Time & Perspective Quote by John Lee Hooker

Hooker’s line is a blues philosophy disguised as small talk: time is an abstraction for people who can afford to treat life like a schedule. “I don’t think about time” isn’t ignorance, it’s refusal. In a genre built on repetition and return, he’s pushing back against the modern obsession with progress, deadlines, and the neat story arcs we demand from artists. The blues doesn’t climb; it circles. Hooker made a career out of grooves that feel like they’ve been going on forever, and that’s the point.

“You’re here when you’re here” lands like a shrug, but it’s also a hard-earned lesson from a Black Southern life shaped by migration, precarious work, and the everyday uncertainty that makes long-range planning a luxury. There’s stoicism in it, but also a sly liberation: if the future is unreliable, presence becomes power.

Then comes the real craft note: “staying in tune.” He’s not preaching mindfulness; he’s talking about calibration. For a musician, staying in tune means listening constantly - to the band, the room, the crowd, your own body. It’s a discipline of attention, not a vibe. Hooker’s boogie is famously elastic, often sliding around strict bar lines; the way he stays “in tune” is by staying responsive, keeping the feel true even when the clock says it shouldn’t work.

The subtext is anti-romantic, too: don’t mistake longevity for meaning. Show up, lock in, make today hit.