And then I think we realized, like any young guys, that blues are not learned in a monastery. You've got to go out there and get your heart broke and then come back and then you can sing the blues.
Keith RichardsWhat is it that makes you want to write songs? In a way you want to stretch yourself into other peopleโs hearts. You want to plant yourself there, or at least get a resonance, where other people become a bigger instrument than the one youโre playing. It becomes almost an obsession to touch other people. To write a song that is remembered and taken to heart is a connection, a touching of bases. A thread that runs through all of us. A stab to the heart. Sometimes I think songwriting is about tightening the heartstrings as much as possible without bringing on a heart attack.
Keith Richards