fitness in North Hollywood, where my trainer, Jon Allsop, puts me through it all. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-dekay/for-a-good-workout-i-go-to-at-one-fitness-in-north-hollywood-where-my/) [Tim DeKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-dekay/) > [A jump rope is cheap, it's portable, and you can do it anywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-kirsch/a-jump-rope-is-cheap-it-s-portable-and-you-can-do-it-anywhere/) [David Kirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-kirsch/) > [Words are music, really.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/words-are-music-really/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [In terms of black music - the only music that we can call our own, that was really born here - I don't think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/in-terms-of-black-music-the-only-music-that-we-can-call-our-own-that/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [Apropos, is not the Scotch phrase 'Auld Lang Syne' exceedingly expressive? I shall give you the verses on the other sheet. The words of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-burns/apropos-is-not-the-scotch-phrase-auld-lang-syne-exceedingly/) [Robert Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-burns/) > [ I'm not making music for old people or young people. \[It's\] for everybody that wants to listen to it. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stromae/i-m-not-making-music-for-old-people-or-young-people-it-s-for/) [Stromae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stromae/) > [I like all kinds of music, be it old Hindi movie songs or English classics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/i-like-all-kinds-of-music-be-it-old-hindi-movie-songs-or-english/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [Music is neither old nor modern: it is either good or bad music, and the date at which it was written has no significance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-warlock/music-is-neither-old-nor-modern-it-is-either-good-or-bad-music-and/) [Peter Warlock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-warlock/) > [The first sign of real obsession with music was with an old wind-up gramophone that mum had thrown out into the garage. My parents…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-michael/the-first-sign-of-real-obsession-with-music-was-with-an-old-wind-up/) [George Michael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-michael/) ## More by Tom Waits > [Most of us have the residue of thousands of songs in our ears, that if you end up songwriting, I think you're mostly smoking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/most-of-us-have-the-residue-of-thousands-of-songs-in-our-ears-that-if/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [Bill Hicks - blowtorch, excavator, truthsayer, and brain specialist. He will correct your vision. Others will drive on the road he built.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/bill-hicks-blowtorch-excavator-truthsayer-and-brain-specialist-he/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [Don't plant your days they turn into weeds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/don-t-plant-your-days-they-turn-into-weeds/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [“T’ain’t no sin to take off your skin, and dance around in your bones.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/t-ain-t-no-sin-to-take-off-your-skin-and-dance-around-in-your-bones/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [“an all time favorite: "The large print giveth, the small print taketh away.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/an-all-time-favorite-the-large-print-giveth-the-small-print-taketh/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I'll tell you all my secrets but I lie about my past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-ll-tell-you-all-my-secrets-but-i-lie-about-my-past/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [For a songwriter, you don't really go to songwriting school; you learn by listening to tunes. And you try to understand them and take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/for-a-songwriter-you-don-t-really-go-to-songwriting-school-you-learn/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I'm trying to learn how to write faster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-m-trying-to-learn-how-to-write-faster/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [The world is a hellish place, and bad writing is destroying the quality of our suffering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/the-world-is-a-hellish-place-and-bad-writing-is-destroying-the/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I'm always looking for sounds that are pleasing at the time. The sound of a helicopter is really annoying until you're drowning, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-m-always-looking-for-sounds-that-are-pleasing-at-the-time-the-sound/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I was born in the back seat of a Yellow Cab in a hospital loading zone and with the meter still running. I emerged…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-was-born-in-the-back-seat-of-a-yellow-cab-in-a-hospital-loading/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [There's not much difference between what I appear to be on stage and what I am. I think people like that, that I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/there-s-not-much-difference-between-what-i-appear-to-be-on-stage-and/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [Most of the things you absorb you will ultimately secrete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/most-of-the-things-you-absorb-you-will-ultimately-secrete/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [The devil knows the Bible like the back of his hand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/the-devil-knows-the-bible-like-the-back-of-his-hand/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I bark my voice out through a closed throat, pretty much. It's more, perhaps, like a dog in some ways. It does have its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-bark-my-voice-out-through-a-closed-throat-pretty-much-it-s-more/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) [Explore all 328 Tom Waits quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) ## More Children quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [It doesnt seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesnt-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [My embarrassing confession is that my father is a 'Camelot: The Musical' obsessive. So as a child, when we were going to visit relatives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-chibnall/my-embarrassing-confession-is-that-my-father-is-a-camelot-the-musical/) [Chris Chibnall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-chibnall/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [A lesser complaint: hair extensions. There are moments on 'All My Children' when half the women actors, young and old, seem to be afflicted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/a-lesser-complaint-hair-extensions-there-are-moments-on-all-my/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. I feel like little girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/as-a-child-i-had-a-lot-of-older-gay-men-taking-care-of-me-there-s-a/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Children's lives are always beginning and adults' lives are always ending. Or is it the opposite? Your childhood is always ending and your adult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-espach/children-s-lives-are-always-beginning-and-adults-lives-are-always/) [Alison Espach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-espach/) > [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/) [Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/) [Browse all 62,396 Children quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I used to imagine that making it in music - really making it in music - is if you're an old man going by a schoolyard and you hear children singing your songs, playing jump-rope, or on the swings. That's the ultimate. 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